'Twas the week before Easter

This is to prove that I am indeed capable of posting something other than spring flowers and remodelling jobs.

Does it matter if these eggs are 2 or 3 years old, and you've seen them in previous year's Easter posts? Please say no. At least the pics are new - I rephotographed them this week. And not to worry - the eggs are hollow, all the insides are blown out. No, I would not be saving hard boiled eggs, no matter how pretty they are. I have vivid memories of the stench of rotten eggs from my childhood on the farm, when a hidden cache of abandoned eggs in the haystack gave me a memorable education in the effects of decomposition.

Ooops. There are those tulips again. I said I was CAPABLE of not posting spring flowers....I didn't say I wasn't going to do it.

Just one more....

Actually I can't promise I won't post any more tulips this season. My white and red ones just started blooming today. So be forewarned.

....and here's one of my darling Japanese plates. You veterans of my blog have seen these many times, I know, but they're just...so...cute! I can't help but post them again.

But back to those eggs. You've seen these types of eggs before on Martha Stewart and many magazines, but have you seen ones with chevron stripe texture? I wrapped the egg with a textured trouser sock before dying it, hence that very cool background.

Here's a different one, I think I wrapped a long blade of grass around the egg before wrapping it in the sock.

I haven't posted any cakes lately, so here's a pretty one, perfect for spring! I made it for a friend's birthday, hence the candles. Lemon cake with strawberries and whipped cream, mmmm....

Hazel was dying to eat some of it, but since I figured that my friend would probably not appreciate a big chunk dug out of her birthday cake, I made one for my family too. My kids decorated it and put the candles on it by themselves, and we had an impromptu un-birthday party tonight. They each got to blow out the candles (two times apiece) to ensure than plenty of melted wax got splattered all over the place, and then it was time to let them eat a bunch of sugar right before bedtime. Gosh I love spring break.

...And here we have my ever-cheerful girls. Hazel wore piggy tails for the first time (and kept them in all day, which is an amazing milestone!) and I wanted some documentation.

Needless to say, Hazel didn't exactly feel like smiling for the camera. And yes, she chooses her own outfits to wear. A mere 10+ times a day. Eliza never felt the need to empty out the entire contents of her closet daily while practicing getting dressed (and undressed....and dressed again) so this behavior is new to me.

Annoying, to say the least, but at least she lets me put her hair in piggy tails! Eliza has an extremely tender head and won't let me brush her hair, let alone pull it back (hence the short haircut). Hazel, my girly-girl, is coming to the realization that sometimes a girl's gotta go through a little pain for the sake of fashion.