Skip to main content

Easter 2015: Fun and Faith

Remember Easter?  Once you get back into the regular routine, it quickly seems like a long time ago.  Just in case you need a reminder, here's a quick recap of what we got up to this Easter holidays.  Toby was keen to write down what we were going to do on the whiteboard, like we did last summer.  His writing has improved so much!
 
Easter Holidays.  Tesco, biscuits, boat, Maisie and Poppy [friends]

The weather was variable, to put it mildly:
We floated paper boats in a puddle in the pouring rain.

I learnt how to fold a paper boat!
We made bunting (which was originally going to be flags to fly outside) on a day when it was too windy even to fly a kite.

Not a great picture, I know.  It was an old burp cloth, decorated in pen.
We planted pansies on a lovely warm sunny day.  Theo helped so enthusiastically that he had to be bathed afterwards!

On a more Easter-y note:
We invited the girls next door round to help cut out, bake and decorate Easter cookies.


We sent Toby on two egg hunts - a teddy-bears'-picnic-themed one at Sudbury Hall, and a flower-themed one at Carsington Water.  Don't worry, both finished with a chocolate prize!



We made giant egg decorations for the mantlepiece.



We baked an Easter cake with chocolate nest topping and plenty of mini eggs!

And just in case that all sounds a bit too pagan:

We read Haffertee's First Easter, in which Haffertee, a toy hamster, learns all about Mr Jesus King.

We went to a Good Friday service where Toby enthusiastically flicked red paint at a painting of a cross, Theo played with green balloons, Graham reflected on Jesus' final words and I ripped a piece of cloth in two to remember the tearing of the Temple curtain.  Our church had done an amazing job of creating different experiences relating to aspects of the Easter story.

That's actually Lichfield Cathedral, but it kind of sums up the experience!

We ate hot cross buns for breakfast.

We sang our hearts out on Easter Sunday!


Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Derwent Valley: Exploring the Astons

It was the hottest day of the year so far, with a forecast high of 32°C, and I was setting out to walk around three places with very similar names: Elvaston, Alvaston, and Ambaston. I was mostly hoping they would be shady! I was expecting to park at Elvaston Castle Country Park, where there is pay and display parking, but I spotted a large layby in Elvaston village, which was not only free, but also shaded by a large hedge. This meant that I didn't walk through much of the country park. Instead I skirted the edges, passing the village hall, with its decorative windows, and approaching Elvaston Castle itself along an avenue of yew trees. Elvaston village hall yew avenue Elvaston Castle was built for the Earls of Harrington and sold to Derbyshire County Council in 1969. Unfortunately the council is struggling to find enough money to keep the building in a state of repair. The castle isn't open to the public, but the gardens are well worth a walk around. The estate church, St Bart...

Derwent Valley: Derby City and the Derwent Pilgrimage

It was 8 am and I was already hayfeverish, headachey and hot. Why on earth was I setting out to walk through the middle of Derby, when I could be up in the hills of the Peak District? No one was forcing me to do this section. I could skip it entirely. But I knew I wouldn't, because this was the next part of the Derwent Valley Heritage Way. And besides, I had a suspicion that it would be better than it looked. Alvaston Park was certainly a good start. It's a wide sweep of green grass and mature trees. I used to come here quite often when the boys were small. I was glad to see some of the planets were still there - although Mars has had a lot of feet standing on it, I think. Here's a tiny Toby in 2013 with Mars... ... and a more battered Mars today. Alvaston Park I kept off the roads for a while by following a cycle route. Even when I joined the traffic, it wasn't bad. The factories and office blocks had roses outside. This road, now the A5194, used to be the A6 coming in...

Derwent Valley: Reaching Derwent Mouth!

It was a much more sensible temperature for walking, and I was excited to explore Shardlow, a small village which was once a bustling port at the end of the Trent and Mersey Canal. This walk would take me to the end of the Derwent and on to the River Trent. I parked in the free car park off Wilne Lane and was soon crossing the Trent and Mersey. Shardlow must have been packed with pubs in its heyday, and a surprising number are still functioning. I passed the New Inn, the Malt Shovel, the Clock Warehouse, and the Dog and Duck. Heritage Centre St James' Church had an enclosed space at the back which seemed to function as library, meeting room, kitchen, and chapel. It was cosy and carpeted - much warmer than the rest of the church in winter, I'm sure. I felt as if I was trespassing on somebody's living room. The main church had numbered pews and a tall pulpit. I liked the patterned altar cloth. I was back on London Road - the old A6 into Derby - and it was a long straight stre...