When I was a kid I can remember that one of the best traditions around Easter was the coloring of Easter eggs. Each year we would gather at my Grandma Elzinga's with all of the cousins and aunts. Everyone lived out of town (relative to Grandpa and Grandma and my family), so anytime we were all in the same place was excitement enough, but this got even better:
My grandma would cover the table in her kitchen with newspaper and each of us would select one of Grandpa's old shirts to wear. I can remember that they were so big that they almost swallowed us whole, but that just made it even more silly-and more memorable.
Accross the table there would be a spread of green and white correll tea cups full of egg dye. We each had at least a dozen eggs and we would go to town. Crayons, shrink wraps, eggs and more would cover the table. The mess was impressive. Even more impressive was the relative calm that was maintained by my Grandmother. I can't even imagine right now what it would be like to have eleven kids ranging in age from toddler to teenager using dye, of all things, at my kitchen table! Still she did it with grace - or maybe I was just so into the eggs that I missed any moment of panic!
I'll always remember those special times. So, as my kids grow, it is so important to me to make sure that Jeff and I are creating traditions that will last them a lifetime.
My mom is now the Grandma and, in fine Elzinga tradition, she opened up her kitchen to not only her Grandkids, but her great-neice as well. My cousin Robin and her daughter Macy were able to join us as a new tradition began. Here is just a little taste of my kids' first adventure with egg dye:
Here's Macy with her hands covered in dye. Doesn't she look just like Robin?
It took some real scrubbing to get all those patties clean!
Nate showing off his eggs
Bri making an egg in her favorite color- orange
In an effort to protect clothing - we stripped her down and let her wear an apron!(Notice the coffee mugs on the table for Dye? Just like at Grandma's!) 
Of course, there was Benny's birthday. Look at these two boys! Aren't they fabulous? I'm a lucky Mommy/Auntie!
And, of course, why bother with a fork when you can just pick the cake up and eat it? 
Bri picking up her Easter eggs. She was a bit overwhelmed and would walk into the middle of a cluster, pick up just one egg, then move on to the next group. I kept saying "Bri there are more, there are more!" Still, she had her method and while she may not have gotten as many eggs, she sure had a great time!
And now Brianna has bloomed into a butterfly and we have a Nathan caterpillar!
Brianna's favorite part of the day was using her camera to capture pictures of all of the butterflies. We now have a VERY FULL little kitty camera.
Bri thought that if she held out her finger the butterflies would land on it. {I think this is because that's what the budgies do at John Ball Zoo}
The little tiki hut
Brianna the monarch!
