Христос воскрес!

Воістину воскрес!

My baba would be proud of me :)

Babka on top, paska on the bottom. The babka was very tasty but the texture was incredibly crumbly. The paska rose too much after I decorated it with the cross but it was perfect otherwise, very light and tasty. Next year I will plan ahead properly and save some coffee cans so I get the proper round shape for these two breads!

My pan of meats - ham on the bottom, what passes for kobasa here on top, pork roast on top of that and macaroni casserole on top of that!

Here's my fancy butter! Ain't it pretty?

Finished product! My meal also had green onions, salt and cottage cheese as per tradition!

The meat dish with the eggs added in near the end.

I'm so happy I got to celebrate Ukrainian Easter with some very dear loved ones this year. I was thinking back to the first year I did Ukrainian Easter myself, it was the first Easter I lived in Cayman. Funny how times change - not one person who was around that table with me 7 years ago was with me again this year. But one thing that never changes is that I'm surrounded by wonderful people who enjoy learning about and sharing my traditions with me. That is what it's all about, isn't it?

And I love how sweet it was to hear that my cousin Dean's wife did Ukrainian Easter last weekend - with the wonders of technology he was able to send me a photo of their breakfast on his phone and I returned the favor once my breakfast was done. I also talked with my mom and grandma about the recipes and execution, and sent them pictures of my progress. I may be miles away from family but we're never far apart, are we? xo

Happy Easter!

Richard and I spent Easter weekend in Orlando, checking out Universal Studios and doing a bit of shopping. Luckily the Easter Bunny stopped by our hotel on Sunday morning and I was able to have a word with him and I asked him to visit my house the following weekend for Ukrainian Easter. He showed up as promised!

Look what I found in my bed this morning... she didn't even wake me up before she got into her basket and then decided to bring it into my room and wake me!


Snapsy the bunny seems to be a big hit. AK wasn't too pleased when I told her that the raisins and jelly beans on the ground were what the Easter Bunny had pooped, she immediately dropped the jelly bean she was holding and pouted. AK was also a bit surprised that the Easter Bunny hadn't hidden Easter eggs all over but I explained that he had run out of eggs after hiding so many the previous weekend. She was okay with my explanation - whew!


We had a lovely lovely Ukrainian Easter breakfast wtih loved ones. More on that in another post.


Aren't these two just precious?


AK asked Richard and I to walk down to the Duck Pond with her and we had some fun with the "turtles and the chickens and the birds and the fishies and the iguanas!". I think this particular ducky below grabbed the bread right out of AK's hand after I snapped this photo.


I couldn't be happier after this beautiful Easter Day. AK is very loving and sweet these days. She often comes out of her room after I've tucked her in just to give me a hug and say "I love you" one more time. There's no way I could ever discourage that!

Weekend naps seem to be a thing of the past, but on the positive side, AK goes to bed very easily. Weekdays are not so easy as daycare continues the nap there. I hope they drop it soon! I don't think I'm the only mom having troubles getting her child to bed at night!