For the past eighteen years, my college bestie has been spending spring break with us. Our Atlanta “staycation” is never fancy, but it’s always fun. As long as we have a couple of sunny days, we’re happy because our favorite thing to do is free—after a long winter apart, all we want to do is be together and talk.
This year, though, Holly is staying in Indiana. She’s a nurse, and the hospital needs her, after all. Plus, we’re following the rules and sheltering in place. When all this is over, I’ll be right here waiting, and I have no doubt our reunion will be extra sweet.
In the meantime, I had to come up with a few things to keep our family busy this week. We might be in quarantine, but that’s no excuse for not making this year’s spring break and Easter week a memorable one.
(To Holly: Thank you for literally being the hands and feet of Jesus during this crazy time. I forgive you for not coming to see me.)
For Your Kids:
I told y’all about the charcuterie board making workshop I did with friends a few weeks ago. This weekend, Make+Do is hosting a virtual watercolor egg decorating workshop! You can join them for a fun morning learning the art of watercolor while doing a virtual Easter egg project with your family! In this beginner's workshop, Wildblumen Ink will teach you watercolor techniques, and after step-by-step instruction, you’ll put your new skills to the test and create a collection of watercolor Easter eggs!
For Your Marriage:
Since our kids were itty bitty, Gavin and I have had a standing Friday night date, and although quarantine means there’s no shortage of time together, I don’t want all our conversations to be spent reliving bad news. Also, when it comes to date night, I’m a little bit selfish. I don’t want to share every Friday night with my kids. Enter the Happily Company! It’s everything you need for a romantic and fun date night in your home, right in a box, so you can kiss your boring dates goodbye. They create unique, exciting dates you can’t get anywhere else and even include a custom playlist and conversation starters for your date.
For Your Home:
I do not have a green thumb, and trust me—I’ve tried. Every attempt at a true garden has been one big, fat failure. And I’ve tried them all—even growing herbs in pots out on my back porch doesn’t really work for me. My friend, Valerie, swears by this Tower Garden. I’m willing to try almost anything to grow fresh vegetables for my family. At first, I thought the tower was a little expensive but Valerie assures me it has truly paid for itself. The garden comes with a timer, so you don’t even have to remember to water it. (That’s what I’m talking about!) You can grow your own vegetables in your backyard, on a porch, or even right inside your house.
For Your Health:
Let me introduce you to Dr. David Lee. Dr. Lee is my next door neighbor, and a doctor of both chiropractic and public health. All month long he is offering FREE (yes, free!)Spectravision health scans. The first time I did this, I was skeptical. In fact, I accused Dr. Lee of being a witch doctor (palm to face). Note: Dr. Lee is a Christian who believes that a good doctor can tell you what is wrong, while a great doctor can tell you why.
SpectraVision™ measures your body’s stress response to over 10,000 substances automatically. It is great for understanding and eliminating sensitivities, breaking the cycle of any chronic pain or illness from emotions, and peeling away layers of the causes of any imbalance. It detects energy blockages which could be caused by parasites, unhealthy bacteria, pesticides, toxins, heavy metals, vitamin and mineral deficiencies, allergens, and areas where your body is weak and/or compromised. It also tests every organ in your body to determine its energy level and how well it is functioning. I know, I know—this whole thing seems unbelievable—but when Dr. Lee could even tell me what I dream about at night, I was convinced. And hey—you have nothing to lose. It’s telemedicine right from the comfort of your own living room, and it really is FREE—no strings attached. Call (770) 973-7533 to schedule your remote scan.
For Your Tummy:
Like all holidays, Easter makes me nostalgic. As a kid, I loved getting a new dress to wear on Easter Sunday. I still make Easter baskets for my kids, even though no one believes an egg-laying bunny is the delivery guy. The plastic egg hunts of yesteryear are out, but since I signed us up for that watercolor workshop I told you about…egg painting is very much IN!
That’s why I’ve got a recipe for you, passed down from my own grandma (God rest her soul). We never spent Easter with her, but no matter, she made these festive church window cookies all year long. I leave out the walnuts and coconut—because hello—I would never ruin a perfectly good cookie with nuts, and the rest of my family doesn’t really like coconut. Plus, my grandma never made them with nuts or coconut, either, so to me, that’s not the way they’re supposed to taste. I wish I had a photo of her actual recipe card written in her own beautiful, loopy cursive…but alas, I think most of her recipes were in her head. And you really don’t need a recipe for this anyway. Just melt a bag of chocolate chips, mix it up with a bag of multi-colored marshmallows, use a sheet of parchment to roll the whole thing into a log and freeze until set. Slice and serve. (Or you can take a look at the “official” recipe here.)
Photo Credit: Taste of Home
Happy Easter Week! I hope you find time to make your own special memories. We’ll be going to digital church, as usual these days, and if I can, I’ll even try to get my kids to dress up for it. Our local gourmet donut shop is offering Easter Donut Decorating Kits complete with donuts, three bags of frosting, and three toppings. If you’re from these parts, that’s another fun thing you can do with your family. And if you’re not from around here, well, you’re on your own. I know I’ll see lots of creative ideas on social media, and honestly, that’s what’s been keeping me going lo these many weeks.
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