HAPPY EASTER 2024

I have nothing deep to say about Easter this year. It falls on this Sunday, March 31st, so I’m not doing anything special to celebrate. Let’s see if you can figure-out why that is. I’ll give you a second to think it over.

Ready? That’s because in addition to it being Easter this Sunday, it’s also…the end of the second week of March Madness!!! And if you think that I’d miss any of those college basketball tournament games, even for an Easter brunch or e-word hunt, you’ve never met me. (I know, I know—most of you haven’t, but you know what I mean.)

However, since most of you are not as crazily sports-obsessed as I am, I’m here to offer some suggestions for those of you who do not yet have plans for the holiday, (complete with personal stories, of course.)

1) First of all, there are always fun decorations to get to. You can make colorful baskets to put around the house and also to give to others. At the very least, there are easy and inexpensive stickers for windows, and those popular “flags” that many people, (especially in New England,) fly outside their front doors.

But my favorite decoration to do is…on my nails! I’m sadly not creating them this year because, as I said above, I will not be leaving the house nor having anyone over. It will be just Mr. X, me, and the TV all week-end. But when I do polish my nails for the occasion, I paint each one as a different Easter e-word! It takes literally hours, but everyone gets a big kick out of them, including me, so I’m happy to do them. (But also relieved not to this year!)

2) For a few years before the pandemic put a stop to it, Mr. X and I used to be guests at a beautiful easter celebration that a group of pals hosted in Malibu, so I can definitely attest to what a good idea this is. We each brought at least one brunch dish, (figured out with the hostess ahead of time,) and ate at a festively-decorated table on the deck, overlooking the ocean. Then came an Easter E-word Hunt, with cute-but-inexpensive prizes for the winners. We followed that up with an easy game that involved just dice and dollar bills. And a great time was had by all. So, if you have the space, and a big enough group of friends, you might like to follow suit.

3) If you can find one in your area, go to an afternoon tea. Or just host one yourself, if you have the room, and especially if you have a garden area. I actually like this idea best with just lady friends, (as I did one year when Mr. X was out of town that week,) but it will be lovely no matter who attends.

4) If none of your group of pals has the space to host, but you all want to be together for the afternoon, have a picnic at a neighborhood park. Each person can bring a picnic-and-Easter-centric dish. Good friends, good food, and good air. Just make sure that someone brings the chocolate bunnies!

5) Here’s another simple way to entertain people, especially a small group, which is what Mr. X and I did one year when my parents were visiting. We invited just a few friends over to join us, and we all colored e-words, which most of our pals, most notably my ‘rents, had never done in their lives! I pre-ordered a party-size sub sandwich, and augmented it with a giant homemade salad. A friend baked a big batch of cookies, and, of course, had I had plenty of Easter candy on hand. The get-together turned-out to be so special and fun.

6) A lot of eateries have special Easter menus, so if you don’t mind spending the big bucks, I say go for it, especially if it’s a buffet…and you’re not on Ozempic!

7) But perhaps best of all, just chill until Monday and then…buy all the Easter candy on sale!!! I say to all the Peeps about that—come to mama, babies!

I hope this list will help a lot of you have a festive and fun holiday.

And I wish all of you a Happy, Healthy, and Hoppy Easter!