Easter 2014

Easter was extra special this year as it was Daniel's first. Having a child adds a whole new aspect to holiday celebrations. As we go through each holiday with Daniel, I have been thinking about traditions and the various things that I want him to learn about each holiday. I love coming up with creative ways to combine the traditions that Jonathan remembers with the traditions from my family. My goal is to create meaningful holidays for our family. I want them to be focused on the real reason for celebration, our Savior, and to involve a lot of family time. 

This year we started things off simply. Because Daniel is only nine months old, I know he won't remember much and I didn't want to get bogged down by having too many things to do on Easter. Rather, I wanted to just be able to enjoy it as a family. I didn't stress about coordinating our outfits. I didn't worry about getting the perfect pictures. And I didn't have the day all planned out with tons of things to do. (Not that any of the above things is wrong, I just knew it would stress me out and I wouldn't enjoy the day)

Instead, our day consisted of a simple Easter basket for Daniel and Jonathan. We went to brunch at church and followed that by attending our Easter Sunday Service. The afternoon brought a nap for Daniel, a run for Jonathan, and a little house work for me. And then my dad joined us and we all headed over to our friends' house for Easter dinner.

It was a beautiful day filled with meaningful moments spent with family and friends--who have become family. I can't wait until next year when we can celebrate again and enjoy even more Easter traditions--an egg hunt anyone?!