...I'm doing something a little different this time - I've started this entry after 10pm on a Saturday night, and will post it on Sunday evening (which is when you're most likely reading it) and I probably won't have an entry on Monday.

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Before I begin, I hope that you all had a wonderful, safe, and enjoyable Easter Sunday. And for those who have already had Easter Sunday, or don't celebrate, I hope you had a nice weekend.

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Saturday
So, here I sit, late in the night, energized by a glass of tangerine juice I drained and waiting for Easter morning. I love Easter - it's a day of rebirth, re-energy, and chocolate hangovers.

DH and I have just about finished being the Easter Bunny. B's basket is hidden with a tie wrap between the shower curtain in the downstairs bathroom. A's basket is yet to be hidden, but we're thinking in the dishwasher. 16 eggs have been filled and hidden around the downstairs portion of the house - now I just have to explain how I know that there's 16 eggs when the kids come up short. I suppose this year I could state that the bunny leaves twice the amount of eggs as the oldest child's age. Hopefully A won't work the math and think that there should be 17.

The girls were so excited when we tucked them into bed. B has really missed ice cream, and can't wait to see what's in her Easter basket. They've not quite learned all the other significant things about what the day means. Yes, we're behind on them having formal religious education - but they're doing fine anyway and we do sit and chat with them about it once in a while. It's no good excuse, but it's what I've got for the moment.

For those who have been following this blog you know that I gave up chocolate, candies of all kinds, and sodas for Lent. Tomorrow I can have them all back. Honestly, one soda and the chocolate bunny ears that B promised me will probably be enough for me to handle tomorrow. That and some deviled eggs. And maybe a chocolate lava cake later on in the week. Oh yes, I missed chocolate a lot. Next year, I'm rethinking the soda thing - a really cold highly carbonated soda puts the quick ka-bonch on an allergic sneeze fit and I could have used that a couple of times in the last couple of weeks. I don't think I'll give up chocolate, but I will give up ice cream and candy. Thus, I can still have a piece of chocolate birthday cake should I end up at a party where it's being served - like the three parties I went to during this Lent that had chocolate cake... or chocolate ice cream. Yes, I understand the sacrifice that it represents, but that was just pure torture.

I think I'll give up pizza too, which will make meatless Fridays an even more creative challenge when looking for things to eat - really, a pizza with spinach, tomato and black olive is really good (and drop the black olive, add ham instead for those non-meatless days and you have a winner of a pizza). Ah, I'll have to look back at this next year and see what I end up doing.

Anyway, it's late and I think I'll switch on the television with a glass of water and stitch for a short while before bed. Tomorrow we have Mass to attend, a few eggs to find, and family to visit with. Hopefully I'll be able to sit down and get a few thoughts in while they're still fresh in my mind.

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Sunday Morning
Oh boy, I stayed up way too late last night watching Saturday Night Live - this is my first thought when I crack my eyes open around 6:30am. I hear the girls wandering around and making exclamations about the bunny having been in the house. I know that DH & I will be invaded upon shortly, so I close my eyes and try to grab a few more minutes worth of sleep. The girls come in no less than 6 times before DH & I get up to see what they've found. During one of the trips we were informed that B helped A find her basket because the silverware basket from the dishwasher wasn't in the dishwasher. A was going to leave it there until B finds her basket.

I come downstairs around 7:30, with no intention of going to Mass because I don't want to embarrass the family by falling asleep, and there is still a basket to be found. I find B laying down on the floor staring 20 feet up at the entryway ceiling. I follow her eyes up and see nothing. "There's no basket there, B" to which she asks if the bunny could hide the basket up on one of the high windowsills in the entryway. I look up and smile, knowing that that was one of the places that DH was thinking of last night for a basket perch. "Oh, I don't know, perhaps."

About 15 minutes later, they get a clue from DH - he had wandered around the house looking high and low, following the wall in the house. Once they had heard that he had seen B's basket, they ran off straight to the bathroom where it had been hidden. DH comments that he must have been thinking too loud; I just wonder if I'd given anything away when *I* looked around the house, but I know I avoided looking where the basket was hidden. A few minutes later A exclaims that she's found the basket.

They're entranced with the brown uni and the shadow gelert NeoPets that the bunny has graciously left in their baskets. And confused, since the bunny usually leaves the plushies somewhere else as another part of the hunt. But they quickly forgot that and happily ran off to introduce their new plushies to all their other soft friends.

I did get my bunny ears though, and now on a breakfast of one Nestle crunch egg, a square of Lindt extra creamy chocolate, and some See's bunny ears, I'm ready to get dressed and head to DH's parents house for the next egg hunt and a real brunch. I'm still waiting to get a taste of some good deviled eggs and a slice or two of bacon sounds really good right now as well.

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Sunday afternoon and evening
We're back home after the brunch, swimming and egg hunt at grandma's house. Everyone seemed happy, healthy, and on various degrees of sugar highs. Anyway, we're back home, watching the Giants/Padres game which was tied at 0 in the 4th inning - slow start to the game but it's starting to pick up, since as I typed this the Padres scored 3 runs. Time to stop watching the game, I suppose.

Roasted chicken breast in a beef and golden mushroom sauce is in the oven, fresh sourdough bread, steamed broccoli and angel hair pasta with butter will round out the rest of the meal. Alias is on late tonight, so I'll stay up and watch it (addiction is a horrible thing, but it will give me some good stitching time).

The only bad part of the day? There weren't any deviled eggs!!!! That's all I was looking forward to. *grin* That's ok... I'll get to have the fun of making them this year with the leftover dyed eggs....

... now where did I set down the paprika?