Traditions and Compromises

So before you get married you hear a thousand times about how much you'll have to compromise on things and how blending two separate traditions and lifestyles can be really difficult.  Well, sure, there's definitely compromise involved in our marriage, but I have never really found that blending our traditions was difficult - at all!  I'm sure it helps that Michael is pretty cool with just going with the flow and letting me plan our holidays.  (And I'm willing to bet a lot of husbands are like that).

HOWEVER!  Easter was always the "biggest deal" holiday for Michael growing up.  He always got his best presents on Easter.... (For example, he got his first bike and Nintendo on Easter).  This is our first Easter with a kid that is old enough to kind of know what's going on, so as we were planning how our day would go, I was doing my usual bossy, "and then we'll do this, and then we'll do that...." and Michael actually had opinions!  Ha, don't get me wrong, this is a GREAT thing, it just caught me off guard.  We had a convo that went something like this:

C:  So we can hide a few eggs right outside and after showing Matthew that there are goodies inside I'm sure he'll love it....
M:  When are we going to dye the eggs?
C:  Oh, I didn't know you wanted to dye eggs this year.  (He has never shown much interest in years past).
M:  Well how are we supposed to have an egg hunt for Matthew if we don't dye eggs?
C:  What?  What do dyed eggs have to do with egg hunts?!?
M:  (confused)  Because you have to hide the hard-boiled, dyed eggs!  And put a present next to each one!
C:  (laughing)  What are you talking about?  Why in the world would you hide all your dyed eggs?  That's what plastic eggs are for!
M:  Because... that's what you do....?  And then you put a present next to each egg.  It doesn't have to be a big present - it can just be a piece of candy.
C:  Doesn't it make a million times more sense to put the candy in a plastic egg?  Hiding real eggs would be a waste, and make them go bad.
M:  But that's why you hard boil them.  You can just eat them right after.
C:  Who the heck is gonna eat all those hard boiled eggs?  (Michael doesn't like them, and I wouldn't want more than one).
M:  I don't know.  But it's fun because the Easter Bunny takes your eggs that you colored and gives you a present for each egg!

Haha.  You get the gist.  Luckily it was fairly easy for us to compromise and come up with a plan for our own family tradition - we hid plastic eggs filled with candy (well actually, filled with fruit snacks and cookies because I know my little boy well) ;-) but also put his small Easter presents next to a couple of the eggs.  (A bubble machine and a toy dinosaur).  I think we have come up with a system that works for us and I'm excited to come up with more and more holiday traditions as time goes on.

Our Easter involved an egg hunt outside with a little boy that kept getting distracted by the fact that he was outside, :) playing with a bubble machine that's basically the best thing to happen to Matthew since I don't know when, (seriously- he loves it) church, a yummy Easter dinner involving ham, green bean casserole, potatoes, and rolls, and remembering the real meaning of Easter.  So thankful for my eternal family and the Atonement that makes it possible.