The Easter Egg Expert

We've never dyed Easter eggs with The Little Outdoorsman.  Last year he was just too little.  But one thing is for certain- he loves eggs!  Boy eats an egg for breakfast almost every day.  So when I told him we were going to "dye eggs", he probably thought I was going to make green eggs and ham again, like I did after reading Dr. Seuss one inspired morning.

Cha-Cha and Poppy (Reed's grandparents on Jacob's side) put everything together for the big occasion.  But first, Cha-Cha insisted that Reed receive sustenance in the form of an ice cream sandwich.  Obviously.

Now sufficiently fortified, we faced the task ahead.  First, we laid out a plastic tablecloth.  This proved to be the most insightful thing we did all night.  Reed is now in the "I'll do everything by myself" phase, so that was a good call.  The voice of experience!  Then we assembled the usual materials: hard boiled eggs, cups, dye, water, vinegar, egg dippers, and a few plastic spoons. 

This little pack had some fun extra stuff, too.

We set TLO up with all of the cups organized in front of him.  Please observe the green ring pop.  Note to self: do not give toddlers ring pops during exciting activities.  I'll explain why in a moment.

Cha-Cha and Poppy explained the process.  I love this picture!  As you can see, Reed takes his egg-dying responsibilities very seriously (just like his Poppy).

Then they helped him add the dye to the cups.  After this, Reed insisted on doing everything all by himself.

Oh, look!  Dye dyes!  Starting to make sense...

Stirring in some glitter.  Who knew kids used glitter now?  

Or "magic crayons"?  Sheesh...

Ready to begin!  After Cha-Cha and Poppy showed him a couple eggs, he completely took over the process!  I was so impressed.  He used the egg dipper to place the eggs in the dye...

Checked them with a spoon...

And then put them in the tray when they were finished.  The back of the Easter Egg Dye pack actually turns into a little drying rack for the eggs.  What we have here, people, is an Easter Egg Expert.  He is a master at his craft.

Reed snacked on (another) sucker as the eggs dried.  We managed to get through the whole process nearly unscathed.  I say "nearly" because:
1.  He didn't spill any dye outside of the table.
​2.  The aforementioned ring pop only ended up in my hair once. Ick!
2.  The eggs looked fantastic!
3.  ​He only ate two of the eggs-- but no shells!  Bonus!

It was so much fun to laugh and watch him experience something like this for the first time.  Without getting all sentimental and boo-hoo-y, times like this make me feel especially blessed to be a mommy.  It is one of the greatest honors and joys in my life, and one that I have never, ever taken for granted.  And I am so thankful to have a wonderful family with which to share these times.

I'll share more of our Easter experiences over the next week or so.  I hope you, too, get some Soul Food Time during the busyness of Holy Week.