easter weekend

On Saturday we decided to take the kids to a nearby feed store so they could see some baby chicks and bunnies.  Aside from the experience for the kids, we had an ulterior motive: we’ve been contemplating getting some chickens for our backyard. We think we can fit a small roost near the garden, just behind the compost bin. I KNOW.  I don’t know who I am anymore. If I start wearing Birkenstocks, feel free to stage an intervention for me. Karis is our little animal lover.  It might look like Mark is holding her up in the photo above but in reality he is trying to keep her from crawling into the cage herself. She is fearless.  Unfortunately, she is not always so gentle in her enthusiasm, and I kept thinking of the part in Of Mice and Men when Lennie pets the rabbits to death. “Tell me about the rabbits, George . . .” On Saturday night we went to a benefit concert for Free Wheelchair Mission at the fairgrounds.  For only $63, this organization makes lightweight wheelchairs that they delivered to the disabled in third-world countries where medical equipment is not available (or affordable). The sun was a bit hot at the concert so Mark tilted his hat to the side, and I told him that if I didn’t know him, I’d probably be taking his picture and mocking him on the internet. Which . . . yeah.  I guess I’m still doing that.  What up, brah? On Saturday night we prepped the Easter baskets.  We went a little light on the candy this year, in favor of a gift the kids have been wanting.  I think this might be a new tradition. Of course, I wouldn’t let them open their baskets until they posed for a picture in their Easter duds. This is a trick straight out of my mother’s playbook. I learned from the best.  Just look at those fake smiles, desperate to be let back in the house for access to their Easter baskets! And now down to business . . . Jafta got a Death Star lego set he’s been eyeing, and Kembe got a pair of Heely’s.  Kembe is naturally good at nearly everything he tries, but boy oh boy, he was humbled by the Heely’s this morning.  Our church had a great Easter celebration this morning at the fairgrounds.  I wore a new pair of shoes, which is never advised when attending a stadium-style event in the sweltering heat. The strap was cutting off circulation to my toes so I had to take it off.  (The straps have these cute little tassles.  See?) Mark decided to go ahead and wear the tassled straps on his wrists.  Such a hipster, this one. In case you are counting, this is the second time this weekend that Mark and I have taken ridiculous pictures of ourselves during a Francis Chan sermon.  Spiritual maturity . . . I’m telling you. Baptisms always make me weepy. We lined up the kids and their cousins to get a picture and they got photobombed by a guy who decided to attend the Easter service shirtless.  He took the “come just as you are” thing really seriously. Yay!  Everyone’s dressed up with clean hair!  More photos!  Don’t the boys look thrilled. . . Mark’s parents and aunt came over for brunch, and then the kids had an Easter egg hunt in the backyard. Midway through, Karis realized there was candy involved and decided to just have a seat and eat through her basket. In the afternoon, the kids dyed eggs and had dramatic post-candy-binge meltdowns, ticking off our last requirement in completing ALL OF THE EASTER THINGS. Happy Easter!