Thursday, April 02, 2009

Little Bunny Fou-Fou: Easter memories

This is the first year that Viv will be able to appreciate Easter in all its non-religious glory -- baskets, bonnets, chocolate eggs and, of course, that Bunny. When I was a kid, Easter had a very specific ritual:

7:00 a.m. Wake up and pounce on the basket that the Easter Bunny had left at the foot of my bed.

7:15 a.m. Start bouncing off the walls as the sugar from the various chocolate and marshmallow candies kicks in.

8:00 a.m. Fall asleep on a bed of plastic Easter grass as the sugar high crashes down.

8:30 a.m. Have Mom start taking out the pink foam hair rollers.

9:00 a.m. Put on fluffy Easter dress and take picture with sisters on the lawn (along with whatever our "big" toy from the Easter baskets were that year -- I remember Cabbage Patch dolls figuring significantly in those photos)

9:15 a.m. Drive with the family to my grandmother's country club.

10:00 a.m. Jump up and down on the Easter Bunny's lap (who was actually probably a poor teenager who was conned into this sorry job).

10:30 a.m. Try not to get run over by the older boys during the Easter egg hunt on the country club lawn (those kids were vicious, and probably ended up as second-string linemen for the San Jose Saber Cats)

11:00 a.m. Get in line for the brunch buffet. Skip the poached salmon in gloppy hollandaise and head straight for the dessert bar.

2:00 p.m. Finally leave the country club. Race to take off the tights and uncomfortable shoes.

This year, we're heading up to Kingsburg to celebrate Easter with the extended Manfredi clan. One or another of Richard's aunts and uncles always have big family holiday celebrations, but we never seem to attend because they just never seem to match up with our travel schedule. But this time, we're determined to do it.

I've had these grandiose ideas about all the crafty projects I'm going to do for Vivian for Easter, and then, last night, I realized that Easter is NEXT WEEKEND. Crap.

So here are the projects I want to do. We'll see how many of them actually get done by next Sunday.

Bunny Hat & Paw Mittens
Soft Easter Basket
Recycled Cashmere Bunnies (I have a tattered pink pashmina somewhere that would be perfect for this)
Chibi Rabbit
Fabric Easter Eggs
Wintertime Teddy (with long ears to turn it into a bunny)
Amigurumi Birdies

If I actually get two or three of these done in the next week, I will be thoroughly pleased with myself. I'll probably focus on those that I already have the materials for, i.e., the basket, the cahmere bunnies, the chibi rabbit and maybe the bunny hat. I have actually finished an adorable little crocheted sweater for Viv to wear on Easter, but I haven't uploaded the photos yet.