Easter 09

Last year in the run up to Easter, Joy and I spent a little time each day reading through portions of the New Testament dealing what Jesus did on that day. It was deeply spiritual and very fulfilling. We planned this year to try to work this up into an official tradition and introduce Hyrum to some of the highlights.

Well, 2/8 isn't bad, right?

On Palm Sunday, I told Hyrum the story about the triumphal entry (Matthew 21) and then we did a reenactment. I got down on all fours and Hyrum, who has just discovered he can grip Dad's neck with his legs, rode on me as the donkey into the living room. Joy tossed some blankets and sheets out in our path and cried out with a loud voice, saying: "Hosanna! Blessed be the name of the most high God!" (which on checking after the fact are neither the words given in Matthew, nor in Luke, but it's the right sentiment).

Hyrum smiled big and really got a kick out of it. Sorry, no videos - whose hands were available?

Then ... something kept happening this week. I'm not sure how. There was the seminar given by Nobel prize winner Amartya Sen, there was home teaching, there was ... SOMETHING every evening so I was only home long enough to eat dinner and/or help put Hyrum to bed, but not enough to really talk with him about the temple or the parables or the Passover or Gethsemane or the Crucifixion. Actually, no, we did cover the temple - I was home one more night when we colored Easter eggs and told him about the temple. Anyway, it wasn't as full as we had hoped.

Sunday we did some things right, though. Following the women, we arose early in the morning so we could be out of the house by 7. I practiced a musical number for the Easter Program with two YSA friends who asked to do my arrangement of "I Know That My Redeemer Lives." Despite one of the girls being sick, they did a really good job turning my choir arrangement into a talented duet. Then there was choir rehearsal and then we performed for the Sacrament meeting Easter program.

Joy, in her Easter hat, was in charge of the Church program and she did a very successful job delegating large portions of it to other people. With a lot of people putting their best efforts into their parts of the program, the Spirit testified of Jesus and His Atonement. I got to spend some time in the afternoon telling Hyrum more of the story that had been missed over the week and took a much needed 3 hour nap.

Joy was also in charge of Easter baskets. She put Hyrum's out for him after his nap and he took some time exploring all the different things in his basket. Now for THAT we have video! Joy filmed the whole thing for me in short clips. Her commentary is almost better than watching the baby at some points. "And there's that yellow jelly bean again.... and the frog."



Hy really got a kick out of that frog. Almost none of the toys were new - Joy was reintroducing some old friends and added some large plastic jelly beans and a penguin in a ball. Our son is rather ambidextrous, and it was interesting to me to note that he explored the basket with his right hand while his left hand held on to the frog or the penguin depending on which had his interest. He'd explore a bit, shake the frog, pull out that yellow jelly bean again, shake the frog, put the jelly bean back, shake the frog.....

Joy hid my basket and I found it. I hid hers to find the next morning ... which we realized after the fact wasn't the most food safety awareness thing I'd ever done -- boiled eggs sitting out at room temperature for 8+ hours. "Needless to say, there were some of our eggs we didn't eat" including the one Joy only found YESTERDAY! "We tend to think it's a time bomb." I put it in with the baby diapers, which also constitute biological warfare. Sadly, Joy had left her basket on the stove earlier, so her chocolate eggs got melted pretty bad. The Easter bunny decided in all justice to switch our chocolate eggs around, so she still got the good ones.

"We're going to have to get some more Wanka eggs next year." Those were wonderful.

For dinner we had corned beef and cabbage, I guess celebrating Easter in Ireland. You've heard of Easter Island, well this is Easter Ireland. "Corned beef is so good!"

And that sounds a lot like Easter at the Watsons' this year. Oh, by fortuitous happenstance, I was reading John's account of the crucifixion on Saturday and the resurrection on Sunday. That's just how my reading happened to fall out. That was nice. Joy had made Easter nest cookies the week before (butterscotch chips, Chinese noodles, Crisco mixed together for the nest, then plop a few peanut M&Ms in for the eggs). They're cute. Decorative and delicious.

And THAT sounds a lot like Easter at the Watsons' this year.