Easter brunch

We were delighted to host our friends for Easter brunch this year - Mary and Patrick, Anne and Cuong, Adrienne, Elise and Todd, and assorted children. Everyone arrived around 10, and while the ladies unpacked food, the menfolk hid plastic eggs all around the school playground and garden. We trooped over there and had a fantastic Easter egg hunt. There were a lot of eggs. (~140?)  The kids had a great time, and it was fun to watch them run around and discover the hiding places, high and low and more and less obvious.

 Walking over, baskets in hand, very excited!

 "What's in the Easter eggs?" "Candy!!"

 "Who's fast? Raise your hand if you're fast!"

 Lining up from youngest to oldest...

 

Go!!!

  

Go Liesl!

 And finally, go Sebastian!

 Eggs, eggs, eggs...

 Hard work to get this egg down!

 The egg hunt mastermind and his empty laundry basket.

 I love the look of awe here. :)

 Nice lifting technique!

Look at my girl fly. 

Then we came home and had a wonderful and delicious brunch - I made a lamb and sweet potato hash and an arugula and blueberry salad. My friends brought glazed carrots, deviled eggs, brussels sprouts slaw, fennel and blood orange salad, asparagus frittata, and biscuits.  For dessert I made a flourless carrot cake, Anne brought a mixed berry crisp, and Mary brought whoopie pies.  There was, of course, too much food. The kids had their own table, where they more or less ate some food before running off to play some more.

Finally, feeling like we'd been sitting for too long and that the children needed to run off some sugar, we headed down along the trail to Mill Pond park. It was warm and sunny and the children had a wonderful time running ahead, splashing in the streams and ponds, throwing sticks and rocks, building a fort, and constructing various dams/footbridges. We even saw a beaver in the pond! It was pretty cool.

All in all, a wonderful Easter celebration with our Portland friends. So happy to spend the day together and to watch our children playing together.