It would be all too easy to allow Easter to pass as just another bank holiday and especially this year as dh is working much of it but I was determined that the children stay connected to our faith and yesterday we had a day of making Easter memories. Claire at Clarina's contemplations reminded me recently with her delightful post that I love the little traditions that families repeat year after year and last year we made Easter (or resurrection) gardens for the first time and when I mentioned to the girls about making some they were up for it.
We had a lot of fun yesterday as we walked around the lake to collect all we needed to make our little gardens (dirt, sticks, moss, wildflowers, stones) and then we headed over to the gardeners' stores to borrow a couple of seed trays and plastic post and finally back home to put them together. As we went we talked through the Easter story and the girls recounted what they knew and I filled in the gaps. It is really important for us reflect on the importance of Easter and remember what happened.
We also then made hot cross buns from scratch, not something I've done before but it was OK and the kids managed to do two batches argument free, which was fabulous. It was then nice to be able to butter them while they were still warm and take them up to the main house and offer my husband and a few of his staff one.
We used the BBC good food easy hot cross bun recipe here.
The girls also painted some cheap pottery bunnies I picked up in Hobbycraft and we painted faces too, it was a day of togetherness and for me it finished perfectly when I went to a Maundy Thursday service in the evening and had some adult time to pray and reflect.
From our family to yours we wish you a very happy Easter.
Be blessed, Mich xxx