Secret Agents, Easter Eggs and Hot Cross Buns

The year I was born, my Grandpa Hansen became an attorney.  He did work for the state of Utah.  His office was in the state capitol building.  He drove a car with the state seal on it and we all thought he was a secret agent.  He would often drop off cinnamon bears in our mail box during the day without us knowing and since we never saw him leave them, we thought for sure he was on a covert mission.

Since his office was at the capitol, every spring, near Easter, he would walk down from his office, and meet us in Memory Grove.  Memory Grove is a fun park up City Creek Canyon.  All of the "cuzzins" would be there.  We would hike to the top of a huge hill and roll Easter eggs that we had dyed earlier. (My Grandma was so frugal, she would freeze her Easter egg dye from year to year to save money.) When we hiked back down there would be prizes for the egg that went the farthest or the egg that was colored the brightness etc.

We would always have the most wonderful picnic.  Nothing was store bought, it was all homemade.  Fried chicken, lemonade, salads, rolls, cookies etc.  The best part of the meal, the part we all waited for, was Grandma's hot cross buns.  She only made them for this occasion.  They were made perfectly as if to be photographed for a cookbook or magazine.

We played in the river, collected chestnuts and pine cones.  It is one of my favorite childhood memories. 

On a couple of occasions, like this year, it snowed.  But would that stop the "cuzzins"?  Never.  In the Hansen family, tradition is sacred. (My grandpa even looked a little like Tevia from Fiddler on the Roof.  He sang the song, with his fists in the air, on command.)  So if it snowed, we would go to my grandparents house, lay out sheets and do the Easter egg roll down the stairs.

We don't do it now just like we used to.  But yesterday, Alyson invited us over to dye Easter eggs and treated us to a lunch of homemade, whole wheat calzones.  And she is making hot cross buns for dinner on Easter.

The most important tradition that we do carry on is that on Easter we recognize Heaven Father and Jesus Christ.  We celebrate His Resurrection and eternal families. 

Dying Easter eggs at Aunt Annie's.