By Jan Penton-Miller

Columnist

“Oh my goodness, Mike! I forgot all about the ham! I thought I would pick one up and shopped for everything else. I tried to order one online, but couldn’t find the brand I wanted. Want to run to P’ville with me to check out Ramey’s?”

“Sure. Want to grab a little lunch at the Eclectic while we are there? You know Tisha always has something good, and I was thinking about her roast beef Panini. Missy no doubt wants to go for a ride so we can eat outside on the porch if you like.”

Missy was on the ready, of course, so the three of us spent a nice morning finishing our Easter shopping with a day or two to spare. I slept so peacefully that night thinking I had everything in place. I have always gone a little overboard on the cooking, but in later years have only prepared enough for a platoon instead of the entire army.

When I awoke the next morning the thought popped into my head that it would be fun to make Easter baskets for everyone coming over. That meant a little trip to Hobby Lobby for baskets and ingredients. After that I stopped by Rouse’s for another thing or two and my eyes lit on the rows of chocolate bunnies. I decided they would make a nice little addition to the baskets so I grabbed a few of them on my way to the check out.

 Out of habit I had shopped earlier for a pretty new springy dress, but just didn’t find anything particularly appealing. When I was a little girl we wore Easter hats and gloves to go with our new clothes. It was a southern thing, I suppose, but I still like to find something fresh and new for Easter if I can.

I loved dressing my littles up years ago. Patty Ruth’s had the most precious dresses for little girls. We always enjoyed finding one that twirled nicely and tinkled with jingle bells when Melinda walked. Robby and Ryan were decked out in little short pants with knee socks. I thought they were adorable, but times sure have changed since those days.

On Saturday night Mike and I both worked until bedtime preparing for our celebration on Sunday. I was so tired by the time I snuggled into the covers and more than once wondered if all this work was really worth the reward?

Resurrection Sunday morning came quickly, and church was packed, but we managed to slip into our usual spot. Soon tears of joy began to leak from my eyes as we worshiped and celebrated our risen Savior. 

After a wonderful service we enjoyed a fabulous meal with our peeps. Everyone got a little twinkle in their eyes when they received their Easter baskets complete with wind up little chicks. Was all the work worth it? Well… of course.

Write to Jan Penton-Miller at jpentonauthor@gmail.com