Happy Easter

Boing! Boinngg! Boinnngggg!

There goes our sanity. Bouncing away.

Saturday morning dawned with great opportunity. Sure it was cold and overcast for the buzzilionth day in a row, but there was an Easter egg hunt at the zoo, and a royal Easter egg hunt at Enger Tower. If we scheduled wisely, we could make it to both. What fun!

Of course, AJ slept late and I was in no particular hurry, which meant suddenly we were rushing around to get out the door in time to make it to the last hour of the hunt at the zoo. And then Jeff woke up and suggested that if we skip the hunt at the zoo, then he'd be able to join us.

I broke the news to the kids, telling them we'd go to the zoo another day. Sydney was so excited that she got to wear her princess dress to the royal egg hunt, that she was fine with the decision. AJ was a bit miffed that he couldn't dress as a pirate, but begrudgingly went along with the new plan when we told him he could be a knight and carry a shield and sword. So everyone got ready. We at a quick lunch. And then we were off.

And then we got a flat tire. On I-35.

The optimist in me recognizes it was a good learning opportunity. I've never attempted to change a flat tire before. At least now I know how. (Though I doubt I'd be able to, noting how much muscle power was involved in loosening the rusted bolts.) Meanwhile the realist in me waited until the very final stage of the process to pull out my camera. I doubt Jeff would have found humor in me capturing shots of him on the ground with just his legs sticking out from under the truck.

Thankfully, some friends (a colleague of Jeff's) happened to spot us on the side of the road and stopped to help. They had a fancier jack, which sped up the process.

Still, we were at least 45 minutes late to the egg hunt, which meant all the eggs had already been found. At least the royal party was still there, posing for photos. That was enough to thrill Sydney.

Trying to make the trip not a complete waste, we climbed up some rocks so the kids could see the incredible view of Lake Superior. It was right about then that I realized the last time I'd been there with Jeff was our wedding day. In between the church and reception, we'd had the limo driver take us there. How things change!

Trying to make the best of a bad situation, I suggested we head to the follow up activities, which supposedly included games and crafts sponsored by the Children's Museum.

Another mistake.

There were no games. There were a couple craft activities with way too many kids in way too small of a space. We let Sydney make a flower, and then we were out of there.

To cheer the kids up, Jeff suggested I take them to see the movie Hop. (Jeff had to work, and he'd already taken AJ to see it the night Sydney and I had gone to Beauty and the Beast.) That seemed as good a plan as any, so off we went. It was a cute enough movie, and it definitely put the kids - and me - in a better, more relaxed mood. (Though I've made a mental note to never again see a movie with AJ that he's already seen. Non-stop narration telling me what was about to happen.)

Thank goodness none of that is what Easter is really about. It's a new day and the sun is shining brightly. Halleluia! We have so many blessings and reasons to praise God.