Tuesday, May 15, 2012

Easter in Clarens

We finally got together with our friends over the weekend to celebrate Easter.  Our school was off for a long weekend, so we spent our time in one of our favorite small towns in South Africa: Clarens. 

We started off the trip decorating Easter eggs with the girls so that we could hide them in the yard the next morning.  Then the girls woke up on "Easter" morning and found their Easter baskets filled with bunny ears, crayons, and coloring books.  Next they ventured out to the yard to the cottage that we rented for an Easter egg hunt.  It was actually the perfect space for a hunt with plenty to good hiding places for toddlers.  All three girls (Taelyn, Kaelia, and their friend, Arianna) did a great job finding the eggs, but it took them a while to locate the last egg.  They searched just about every where until Kaelia looked up and found the it in a tree.  She certainly did not find the most eggs, but she did find the last one. 

After the hunt, we all drove a few miles down the road to go for a hike in the mountains.  It was an out and back hike that took about 45 minutes in total.  The girls were so impressive as they hiked the entire way out to the turn around.  They were on a mission and didn't want our help!  And it was not a super easy hike for little kids.  At some points, the girls were on all fours, trying to climb up a big rock or step.  They loved it, though!  The turn around location was especially a big hit because it was one big pile of red rocks.  During the hike back, however, the girls were not so full of energy.  Taelyn took turns walking by herself and sitting in her dad's arms while Kaelia was completely pooped out once we immediately started the hike back.  She asked me to hold her and kept saying, "I so seepy, so tired, so hungy!"  She snuggled up in my arms with her head on my shoulder for the entire hike back.  It was precious because that doesn't happen very often these days!

Once we finished the hike, we had a picnic lunch before heading back to our cottage.  It was a beautiful fall day with plenty of wildlife surrounding us.  We even had two wild horses right next to us that let us pet them, and we had a visit from a baboon that tried to take our lunch!  Afterward, Taelyn and Kaelia kept reminding us that the baboon was naughty because he took Arianna's juice box.

Later that day, we made Easter cookies, and the girls decorated them with icing and sprinkles when they were ready.  It made for a nice treat after dinner and the perfect ending to a great Easter day.

To complete the weekend, the adults enjoyed some quality time as well.  My friend, Nicole, and I went out for pedicures at the day spa in town, and Justin and Kris went golfing.  We all also visited the local brewery a few times as well as a wonderful German restaurant that we go to every time we are in Clarens.


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