Saturday, April 3, 2010

The Last Easter Basket...a tale of Woe!





At what point do you suppose that kids come to the realization that this is not just a Hormone Fed gigantic rabbit clutching them... but a sweaty dude in a furry suit just trying to make a buck. WHY do they have to make them so 'creepy' and dangerous looking...it is weird enough to think that a rabbit somehow makes it into YOUR Yard to 'hide' multi-color cooked eggs (when did he find the time to do THAT??) and then jimmies your locked door to violate the inner sanctum of your family home by placing more eggs on shelves, behind chair and other hard to find places that surely if not found that day...will be in a week or so when the smell emits... this furry dude has a bizarre sense of humor!! And then to make it all right he gives you a basket of sweets ...including a hollowed out chocolate likeness of himself ...who , when stared at long enough 'encourages' you to bite off the ears rendering the likeness mutated ...and then 'blinded' with the plucking off of the little candied eye!! OhhHhh the horrors of it all !!! But I must admit there is nothing quite like the finding of that last very stale sticky old jelly bean engulfed in layers of faux grass weeks later when you thought all were gone...and it's a RED ONE!!!! ...MAGIC!!
I did love the whole Easter Scene.... I remember sneaking a peek in the middle of the night draped in my Doctor Dentions watching my Mom feverishly coloring our breakfast food (eggs) with the smell of vinegar hanging heavy in the air.... and when she caught me peeking and realized the jig was up.. her knee jerk reaction was to say " Mr. Cottontale (he had a NAME???) asked if I would help out this year and color up some eggs for him....he will be by around midnight to pick up the eggs"... so of course I thought to myself...what a cool thing, Mr. C has singled out MY MOM for Egg Duty...I had a true moment of pride!! Of course that did not explain the loose grass and scattered jelly beans I saw on the table.... no matter, I was sure Mom had it all worked out with her new employer ..and as a reward I would be getting a swell basket of goodies in the morning....all was right with the world.
My very last Easter Basket that I received was at the age of 16 !! Seriously...!! The Rabbit Ritual all out in the open years earlier...I still would get the famous booty each Easter Morning ...made you somehow feel all cozy inside.... but alas on the 17th year...the counter was 'empty' ...no choco rabbit likeness, no sticky jelly beans, no peeps anywhere...sniff sniff.... that was a cold Spring Morning when I realized that the bunny would no longer be visiting and left me cold turkey ... seriously jonesing for that gooey marshmallow foil wrapped surprise...a day that will live in infamy....
How old were YOU when the bunny paid his last visit to YOUR humble abode??
Happy Easter All....
Jodi

10 comments:

Marie S said...

I miss the baskets too. My mom stopped about 16, maybe older (I had a sis that was 13 years younger) and then started again when I guilted her in to it.
I bet if I lived where she did she would still make me one, what a brat, huh?? Saved by the miles.
My mom made the best baskets and
it was comfort.
And then you grow up!! The rude ole world takes over, jaded?? Me? why no! Yay!
Hoppy Easter Jodi ;-D

Aimee Jeffries said...

Ah that is great! I totally read that in the "Christmas Story" narrator voice too.

Brenda said...

What a fabulous post, Jodi! Alas, I am still playing Easter bunny for my two grown childrren (34 and 36) as well as our 6 year old grandson. I have made "Laura Secord" style easter eggs EVERY year for 31 years and I think they would simply put out a contract on me if I tried to quit. They would acquire extra friends at Easter time, hoping to et one of the eggs. LOL! I will be dipping those eggs this afternoon and decorating them tonight. I'll probably post a pic on my blog as they do look mouth watering, and of course there will be at least one for me :o) Happy Easter!

Brenda

dreamkeeperfae said...

lovely story, we never had a Easter bunny, when I was a kid. Nowadays there is one.. the kids have fun in searching for the Easter eggs and for us it is the fun into hiding them ;)
Hope they will have the joy for a lifetime, like x-mas, Halloween, and Sinterklaas, even though they know they don't exist, the joy, fun and excitement with lot's of surprises is all too it. that way we enjoy to, and thus as a whole as a family.
Happy Easter!
love, Andrea

rosanna said...

Never had an Easter basket but we had loads of coco eggs. I remember one famous year: there were 60 BIG eggs arund the house! We were 4 kids and we were truly overexcied. Alas, my parents made us present half of them to parish.... They were right of couse but explain it to a 7 years old! My last egg dates to 12/13 years ago. Every year I hope that someone can get me one but my "veiled" hints are lost. Best wishes to you and Richard
BTW those rabbits have really cruel eyes !!

Wendie-kins said...

First of all I have to say that the rabbit in the first photo is the stuff nightmares are made of!! those eyes are just too scary!
I was one of the lucky ones I suppose that dont remember the transition between the 'real' bunny gifts and when mum took over, so maybe when I bought my first home and realised 'this is it'... no easter bunny , no santa :o( thank god I had kids soon after and the fun resumed .... ahhh the joys of parenting :o) Happy Easter Jodi x

Christel said...

I have pictures of my twins screaming thier little heads off, and just terrified of the stupid looking Easter Monster as we came to call him..I think I traumatized my poor kids..we didn't realize how scarey it was for them till a few years later, and looking back at the pictures, and the fear in each of those poor little toddlers eyes!I guess this explains all the hell they put me through as young adults..haha serves me right. Great Post Jodi, I hope you and Richard enjoy your Easter. xoxo Christel

Piper Rain said...

Okay those are some seriously creepy looking bunny suits, all you in the lap of those frighteing things!?Loved this blog...first of all, funny and well crafted,
NICE wordsmithing, my friend! second, I am inspired to think at lenght about my own Easter history...my mom was a health nut early on (a head of her time) so all we got were carob covered raisins and dryed banana chips...whaaaa! Various partners over the years have tired to make up for it over the years but at 47, it was all better with Jen's Easter basket of bubbles, pinwheels and candy necklaces. I was given a candy necklace yesterday...sniff sniff!
Easter? I have so much to say about it, I may have to write a blog about it as well...thanks for the laughs and trip down memory lane!

Anonymous said...

Happy Easter Jodi ~ That second picture is down right scary!!!!!!!

My mom always went way over the top on Easter (well on every holiday)...
We got so sick eating all that candy by 10am we were down on the floor...

The bunny hasn't been around for sometime... when my mom died and my son has grown up.... it's just a quiet day around the house today~

Love~Pattee

Cobblestone Creations said...

Thanks for tickling these memories to the surface for me Jodi!

http://cobblestone-creations.blogspot.com/2010/04/easter-memories.html

Hope you had a lovely holiday!
laura