Easter At Home

I'm sure we've all heard this saying before. What I like to refer to as those who show up for mass twice a year and take all the seats so those of us that go almost every week end up having to stand in the back of church the entire mass with our unruly kids. Maybe If we just left the house a bit earlier, we'd get a seat, but I still like to blame it on those "Twice-A-Year Catholics".

I've actually started to become what I call a "Twice-A-Year-Non-Catholic" and that's not really a good thing. The two days that I should be in church, Christmas and Easter, I'm home. It's starting to become more of a hassle trying to get two little kids ready and to church where they are just going to act crazy and be bouncing off the walls the whole time. I make a much better effort, actually not so much an effort, but I actually go, when we have family in town or when we have the older boys with us then when it's just Scott and I and the little boys. Neither one of us looks forward to how we think the two little guys are going to act in church. We run around all morning trying to make sure that they don't get their new Christmas or Easter outfits dirty. And let's face it, especially at Christmas when there's a house full of people and you're just completely drained by all the activities, I can barely pull myself out of bed on Christmas morning. I'm content to just lay there until the first kid finally wakes up and remembers that Santa was there.

Yesterday was one of these years where it was just Scott and I and the little guys. The older boys were with their mom. My mom had stayed the night with us because she had watched the boys the night before when we went out with friends (see previous post), which contributed a tiny bit to my not really feeling up to getting out of bed quiet so early that morning. Scott had to go into work Easter morning, so we were kind of up in the air as too when he'd be home and we could get to mass. I had already decided that my mother was insane for suggesting that she and I go with the kids. If they decided to be just the slightest bit out of control that would be enough.

The boys had decided to sleep in, and Scott actually was home at a pretty decent hour, so in all honesty if I would have just dragged my sorry butt out of bed BEFORE the boys got up and not WHEN they got up, I probably could have been ready to go to mass at 10:30, 11:00 or even noon, but we had other things to worry about. Like how the Easter bunny was a bit buzzed the night before and had planned to go to the store after dinner with friends to buy goodies for the Easter baskets, but didn't quiet make it there. So Easter bunny had to go to the store with a wine headache the next morning to buy goodies and groceries for Easter dinner. (On a side note all the Easter Candy was 50% off. BONUS!!) Good thing the boys really don't get the whole Easter bunny thing yet. Maybe it's the fact that I haven't yet introduced them to dying Easter eggs. I had fully intended to do that this year, but since I had the carpets cleaned this past week, I wasn't looking forward to anyone accidently spilling egg dye on the dining room floor. So we'll wait another year for that. Needless to say they had no idea that they were supposed to wake up and go running around looking for their Easter baskets. The fact that they had already gotten a basket at daycare, and from my friend and from grandma might have contributed to this as well. I'm sure they thought they had enough baskets and candy. I sure did. But the Easter Bunny did finally make an appearence later that morning, leaving a basket full of goodies for each of them on the front porch. Of course as soon as they ran out and got them and started going through all their fun stuff, Christian exclaimed with delight, "Thanks Mom!". And I told him, not mom, the Easter Bunny left those for you. To which he responded, "Okay. Thanks Mom!".

Note to self: To a better job of explaining Easter to the kids.

So our day was pretty much shot. Everything I had planned on doing, really didn't get done. We never really left the house. I had bought the boys new Easter outfits so I broke down and dressed them up just so I could at least take a picture and not it be a total waste. We did have a nice dinner, thanks to Scott cooking for us...I helped..but burned my hand on the oven, and pretty much gave up after that. My mom ate with us and my dad and step-mom stopped over later in the afternoon. It was a lazy Sunday spent at home, but with good food and good company. Just another Easter at home.

P.S. This is what happens when your husband gives your 2-yr-old and solid chocolate bunny: