Not being a Christian my spring rites were celebrated privately on the equinox but I still love Easter Day.  I got up early and started cooking for the meal I'll have with my family later today!  I'm making a crusty artisan bread and an experiment, orange-banana bread.  I've got ham, asparagus, new potatoes, and a pineapple upside down cake going.  I've got a lovely fresh herb and mixed greens salad with edible flowers and things are looking good!

As a gift to me from Mother Nature this morning the first Amaryllis I've ever grown has burst into glorious scarlet bloom.  The plant is slightly over a yard high and is hard to miss in my trailer!  While it is chilly outside right now, the sun is up and the day promises to be fine.  When all this cooking is done I'll pack up and drive over the Central City Parkway a steep and curving piece of road engineering that is so dangerous CDOT blacked the name of that exit off the sign.  They refuse to be responsible for those whole fly off the road and drop the mile or so to the bottom of the canyon.  For those who don't take the plunge it is a breathtaking ride full of views that make you gasp!

The trip up into Golden Gate Canyon will pass through heavily forested areas as well as casinos of Black Hawk and Central City.  It's an interesting trip and half way through I'll stop at one of my favorite coffee shops and wish the young owner/barista happy holidays.  I'm enjoying my day of family time and happiness.  This is when I really miss my son the most.  I know that he and his family of friends will probably do little to mark this day but I'll call later today anyway.  I want him to know he's still a part of our family circle also.

The eggs for this morning's hunt are from my sister's own chickens.  The little girls are all wearing dresses and the poor little boys are in suits.  Those suits will be trashed in a short time.

Dinner will be done al fresco if we can.  My sister has a big tree shaded deck in back and a stone courtyard with plenty of room for the bar-b-ques.  People will be fighting over who gets to hold the new baby.  There will be jokes about my nephew Derek's fondness for Peeps and comparison of chocolate creations!  Children will be running through the clumps of grown-ups and the dogs will be right behind them.  The chickens will be clucking like mad as the excitement even spreads to them!

When we finally all sit down together the noise level will raise with laughter and compliments over the food.  Some people will want to know where the favorites of the past are if the cooks have gone beyond the traditional.  Some people will only be marking time until the pineapple upside-down cake comes out and I will be one of them! 

All in all, the celebrations of spring and life are my favorite holidays.  The rowdiness of my family is filled with that life we celebrate and I am happy to be with them.