Pascha 2012

Whew. I look at how busy life has been in recent times and look ahead at how busy life is going to be with no slowing in sight.  I am wondering what if anything needs to be trimmed from my life.  I can see that perhaps, I need to be even more disciplined and have even greater fortitude.  This all stems from my inability to find a balance for all I wish to accomplish, including a simple Easter blog.  Yet perhaps, I need to remember how life pauses a bit for the preparation, birth and rearing of a new child.  It takes nearly two years, from conception to a year old, to come to a place where life is flowing again; and for us we have then begun the cycle again as soon as we are comfortable again.  I feel like we never reached a comfortable rhythm in life after Annie was born, but maybe after Lucy.

Here are our Easter memories from this year.  I did not take many pictures this year.  I have just been trying not to meltdown lately.  But, I feel like we were able to keep the spirit of the feast.

Baking Pascha Bread

Kitchen Helpers
Right from the start I regretted deciding to make the Pascha bread this year.  I had told myself that it would be all right if I skipped it this year.  I hate the mess and I knew I would be on my feet far longer than my body would agree with.  I also found that I did not have the patience for my little helpers.

"Alex, please stop putting your fingers in the flour and licking them!"

Annie Throwing a Fit on the Floor

Kids Everywhere

Andrew was not around to help with the children.   He was working on our yard most of the day. (I really wish we lived close to family.)  Finally, Annie tossed the last egg I had on the floor.  I needed it for glazing the bread.  I threw all the toys out of the kitchen, begged them to stay out and borrowed an egg from the neighbor.  They tip-toed back into the kitchen giggling minutes later.  Ack, how can they be so adorable and aggravating at the same time!

Success, Despite Aggravation

What's Pascha Bread Without Lamb Shaped Butter?

Easter Egg Dyeing

I did not take any pictures of the kids dyeing their multi-colored eggs.  I was just trying to run interference.  Plus, once you have seen one kid drop an egg into a dye cup…Anyhow, after we were mostly done dyeing I asked the kids to come see, Mommy's red eggs.  Alex was fascinated.  He asked me why my eggs were red.  I explained it and then he proceeded to ask what each color of the eggs he had dyed meant.  So I told him what I thought they meant based on icon colors.  Then he said that we need a black egg.  So we spent over an hour dipping one egg into various colors.  That egg, we decided, represented Christ's three days in Hell.  Yeah, Alex is a pretty cool kid.

Alex's Black Egg

A Series of Baby Easter Basket Cuteness -
She ate everything in her basket instantly. She didn't have much, but it was still a lot in a short amount of time.

The Claytons on Easter 2012 - We Made It and It Is Good