Easter Nature Walk

Good Wednesday morning!

The Gallery Pic is not of the beagles as planned, but Josh... leaving for school wearing A TUX! He had choir competition this morning, and he looked marvelous. He's the second Faulkner male to wear a tux this week. Austin had a symphony concert Monday evening. I may make Mikie wear his tux to breakfast Saturday morning. I love my guys in the penguin suit!

RANDOMNESS #1 - Contest! Contest! Contest! Does anyone out there want a new candle from Yucatan Trading? I will be purchasing said candle next week. The scent is non-negotiable. It is called Butt Naked, and it is wonderful. (NOTE - The name of the candle does not appear anywhere ON the candle. That makes it even more perfect.)

All you have to do is leave your name in the Comment Section. Put the word "CANDLE" somewhere in the comment. This is a short contest. You only have today and tomorrow to enter. (The contest ends midnight, Thursday, April 14.)

I will be drawing the name of the winner Friday morning. Go ahead. You know you want that candle!

ANOTHER NOTE - You can also enter via e-mail and Facebook.

RANDOMNESS #2 - In case you missed it, I borrowed Martha Stewart's Party-Planning Guide yesterday, and posted half of it for everyone's benefit. As promised, here is the last half.

4 Days Before:

Purchase all remaining nonperishables.

The Enchanting Belinda says, "I can purchase them, but because of the amount of roaming and hungry teenagers, I will also have to hide them."

2 Days Before:

Wash serving pieces, plates, flatware and glasses.
If using cloth napkins or tablecloths, iron them.
Place frozen food in the refrigerator to defrost overnight.

The Enchanting Belinda says, "Okay. I can TOTALLY skip '2 Days Before.' As previously stated, I'm borrowing paper products from a unsuspecting neighbor... and it seems a shame to use cloth napkins and tablecloths with paper products. Since I opted for a potluck, I didn't freeze anything because everyone else will be supplying most of the food. I admit it. I am a genius."

1 Day Before:

Purchase any perishables, such as salad greens and fresh bread.
Pick up fresh flowers.
Assemble any foods that can be made in advance.
Wash and prepare salad greens and other vegetables.

The Enchanting Belinda says, "It's time to send the teenagers away for the weekend. If I don't, there will not be any bread or assembled food in the house the day of the party. I like the idea of fresh flowers. I will use Gerber daisies, I think. Yes. Definitely Gerber daisies."

4 to 7 Hours Before:

Place flower arrangements.

The Enchanting Belinda says, "I will place the daisies right in the middle of the table surrounded by tons of brightly colored paper products."

Up to 1 Hour Before:

Finish preparing food.

The Enchanting Belinda says, "When does Martha get dolled up for the party? Hmmm. That's a pretty important piece of information left off the ol' timeline. I'm thinking I might hop in the shower right after I strategically place the flower arrangement."

Again, this is all very good advice, and I've put a copy of this Guide with the my cookbooks to keep for reference. As with all things "Martha," this list is another "good thing."

RANDOMNESS #3 - If you have time and want more Easter ideas, be sure to click on March and April in the 2009 and 2010 Archives on my sidebar. You might find something you could use.

Wednesday Wisdom - I just saw Katie Couric on The Today Show, and she has a new book out about Good Advice. I decided to see what I could find on the subject.

“If you have a lot of tension and you get a headache, do what it says on the aspirin bottle: 'Take two aspirin' and 'Keep away from children.'" Anonymous (Brilliant!)

"A word to the wise ain't necessary, it's the stupid ones who need the advice.” Bill Cosby (Again... Brilliant!)

“Give advice to your children while they're young enough to believe you know what you're talking about.” Anonymous

“Good advice is always certain to be ignored, but that's no reason not to give it.”
Agatha Christie (She sounds like a good mother.)

Easter Nature Walk

Go on a walk in your neighborhood and have an Easter "nature" hunt.

Give each child a colored paper bag to decorate with crayons, stickers and markers. When the bags are decorated, lead the children through the neighborhood and let them gather anything that interests them.

When you arrive home, sit down in a circle with the kids and have them empty the contents of their bags in front of them.

Ask for the following items, and as the children put the item in the middle of the circle, tell them why it is significant to the Easter story.

"Did anyone find a branch?" The week before His crucifixion as Christ entered the city, the people waved branches from palm trees welcoming Him.

"Did anyone find a piece of wood?" Jesus' cross was made from wood.

"Did anyone find something prickly?" His crown was made of thorns.

"Did anyone find something that is no longer alive?" Jesus did die on the cross.

"Did anyone find anything dark in color?" Pick up three "dark" things and talk about the three days of darkness following the crucifixion. Light could not be found following His death.

"Did anyone find a stone?" There was a huge stone at the opening of the grave of Jesus that the angel removed.

"Did anyone find something living." This reminds us that Jesus Christ died, was resurrected and He lives today.

NOTE - Since you want the children to collect anything and everything that interests them, make sure you have at least one item in YOUR bag to represent the Easter story told above. A child might not pick up a prickly object or a dead object, etc.

ANOTHER NOTE - This would be a great time to read The Three Trees to your little circle of friends. Pass out a treat and a juice box for them to nibble on while you read the book.

End your Easter Nature Walk with a prayer thanking God for the amazing gift of his Son.

Have a lovely Wednesday. Enter the contest. Encourage someone. Come back tomorrow. (Have I ever been so bossy before? Yes. Yes, I have.)

Take care, and I'll talk to you tomorrow.

Sincerely,

The Enchanting (But Bossy) Belinda