In researching the origins of Easter, we learned that Easter festivities pre-date Christianity, as a "salute to spring." Celebrations of a “re-birth,” are documented as far back as ancient Greece. The word "Easter" seems to be related to “Eastre,” the Anglo-Saxon goddess of spring, for which an annual vernal equinox festival was held.
The Easter Bunny, or Easter Hare (hares and rabbits are not synonymous taxonomically), is a symbol of fertility because they often have frequent multiple births. The Easter egg hunt began because children believed that hares laid eggs in the grass. The goal is to find the brightly decorated eggs, hidden during the night.
Decorating Easter eggs is a world-wide phenomenon. Many cultures hard-boil the eggs prior to decorating the shells and some remove the contents and decorate hollow shells. The coloring of the prepared egg shells ranges from monochromatic coloration to highly detailed works of art.
Dolley Madison, the wife of the fourth American President, organized the first USA egg roll, rolling eggs down the hill at the capitol building, in the early 19th century. This tradition has continued at the White House, ever since 1878.
The family headed outside to see if the
Easter Bunny had left any eggs to find.
This basket is empty.
Hey, there's a pink one,...
Uschi has a small horde of eggs, but
a yellow one tries to get away.
Tanj finds a stray blue egg,...
Mommm, what is in the egg I found ?
I found one in a tree,...
Yeah!!! It has a
buggy in it.
I found another one,...
Uschi chases down a rowdy green egg.
After a tough day of chasing eggs,
the boys sample some
strawberry-rhubarb "Easter" pie.
Before,
playing over a bowl of jelly beans.
My eyes look green sometimes too,
but I'm not limited to just green,
is not limited to simply pesky spots,...
When I'm in the sun,
but my back stripe is second to none.
show him the pads of my feet, because
I'm almost as fast, and
I'm not worried about getting muddy.
I enjoy sitting quietly
while enjoying my yard.
