The Lovely Mess

That's what I call the state of our house after one of our big blended family weekends. As I put away the seasonal decorations, wash the table linens, sheets and towels, pick up the odds and ends left behind, and reminisce with Eddie about all the emotion and commotion, I feel blessed, truly blessed.

Mari, Jeremy and Lila Blue arrived late Friday night and we stayed up even later to "celebrate" at Eddie's Bar. Still, I somehow managed to get up early enough to watch Lila Blue while the kids slept in...a rare treat for them these days. I fed her a mashed banana for breakfast, which she enjoyed and I found delightful. Then she had a bottle of Mommy's milk before her morning nap.

Tammy arrived around 10 am on Saturday and we set about making her grandmother's Russian Easter Cheese, or Pashka. This is a ritual food served at an Orthodox Easter in Russia. It tastes like cheesecake without the crust and is deadly delicious, as well as decorative. Anyway, it took an hour or so for Tammy, Mari and I to make it, mold it and set it away to "drain" for two days.

On Saturday night, Philippe and Darlee joined us for a pre-Easter dinner of roast leg of lamb. James, Maria and Yazmin stopped by after dinner and we stayed up late AGAIN! Nevertheless, we were all up early Sunday morning to decorate the cupcakes, hide the eggs for the Easter Egg Hunt and prepare for the Sunday afternoon feast...where 15 happy diners enjoyed Honey Baked Ham, baby carrots, green beans, brussels sprouts and my Killer Scalloped Potatoes.

Following dinner, the kids hunted for Easter Eggs...this year many of them included dollar bills, which even got the "big kids" involved! Maria and Rosamaria graciously did most of the clean-up so I could spend a little time with Lila Blue before they left on Sunday evening.

Speaking of Lila Blue...she's six months old now, is very verbal, sits up on her own, loves to be held and is a completely happy and contented baby. I can't wait to see her again on Mother's Day weekend in Chico. We are also looking forward to another family gathering on Memorial Day weekend. Hopefully, the pool will be open!

Photos of our Easter Weekend are at right or just click here.

Hasta pronto!

Lisa