Easter Picnic -- Alaska Style

We started our Easter Picnic tradition when Tess was 2 years old and we lived in Chapel Hill, NC.  Every year, on the Sunday prior to Easter (aka Palm Sunday), we would invite our friends to join us for a family picnic and some Easter festivities at a local park.  This worked really well in Chapel Hill.  The day was usually sunny and warm with green grass and flowers already in bloom. 

Then we moved. 

At first we moved a little further south to Charleston, SC.  This was still pretty conducive to hosting an Easter Picnic… a bit warmer, but even more flowers in bloom.  Soon thereafter, we relocated north to NY state and the Easter Picnic logistics started to decline.  No more warm spring breezes and grassy egg-hiding spots.  Instead, we had slush and mud. 

Looking back, this wasn’t all that bad.  Because now we live in Alaska; and, chances of hosting an Easter Picnic that doesn’t involve full snow gear are slim to none. 

We hosted this year’s Easter Picnic amidst a mix of snow and rain this past Sunday.  After a brief thought about postponing the picnic until Monday evening when the weather was supposed to be better, we decided to just ride the horse we’d already saddled.  No point in bucking tradition. 

We had about a dozen kids in attendance.  They enjoyed some great sledding.  I was afraid the hill would be an icy slope.  But, really, the terrain was perfect for sledding.  And with our near record snowfall this winter, we had plenty of snow to go around.  This was less useful in the Easter Egg Hunting Grounds.  But, we made it work.  In addition to the sledding and egg hunt, the kids also partook of the Bunny Parade and the egg-shaped piñata. 

No one complained about the weather.  We learned years ago that you can’t let the weather dictate your activities in this neck of the woods.  But someone did mention that folks in other states would never dream of holding a picnic in those conditions.  I agree with that, but also believe those folks are missing out!

You will find more photos from this event here:

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150681885178159.408354.523908158&type=1&l=cb389e3d1d