Our Holy Week, Easter Celebrations

I know Holy Week was three weeks ago, I’m a little late posting what we got up too. It’s taken me this long to work out how to import photos with my new camera.

We took the week off from Academics as we have done for a number of years and used the time to really focus on Holy Week.

We began on Monday by making crosses of various kinds. The children were given the task of thinking of various mediums, Koala and Einstein spent a long time making ones of wood, Michaelangelo created the Three Crosses of Calvary from Lego. He also wins the tenacity award as it fell apart three times until he designed a very stable set.

Carpenter and Princess created their crosses from cake mix. Carpenter used a square pan as I couldn’t find my loaf pans and then he cut a cross from the cake. Princess cut her square into two and then carved a little more till she was satisfied.

Princess then thought that sewing two pieces of felt into a thick cross would be fun so we had a tried our hands at that with happy results.

Tuesday saw us decorating eggs, we have been decorating eggs for Easter since Koala was old enough to hold a paint brush.

If you’re looking for ideas on how to decorate pysanky style go no further than Jenn’s post. This year I thought I’d try wax resist but had no luck in finding materials. In the end my friend Deanne suggested the children try decorating with crayons and then dipping the eggs in water coloured with food dye. We were really pleased with the results. The older children surpassed their previous efforts with the symbols they painted using acrylics onto their eggs.

Koala has now been painting eggs for eleven years and I think it is showing, mind you the eggs took her a couple of days of painstaking work.

Wednesday we burrowed down with our Lenten/Easter books and had a re-read and new read as was the case with some lovely new arrivals. These included

Thursday I awoke with a vengeance, we had had a lovely slow week but the house was not cleaned. Carpenter watched in astonishment as I filled our large whiteboard with our ‘to-do’ list. The children set to with a will though and by lunch time they had washed every window in the house, scrubbed every wall and door, scoured the bathroom and toilets, de-cluttered surfaces, wiped every door and appliance in the kitchen, tidied all bedrooms etc, you get the picture. I was one very exhausted, happy mum. After a leisurely afternoon in the park we returned to bake our Passover Meal.

We have been enjoying a Passover Meal for a several years now. I keep it pretty simple in the spirit of the Exodus, some years we have been so rushed for time we have literally eaten standing up, as afterwards we leave for Holy Thursday Mass. We have a lamb roast and unleaven bread with red grape juice. The bread is dipped into haroset and bitter herbs. Our haroset is made from blended apple and almonds, the bitter herbs is simply a bowl full of water, salt and greens (this may be lettuce or parsley depending on what is at hand.) By popular demand we have added roast potatoes and sweet potatoes. Whilst we eat Prince Charming reads the Exodus reading. Throughout the day I have discussed with the dc the symbolism of the Passover Meal and the connection between the Old and the New Testament.

After the Meal we hurry off to Holy Thursday Mass, my most favourite Mass of the year. This year we are in a different parish and we had a rather different experience to previous years.

Good Friday we awoke with rather a solemn feeling and the children are most conscious that this is a day of fast. In the morning we read as we have done for a number of years Benjamin’s Box: The Story of the Resurrection Eggs. Koala very kindly has made up our own set of Resurrection Eggs which she enjoyed hiding. Once the children hunted and found the eggs I read the story and they opened the appropriate eggs.
Later we mediate on the Stations of the Cross using ‘Stations of the Cross by Mary Joslin.’
Three o’clock found us at our parish church for the Good Friday Service. Once again it was all rather different to previous years. Afterwards we shared hot cross buns something were all looking forward too.

I always find Holy Saturday a rather strange day, sort of suspended between time. Usually this is the day we decorate our eggs, however we started earlier this year so I did a little baking for Easter Sunday.

Easter Sunday, The Lord is Risen Alleluia. The children arose early! Keen to greet all with ‘The Lord is Risen’ and of course mum and dad were required to admire their chocolate eggs.
After a sugar breakfast of Nutri Grain (our family tradition for Feasts and birthdays) we departed for Mass. Such a special feeling, Easter Sunday Mass.
Shortly after arriving home PC set up the Easter Egg hunt whilst I laid out the Easter Meal. Sliced meat and salads, followed by Pavlova and ice-cream.

The children insisted that we headed off to the National Park in the nearby Great Dividing Range for our traditional Easter Sunday hike. Afterwards we enjoyed leftovers for tea before we headed down the mountain for home.

The Lord is Risen indeed, Alleluia:)