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I’ve always loved Easter.
The food, the weather, the candy, the bunnies! Known for my “Easter Bunny Collection”, there must be a few hundred of them by now. Pink, white, yellow, fuzzy, ceramic, plastic. I’ve lost count. The family joke is whoever counts them all around the house wins $100! No one has yet to claim the cash.
Here’s just a few of the bunnies seen around my home:
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Polish Family
Growing up in a Polish family in a Polish community, Easter as a Christian Catholic was a very important holiday, second only to Christmas.
Dyeing Easter eggs started at an early age for me:
Blessings of Easter Baskets
“Blessing of Easter Baskets” happened the day before, Saturday afternoon, in church. There was no mass, just show up, sit in a pew, hear a little lecture, and then the priest would walk up and down the aisles, tossing sprinkles of holy water.
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Each basket contained butter shaped as a lamb (complete with peppercorns for eyes), a festively dyed Easter egg, a loaf of bread, ham slices, keilbasa (Polish sausage) chunk, candy, and for some funny reason, my father would always include horseradish.
The “Blessing of Easter Baskets” process didn’t take very long, but everyone seemed to leave the church very happy their food was blessed – meaning it’s time to eat!
Easter baskets were always filled with candy. My mother still makes baskets for us adults filled with candies and chocolates, sometimes including a stuffed animal and/or a bottle of wine!
My best memory of Easter was in 2018
That year, my most favorite people were at my dinner table.
Seated from the left:
My best friend of 20+ years; my only sibling/sister; my best friend’s boyfriend’s son; my father; my husband; my father-in-law; my best friend’s boyfriend; my mother-in-law; and my mother.
A few months after that photo was taken, my father-in-law passed away – from the H1N1 Swine Flu. It was swift, horrific, and caught us all by surprise. The flu. Who would have thought it was such a killer? And here we are, in a worldwide flu pandemic. Coronavirus. Covid-19.
It’s bittersweet now looking at the photo, for this year in 2020, due to Coronavirus/Covid-19, there will only be my husband and I at the Easter table.
For Easter dinner this year, I am simply preparing fried honey ham slices (frozen leftovers from a big Christmas ham), frying up a dozen frozen pierogis (not homemade, just Mrs. T’s), fried saurkraut and onions in butter, dollops of sour cream (thank goodness hasn’t spoiled yet, as we haven’t been to the supermarket in a few weeks), and careful spoonfuls of red beet horseradish.
Horseradish seems to be a staple in a Polish person’s refrigerator, right next to the butter. Bummer… no lamb-shaped butter this year.
I am wearing pink today (my favorite, happy color) just to feel a little festive.
What are your happy Easter memories?
What are you doing this “Coronavirus Easter”?
Easter bunnies are a big part of our Easter tradition too! We hide two special stuffed bunnies every year for our girls to find when they are doing their indoor egg hunt. We always pretend that they are the Easter bunnies helpers that he left behind to help him hide all the eggs. They love it!!
Oddly, my favorite Easter is the same one. I was with my BFF and her family. Spooky.
❤