Easter Confession

[Tiapet]

So at 4A this morning SO and I snuck in to the difficult child's rooms and hid all the Easter eggs and placed their baskets. We did this so that there was no fighting over "he/she got more eggs then I or he/she found my eggs." They sleep soundly and it was just far more easier. Everyone is usually up around 6 so there was not much chance that they'd have eaten up all the candy by then and I didn't get a lot either. Each had 12 plastic filled and 12 dyed to find in their rooms. Then a small basket with a few pieces of candy and each also got a stuffed bunny (or duck) as tradition has it.

So what's my confession? My confession is that last year I did not do Easter for them at all. You see, back in Aug 2006 my father died and that Christmas my little difficult child's had to learn there was no Santa due to the fact that Grandma didn't want Christmas at her house nor my house (or my sisters). She just didn't want to be in a house anywhere. She wanted to be away from it all and not have to handle the emotions of the seasons. So she decided to take the family away for the holiday on a big vacation. We went on a cruise (which wasn't decorated very much at all).

So because we were going to be on a cruise and finances were going to be tight to do so (the trip came up quick and unexpected) they had to learn there was going to be no Santa and basically no Christmas like there were used to in past. They were going to get a few presents when we got home but far less then they would have gotten traditionally. Basically it turned out a big, big mess.

Now that they new there was no Santa obviously 2+2= there is no Easter bunny, no tooth fairy and no other magical thinking. A sudden jolt. Since they knew there was no Easter bunny I guess I thought I didn't have to do Easter and didn't do it. I don't know why I thought that at the time but maybe my mind wasn't thinking clearly. I didn't even know it was important to them.

That is until after Easter came and went last year and oldest difficult child expressed her sadness that there was no Easter and she missed dying and finding Easter eggs and getting baskets (she already knew no bunny). I just never realized the impact. If she felt this way being older, how did the little ones feel? I felt like a HEEL and it was tool late to undo Easter for that year.

So this year I made sure to go back to traditions. You have no idea how good it feels (ok maybe you do) to be able to do Easter all over again even thought they know mom's the Easter bunny. They all got excited and were happy to be doing and having it. I was excited and happy to do it for them.

So there you have it. My Easter confession. Righting a wrong and learning a lesson.

 

[tammyjh]

Awww...how nice to get back to the traditions. I think thats what makes the holidays fun...the things we do together. My confession is that we didn't do much preparing this year and I really missed dyeing the eggs with the kids. We still did the baskets and will be doing the egg hunt though

My other confession is that I shorted one of the kids a slinky for their basket...thinking I had bought 4, I only found 3 in the bags from the store. So, as they each had 4 items besides their candy, I held the 3rd slinky out of my 2 yr olds basket. They usually don't like slinky's anyway. Well, he wanted his brother's slinky so I ran up to the closet and grabbed the 3rd one, brought it down and gave it to him. I thought no one would notice...I was wrong. My 6 yr old noticed and put 2 and 2 together....mom is the easter bunny. I tried to fix things by saying the easter bunny gave me the items and "I" forgot to put the slinky in the basket but I don't think he believed me. Luckily, he doesn't seem to really care though. All he wants to do is go to his aunts house for the egg hunt. And guess what the favorite thing from the baskets are? The slinky's...and I'm still short one

 

[mrscatinthehat]

You know how funny ok ironic. easy child was talking a few months ago about wanting to get rid of a bunch of her stuffed animals (we'll not discuss how many there are or how painful it would be to me as I remember where most came from even if she doesn't). So I had not gone to get her a bunny this year. Figuring cutting back on the ones she has means she doesn't want to get so many. Yesterday at the store she started carrying this fluffy stuffed white bunny. Guess what she wanted for easter. So it came home with us. When I went in her room she was cuddling with it while on the computer.

Sometimes it is nice to know we can retain some of their childhood for a while longer.

Beth

I'll also have to remember to get a bunny to take to difficult child 1 when we go next time. Can't send one to difficult child 2.

 

[ML]

We did the egg dying ritual yesterday and it was fun. Though we had to change from easter basket to easter present because of my son's issues with sugar and candy. He got a game for his Nintendo DS.

 

[Tiapet]

Beth we ritually go through stuffed animals as they had too many as well but then again those are ones they had collected over the years from odd places and usually it's the ones from those darn machines or carnivals or something. Junky ones I guess. We never get rid of the Easter ones or the sentimental ones given for a reason.

Michele my little dude has food allergy too so it's hard finding candy that doesn't have corn syrup or one of the many derivatives in it but it can be done, and also why there isn't much candy in the baskets.

I'm all about traditions as I was brought up with a family that was heaped in them but as I grew older and the family grew apart from in-fighting or distance they went to the weigh side. I've missed it and my difficult child's didn't seem to like the traditional stuff, or so I thought but I'm learning that they, like me, really do like the traditional stuff I did and come to depend and look forward to them (even if each and every one of the holiday's goes to h*** in a hand basket because of behaviors and we say "this isn't worth it" - it sure is!).

 

[Star*]

Tia,

I got a huge smile reading your Easter Bunny post - YOU ARE officially now the BOARD Easter Bunny - Next year it will be YOUR job to come up with the post that says - ARE YOUR READY to hide eggs everybunny?

-Hey If Jo can make me the board cheerleader - YOU can be the EasterBunny.

Thanks for the happy read!

I couldn't do Christmas this year - too much for me to handle and I don't regret it, but interestingly enough I did get a call from my son wishing me a Happy Easter and to tell me how good his life is going. I told him I had an Easter basket and he said - I hope so - I worked hard not to MESS UP Easter. (I guess it was funny and sad both) So here his basket sits - and I did a couple eggs for him -

Happy Easter you little rabbit you!

 

[Abbey]

One of the most fun things I did as a teacher was the 'Spring Egg Hunt.' (you couldn't say Easter.) We'd fill about 500 eggs and hide them while the kids were at lunch. You'd think that 6th graders would be too cool to hunt for eggs...but they LOVED it. Keep in mind that they are hidden in cactus, etc. I always loved watching them.

Abbey