Easter Celebrations

I was so excited for Easter this year as this was my first Easter with a child and I really wanted to do all the fun Easter things you do with kids (even though Hannah is still do young to care or know what’s going on or eat candy and can’t even crawl to an egg, let alone hunt).  We had a wonderful Easter celebration.

The fun started Saturday morning with a neighborhood Easter Egg hunt.  There were hundreds of kids, thousands of eggs, and it lasted all of about 7 minutes.  Hannah managed to reach for a few eggs around her and we came home with a couple of Snickers and Reeses eggs.

Sunday, of course, was the main event.  Hannah got a new Easter outfit for church.

This is her latest thing – she leans her head far to one side to look at people, as if checking them out from all angles.

 (Hannah looking off at her Nana saying…”aren’t we done yet?”) 

 

After church we changed Hannah into her Easter “day” outfit (which were really jammies), gave her a quick nap and then the party began.  Jonathan’s parents were in town for the weekend and we also invited Jonathan’s sister Cherilyn and her family over for dinner.  My parents and sister were going to be a party of just 3 that day with nowhere else to go so they came and joined the party as well.  There were 18 of us gathered for dinner. 

Before dinner though, Hannah got to "find” her basket.  She got summer flip-flops, bubbles, a bible board book, a ball and some treats.  Grandpa Weiler tossed in some chocolate eggs, suckers, taffy, and KitKats at the last minute.  The first thing that went in Hannah’s mouth was a chocolate egg that I got to fish out as it was way to big for her mouth and babies aren’t supposed to have chocolate.  Oh Grandpa.

After Hannah got her basket the Burr’s (Cherilyn’s family) arrived.  We ate a delicious dinner of ham, potatoes, fruit, salad, rolls, and pastel rainbow jello (maybe next year I’ll dedicate a post just to the pastel rainbow jello seeing as I LOVE rainbow jello and figured out how to make it appropriate for Easter – however it needs some tweaking for next year as this year I added WAY to much water and it was very jiggly.  Still delicious and a big hit, but not blog worthy yet).  We sat at tables decorated with adorable bunnies, fake grass, cookie jars filled with Easter eggs, and jelly beans scattered around.  Unfortunately, I always forget to take pictures of the food spread and tables as I’m too focused on getting everything ready and everyone fed.

After dinner we visited for a little bit.  Lisa was awesome and did all the dishes while I put leftovers away.  Then, the Burr’s organized their traditional Easter egg hunt.  Everyone had a big “name egg” that was just for them and then they could collect 14 other eggs which were filled with candy.  No one really wanted those eggs though.  The real hunt was for the coveted “money egg” which had cash in it.  Rule was, once you picked up, kicked, or examined an egg it was yours to keep.  And when you had 14, you were done. 

Preparing for the hunt

Lisa took Hannah around and they gathered their eggs together.

After the egg hunt it was time for dessert.  I decided to make sugar cookies and have the kids decorate them.  I had about 4 dozen cookies and 6 colors of homemade frosting that I put in piping bags.  This activity turned out even better than I was hoping.  Everyone from the youngest to the oldest had fun.  It didn’t get super messy, tasted delicious, got everyone involved, and we got to see the decorating talents of all the Burr kids.

 That’s right – nothing like 2 cookies LOADED with frosting, smushed together to make a sandwich.

 
Jonathan’s parents were in town because Natalie, the oldest grandchild (pictured above sitting at the head of the table by the window) graduated from BYU this weekend.  So, after cookies it was time for presents.  Hannah enjoyed watching Natalie open up her new BOSCH mixer with her cousin.

Speaking of her cousins, the Burr’s are absolutely adorable with Hannah.  Maybe it’s because she’s still little and immobile so she doesn’t really get in their way, but they always have her sit right in the middle of things and play with her and give her toys and keep her entertained and happy.

We had a wonderful Easter as it was filled with family.  We’re so blessed to have family living nearby.  Happy Easter!

Easter

Easter is typically a time when we think about Christ’s life, ministry, death, and most importantly his resurrection. After he was crucified upon the cross, he was buried in a tomb on the hillside which was guarded day and night. After three days, the tomb was empty and he had risen. He was resurrected just has he promised he would be. His resurrection makes it possible for us to live with our Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ again. When we are resurrected we will be restored to a perfect state. All our imperfections and flaws, handicaps and weaknesses will be gone and we will be made perfect. Alma 40:23 reads, “The soul shall be restored to the body, and the body to the soul; yea, and every limb and joint shall be restored to its body; yea, even a hair of the head shall not be lost; but all things shall be restored to their proper and perfect frame.” Easter is a time for me to reflect on that doctrine on a very personal level.

When I was 6 years old my family moved from Utah to Iowa. Shortly after the move my mom took me to an eye doctor because while in Utah my kindergarten teacher mentioned I might need glasses. The eye doctor took a look at my eyes and said he had never seen anything like them before and he didn’t know what to do. He referred us to another doctor. We got the same response. After 3 or 4 doctors we were finally sent to Iowa City to see Dr. Scott. He was the doctor of all doctors. He worked at the University of Iowa and was an expert in his field. My mom, dad and I made the 2 hour drive to Iowa City. When we finally got in to see Dr. Scott he examined my eyes and then explained the situation. I didn’t just have one problem; I had several problems. I had a combination of problems he had never seen. The biggest of them being sever Amblyopia in my left eye. He said he wished he could take pictures of my eyes and put them in text books for others to study. He wished he could dissect my eye because the medical world could learn so much. My right eye was bad. My left eye was worse. Dr. Scott told my parents there was a good chance I would never be able to read or drive a car. He also said we had a small window of time to work with. He couldn’t guarantee anything but he wanted to take me on as a patient.

This is when my biweekly trips to Iowa City began. Every other week I would get checked out of first grade and my mom and I would drive the 2 hours to see Dr. Scott. We referred to him as the “Wizard of Oz”. Because he was at the University of Iowa we always met with residents first. It was an all day event as we made our way in and out of different rooms. Each resident checked a different thing and did and different test. We would eventually make our way to Dr. Scott where he would give the final evaluation. Every two weeks I got a new prescription. Dr. Scott had a very calculated schedule of tweaking and adjusting my prescription ever so slightly to work my eyes and train them to see differently.

 
We did this for several months. Then, Dr. Scott said the next step was patching my right eye. He wanted me to wear a patch over my right eye so he could work exclusively on my left eye and really make it work. He wanted me to wear a patch for a designated amount of time, 3 months. That was the window of opportunity for this to work. I continued to go to Iowa City every two weeks and get a new prescription. Each visit Dr. Scott was hopeful that progress was being made. Each visit Dr. Scott was discouraged when it wasn’t.

 

After the 3 months Dr. Scott broke the news that it had not worked. He wasn’t sure what to try next. We asked if I could continue wearing the patch but he said if nothing happened in the 3 months it was very unlikely anything would happen at all. He left it up to us though.

I distinctly remember going home and deciding whether or not I should keep wearing the patch. I was 6 years old. I didn’t like wearing it. Once I had asked my family to each wear a patch all day so they could know what it was like. My mom thought that was a good idea, but said it would have to be a day when we weren’t going anywhere or doing anything. It was embarrassing to wear it. It itched. It was hard to see. I remember saying a prayer to my Heavenly Father and asking him what I should do. I remember sitting on my parent’s oversized chair in their room and telling my mom I wanted to wear the patch for another month. She said that was a good idea.

 
While all of this was going on, my sweet Grandma Jean was worried sick over this whole situation. Grandmas are good at that. One day while spending time with her good friend Joan she unloaded all the details of what was going on. Joan was the Primary President of her ward in Utah and had been looking for an opportunity to teach her primary kids about praying with a purpose and asked if she could tell her primary about me.

Joan went back to her primary and told them the story of “Allison’s eyes”. She told them about a little girl who lived far away in Iowa who was having hard time seeing. Easter Sunday was coming up and that year it was also fast Sunday. She challenged her primary kids to not eat their Easter candy right away but instead fast and fast with a purpose. She challenged her entire primary to fast and pray for Allison, a little girl they didn’t know. Easter came and not only did the primary fast and pray for me, but their families did too. Not only did they fast and pray for me on Easter Sunday, but they continued to pray for me every day.

It was the month of Easter that I decided to wear my patch a month longer. This was the month that nothing was supposed to happen, but it was worth a shot.

At the end of the month I returned to Iowa City. Dr. Scott took a look at my eyes and his jaw dropped. He was shocked. Not only was he shocked that my eye changed during this fourth month, he was shocked that it had changed so much. My eye made more progress than it should have in the original three months, let alone the fourth month when nothing was supposed to happen.

From here, there was nothing but improvement. I still continued to go to Iowa City every other week and get a new prescription. After awhile, that changed to only once a month, then every other month, every six months, and by the time I was in high school it was at once a year. Just as things were under control my family moved back to Utah. It was in Utah, 6 years later that I met with Dr. Phil Hoops, one of Dr. Scott’s former students, and received 2 rounds Lasik eye surgery. Now, the little girl in Iowa who would never be able to read or drive a car has perfect vision. I don’t have to wear glasses or contacts and I have perfect vision.

As I reflect on what Easter means to me, I can’t help but be reminded of what happened 20 years ago, this Easter season. I had a need. My family, friends, ward members, and primary children who didn’t know me, all put their faith in our Heavenly Father. Through many prayers and much fasting, my eyes were made whole. It wasn’t a quick answer to prayers. My eyes weren’t restored to a perfect state immediately. It took years of constant faith and prayers to get where I am today. Many months after the Easter Sunday fast, my family went to Utah for vacation. My parents and I visited the primary that had fasted for me. They didn’t know I was going to be there. We sat in the back and listened as a young sunbeam stood to say the opening prayer. “Please bless Allison’s eyes that they will get better” were words she spoke. 

The Lord works by his own time table and in his own way. He loves each of us very much. I am grateful for my Savior, Jesus Christ. I am grateful for his life. I am grateful for his example and teachings, I am grateful that he took upon himself the sins of the world so that someday I can live with my Savior and my family again. I am grateful for this Easter season in which we celebrate not only His life but His death and resurrection. We celebrate that through Him, we can be made whole and we too can be resurrected. I am grateful for the miracle I started experiencing 20 years ago this Easter season and what it has taught me about trusting in the Lord in all I do and having faith that with his help, things will work out. It’s not always easy, but with His help, we can have strength to face any challenge.