Good Friday in my house growing up meant we could not talk from 12-3, but EWTN was allowed to play on the tv. In our house now, Good Fridays are spent cleaning walls and cabinets from 12-2ish before we get ready to go to the 3pm service at our church. It's a much needed chore that everyone hates, so it's a perfect Good Friday event! They put on smiles for the pictures, but just imagine lots of grumblings and whining while I kept reminding everyone that JESUS DIED ON THE CROSS AND THIS IS THE LEAST WE CAN DO in a very mindful, very demure way of course.
Phil was still in painting mode:
Maggie had some friends over on Friday night to watch the Passion of the Christ movie, and I felt weird not serving snacks because being hospitable is in my Irish DNA, but there's not much to serve on a fast day. They were up really late which meant I was up really late, and that was a perfect last few hours of suffering for Lent WHICH IS THE LEAST I COULD DO SINCE JESUS DIED FOR ALL MY SINS, I kept reminding myself.
I don't know what we did on Holy Saturday, besides a long run and a last piano lesson before this weekend's competition. We picked out Easter outfits for the next day because we attended 8am Mass at our beautiful church:
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| Nobody liked how they looked, but we can't exactly go back and recreate it. |
Maggie saw all of the pretty flowers and whispered "this is how I want the church to look on my wedding day" to which my money-saving brain replied "then you should get married right after Easter".
We came home, changed clothes, made breakfast of cinnamon rolls and eggs, and checked out what the Easter Bunny left:
For some reason, he left lots of summer things, like sunscreen and swimsuits...
and then each kid was given a Pirani cup, which they opened up to find...
...shirts with a clue to a surprise vacation!
A cruise to Bermuda!!!!
We are leaving in a week and this is our biggest vacation ever, booked months ago (which was one of the reasons the financial stress was high as things kept popping up after). We are all so excited, and a little sad that the college boys don't have the same break but our schedules are not very flexible. I'm a wee bit nervous as we've never cruised and I stupidly have watched a lot of cruise-gone-wrong documentaries over the years. Give my all your tips and tricks!!
We drove over to my sister's house, where all of my side of the family (except one sister's family and some college kids) were able to get together:
Meanwhile out in Pittsburgh, JP was studying for a huge test he had on Easter Monday, but he did go to services and Masses over the Tridium with friends and they ordered an Easter brunch while studying like the good guys and gals they are. When we called him for Easter, and he said he was still studying, I said "you would be the Nerds in the Easter basket" to which he quickly replied "it's better than being the Dum Dum".
He sent photos of a rainbow and from a friend's engagement party:
Eamon went to Michigan with friends to celebrate Easter and said it was a lot of fun, but he didn't take any photos. Living in the moment I guess?!
Andrew went to Virginia with his girlfriend to stay with her family to celebrate Easter AND the birth of his girlfriend's newest niece!
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| Andrew made it into the family photo :) |
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| Cuties |
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| Kids love Andrew and Andrew loves kids! |
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| Unintentionally twinning with her little brother :) |
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| What a view! |
I hope you all had a wonderful Easter with the people you love, and remember it's a season not just a day so keep on celebrating that He is Risen!
Get married after Easter--I love it! We have 5 daughters so that could be good advice! I love the wall and cabinet washing on Good Friday; brilliant! A cruise sounds lovely!
ReplyDeleteHappy Easter Colleen and family!
Looks like a great Easter. Here at our parish we have 2 weddings this weekend, a Friday and Saturday. All those fragrant Easter Lilies! Have so much fun on your cruise. My big advice is to pack less than you think you need. Stay away from excessive alcohol users and don't plan out every last thing: see where the day takes you.
ReplyDeleteHappy Easter! Tomorrow being a Meat Friday is always a huge cause for celebration at our house. Greta told me her homeroom teacher gave them extra free time this week in honor of the Octave. I just love that the Easter feasting/celebration is even longer than Lent!
ReplyDeleteI LOVE cruising!!! I've been on three and have never had a bad experience. My number one tip is to use hand sanitizer and wash hands frequently (and always before eating), and also make sure to bring a bag of OTC medications, bandaids, and hygiene products. It's helpful to have some type of lanyard to put your keycard in (some cruiselines also have wrist bands so you don't have to keep track of a card). And some smart people I saw on my most recent cruise (just last month!) had resistance bands wrapped around their beach chairs to keep towels from flying off in the breeze on our at-sea days! A power strip is also handy to maximize outlet space in the rooms. Have so much fun!!