More Easter Traditions

On Good Friday, the kids and I baked Resurrection Rolls. The simple ingredients provide a hands-on explanation to children about the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. A marshmallow represents His body, which is dipped in melted butter and cinnamon and sugar. These represent the oils and spices that were used on Jesus' body before burial. The crescent roll dough represents the tomb where he was buried. After baking, the marshmallow has melted, leaving an empty "tomb".

I had seen these made before, but this is the first year we used them as part of our Easter education. The children all enjoyed them, and I think I will keep them as a yearly tradition in our family.

We also boiled and dyed more eggs in preparation for the Easter egg hunt. I had seen instructions online detailing how to marbleize eggs, and I was "dyeing" to try it (excuse the pun). I didn't want to get too messy, so I only used three colors as the base and one to create the marbleized effect. I thought they turned out looking pretty cool, and I plan on doing this in future years.

A Visit from Family: Midsommar and H's Second Birthday

Midsommar eve and H's birthday fell on the same day this year. This meant squeezing two very different activities into one day. In hindsight, perhaps I should have celebrated his birthday a day later.

The morning started out busy. I had baked the cake the night before, but I needed to get the icing made and the cakes decorated. H had chosen some car cakes, and I didn't have a lot of time. One nice thing about buttercream is that there are two beaters to lick when it is all done. H sure enjoyed his mid-morning snack.




H licking the icing off the beater.



Once the icing was made, I dyed it and started carving the cakes. I felt a little rushed, and it shows. I only finished one before it was time to leave, so stuck them in the fridge until later.

My wonderful sister and her daughters took charge of making our picnic lunch while I was busy with the cakes, so we all packed up around 11:30am and headed out to our final midsommar celebration while living in Sweden.

We arrived and set up our blankets and chairs, enjoying the rain-free weather. It was still a little chilly until the sun came out, but it was nice to sit outside in the fresh air. After we ate our lunch, we waited a little while  for them to start the dancing.



H relaxing in his chair.





Richard and Jaime enjoying their lunch



 Timo and Richard were good sports and documented the event on film while the rest of us danced all the fun dances. I had to interpret some of the directions so they would know what was going on, but it is easy to just watch what everyone else is doing and follow along. 

Edith, me, and K. AJ was between Edith and me, but he isn't really visible.



K and I dancing




Edith, Jaime, and I are all visible in this shot.




AJ, Edith, Jaime, and K




Jaime and K



After we danced around the Maypole, they had some people dressed in traditional costumes doing a variety of dances. Then, there were a couple of performances by kids. Finally, they called up all the kids who wanted to sing some traditional Swedish melodies. K and AJ were willing participants, and they sang with gusto.



Starting a dance with old farming implements



Another dance

The midsommar pole.



Edith and Jaime watching the performance



Ellie hanging out



They're still dancing



The cutest performers of all



My sweet kiddos



After the kids' performance, Timo took the kiddos home. I stayed with Jaime and family to look around the manor. I thought they were giving tours, but we found several locked doors and no tour guides. We decided to explore what we could before heading home.



A candle-making room



Some old looms



A sitting room.



A hall of sorts. The frescos on the wall are extremely faded, but the paint on the ceiling still offers an idea of what it once looked like.



Detail of the ceiling





The kitchen




A bedroom. The bed was extremely short, so I am not sure who would fit in it.




A sitting area




Informal dining room

 Once we left the manor, we hurried home so I could make dinner and finish the birthday cakes for my sweet H.


The final products -- very messy, but H was happy.



From the back.

My bro-in-law took some picture of H blowing out the candles and opening presents, but I didn't get any. We were filming while he took pictures. H was very happy with all his presents, and he loved his cake. A happy boy = a happy mama.

Valborg Celebration

Yesterday was the Swedish holiday of Valborg, or Walpurgis. As we have done in the past, this year, we attended the local celebration in our neighborhood.

The kids headed to the jumping castle immediately upon arrival, and this time H could also join in on the fun.



The kids looking out the back of the castle. This was a rare moment when they were all actually still.



A couple of times, the motor quit, and the castle collapsed. Fortunately, I recognized what was happening early on, and I got my kids out of there quickly. They were unfazed and went right back in when the air turned back on.



 

H stopping by to say hi.



K being silly


I wanted to get a picture of AJ in the castle, too, but he wouldn't stay still long enough. I took plenty of pictures, but they are all blurry bits of my active boy.

After the castle, K was cold, so I walked her home to get a warmer jacket. When we came back, the boys were in between two soccer goals that were chained together. She joined them, and the kids made their own fun with this "jail" of sorts.

At 9pm, they lit the bonfire. AJ was really interested in seeing it up close, so we meandered through the crowd and took a closer look once it was going.



Starting the fire



Getting bigger



Full blaze



When the sky was dark enough, they started the fireworks. It was cold outside, and I think we were all ready to go home, but we really wanted to see the fireworks.

The expressions on the kids' faces made the wait worthwhile.



An enraptured H



A happy K



An enthusiastic AJ

 I was tired before we walked over there, and part of me didn't want to go, but I am glad that we did. I think we need to make the most of experiencing the traditions and holidays while we live here.