My father was in sales so he didn't get regular vacations, but we would always use Easter weekend to drive 14 hours to see my grandparents. We would leave at 3 a.m. Friday morning, stay through Sunday morning, then drive home. We didn't typically attend church on Easter because of the schedule, but we attended almost every other Sunday throughout the year. New clothes weren't in the budget, but I always had a Sunday-only dress.

My paternal grandmother was an excellent seamstress, and each year she would make new Easter dresses for all four of her granddaughters. LOVED getting and wearing those dresses.

Although slightly younger than Anglo, I remember my childhood Easters as virtually the same - a new Easter outfit, a modest Easter basket with one chocolate bunny and few gumdrop eggs, church and then a special family dinner. Church was a big deal and more folks showed up for Easter than on any other day......in fact, Easter Sunday services were held in the big auditorium of the local high school rather than in the church itself to accommodate the crowds.

As my sibs and I grew up and moved away, it became much less of a holiday. I would still often drive over to attend church with my folks but no big family dinner. Until the younger generation had their own kids and started the process over again. However, no one in my family attends church any longer. I am not sure we are any less spiritual......just don't feel the need to celebrate that in any formalized manner. But those traditional Easter hymns are still some of the ones I remember best!!

And I am very much looking forward to the production of Jesus Christ Superstar on TV tonight! In my early adult years, that was the album I played and sang along to every Easter.....my own private but very vocal Easter celebration :-))

New pocketbook, hat and patent leather shoes. Oh, and gloves. I remember one Easter when I was perhaps about ten and I went to church with my sister and mother. Mom had a new Easter hat and another woman attending the service had the exact same hat on. They were both horrified! I've got to say that this hat was about the worst thing DS and I ever saw. We teased her terribly about it and called it her "Abraham Lincoln hat". Really, it was that bad. She looked just like him. (she never wore it again). The other lady in church? She didn't look any better. This ended up being a fun family joke for years. I hope this doesn't sound disrespectful - not my intent, just a nice memory for me.

Yes, we would do a small Easter egg hunt - usually inside the house, but occasionally in the backyard, depending on where we were living at the time. My father was an Officer in the Army, so we lived all over the world, but not near family (so my grandmother would have to mail the dresses for my sister and me). Attending church was usually at a church in town, but sometimes the only choice we had was the base chapel.

The parents would do an Easter egg hunt indoors using real eggs we'd dyed the day before. Except one year they decided to do the hunt outside, and so hid them after we went to bed.

Before morning, it had unexpectedly snowed a good six inches.

I think out of a good 2 dozen eggs, we found about 4 or 5, and the parents remembered where maybe another ten were.

Eggs were turning up 10-12 days later as the snow finally melted. Needless to say, they weren't very edible by then...

We liked but did not love candy, the parents joked that Easter was the time to throw out the remaining Halloween candy, and that Halloween was the time to throw out whatever was left of the Easter candy.

I probably did get an outfit at Easter, but as a kid I was never interested in clothing, being too much a tomboy for it to make much impression on my memory.

I think the routine was, find the eggs, go to church, come back and eat brunch (hard cooked eggs and toast), and usually leg of lamb for dinner.

I've played trumpet on Easter nearly every year for the last 50 years or so. I remember one year in CT in the mid 70's when we had a blizzard on Easter. I was booked to play trumpet, and a friend of mine was playing trombone. We hopped in his dump truck and headed out. All told, we had the two of us and the organist, the pastor and his family, and one family that lived across the street. We did the whole service, just as planned.

I also remember being booked to play a sunrise service at the beach. I was supposed to play standing on a rock, out in the water. Unfortunately, we rehearsed at low tide. The next morning, the tide was full, and I would have had to swim out to the rock. Not in April in CT! I played on shore.

Getting up and going to sunrise service Easter mornings with family.

I was youngest of four girls with frugal parents, so hand-me-downs were a fact of life. When I was 8 or 9 my grandparents mailed us a big box, to be opened before Easter Sunday. I don't remember anyone else's present, but they'd sent me a new, store-boughten dress! I still remember it: sleeveless, bodice was left half white and right half yellow-checked, and the gathered skirt was reverse: left half yellow checked and right half white. White bric-a-brac between the bodice and skirt, around the armholes and around the bottom of the skirt. I felt so good wearing that pretty pretty dress on Sundays.

Anglo said, But it sure felt more friendly when everyone had a commonality - religion, traditions - we were all doing the same thing. Yes, that was nice, looking back on it. I was a little kid in the 60's when there were what, 3? tv channels. Every kid in the neighborhood saw the same Saturday morning cartoons, the same sitcoms. Then came those extra channels our tv didn't get.

Diversity, individuality, sameness, shared traditions ... it does seem like there are fewer "nice" widely shared experiences ... I'll have to ask my daughter some time what her impressions are.

It is sad to see these wonderful traditions go by the way-side.

When my children were small back in the 70's before their father was killed, we always went to the sunrise services in a nearly town. It was held at a drive-in movie theater. The minister stood on a platform and we listened through the speaker, while eating cinnamon rolls and drinking a hot chocolate. The kids loved it because they got to go in their pajamas. After we got back home, they dressed and we headed to one of their grandparents for dinner with all of the families. Every Easter they had a new outfit...which I usually made for them...but they wore their new clothing on Palm Sunday unless we went to regular services on Easter.

Oh I miss those days when life was simpler and a slower pace when families actually took time for each other. Today my son had to work 12 shift, DD 's hub and sons golfed, other DD went to in-laws...and I went to church and out to eat with some widows.

We kept the usual Catholic Lent children kept--giving up candy, mainly. Since I loved candy but was also a devout little girl I could not wait for Easter Sunday. The Lent services-Holy Thursday with the washing of feet; the Passion on Good Friday; the odd emptiness of Holy Saturday, are etched into my memory. Easter was always Mass with a new dress, white gloves, and hat. Unfortunately, we often had to wear parkas and boots on top of them, given the weather. Mom had elaborate Easter baskets for us. We had a family dinner with relatives, typically glazed ham and a lamb cake. then usually watched one of the Family Classics (it always seemed to be Lassie) or other movies (Wizard of Oz, Sound of Music).

My Easter now isn't so different. Church on Holy Thursday, Good Friday, and Easter Sunday was packed: we welcomed over 600 converts in our diocese this Easter. The unchanging rituals are comforting and deeply meaningful to me. I don't get an Easter dress or hat anymore, but it is too cold right now to care--expecting more snow today. Big dinner, lamb cake. Perhaps the only thing I no longer care about is the candy!

It's different now, for sure. I still love to attend church but now I go alone; kiddos do not have the fondness for it that I did and do. DD2 just returned from a trip to Columbia and she told me about a church high in the hills (can't remember which city,) that she was able to visit on Palm Sunday. It was gorgeous up there, and the altar fronted a scenic window. The Stations of the Cross sculptures were outside amongst the trees along a path, and so very nicely done. She stayed for part of the Mass and really enjoyed it. (She does speak Spanish fluently.)

Yes, times change. When we visited Quebec City several years ago I was surprised to hear how many churches had been sold off due to so very few attending church anymore. It is sometimes sad for me to think about these changes, but along with these are the good changes that have come--much more acceptance of differences with our neighbors (and the ability to see our commonalities!) and kinder and gentler schools settings, from what I experience. (I had a fair bit of fear during my school years, of rules and teachers.) It's hard to understand change as we age, and harder still to fully accept it! But try we must.

I remember the new Easter outfits. But my earliest memory is of Easter....and that was when I was 18 mo. old. I was going to an Easter egg hunt at Mrs. Goar's house. She was my Sunday school teacher. I had on a dress and my mother told me when I sat down, not to let my panties show. I held my nephew's hand and we walked the half a block to the Quaker church. And then, I guess we went in cars to Mrs. Goar's house, which was on the far edge of Friendswood. When we got there, I stood at the edge of the group....kids my age and a couple of years older. I was so glad when Mrs. Goar noticed me and took me over to the group and told me to sit down.

Until the flood, I had a copy of the invitation, and a photograph of the party. Every one is sitting down, but me....I am standing alone, at the edge of the group.

Hey, I remember liking the palm leaves of Palm Sunday! I noticed that my old supermarket was providing them (I don't know if they were giving them out or selling them) when I was back in the area a couple days before Palm Sunday.

Just a note, I'm no longer Catholic, but of course I remember my past. (Maybe not the clothing bits.) If I had family in the area, we'd use the occasion to have a special dinner together. And if there were kids around... I'd be hiding Easter eggs for them. REAL eggs, not those plastic things.

I grew up in a non religious family, no church except once when we were visiting relatives in Alabama when I was a child. The only other time I had been to church is with friends. Easter was sometimes an Easter dress, hunting eggs and a big dinner. This was the 60s and 70s.

A new Easter bonnet, frilly dress, patent leather shoes, gloves and purse. We always dressed for church when we lived at our Aunties. A wonderful family gathering and big meal. My dad had five sisters and each had a special dish they would make. Those are some of my best memories. We never went to church unless we were at Aunties so getting new outfits was really special.

Some of my best memories were from Easter past. I had two brothers and a sister I'm the oldest. Easter was exciting. Not just the basket with candy it was more. A new dress, patent leather shoes, hat, and little white gloves. Always my hair was brushed and pulled back into a single low neck ponytail secured with a hair barrette. My sister was dressed the same but different dress. My brothers wore black or navy cotton shorts, a button up shirt and little bow ties. Off to Church we would all go with Grandma leading the way. (Episcopalian) we walked the few blocks. I always sat beside Grandma who always seemed to have a large hat pin in her hand that us kids knew would be aimed our way if we got loud or too jittery although it made us giggle because we knew she would never use it. After services we would all stand around outside while the adults talked and talked and talked. Back home we found a wonderful ham dinner with all the trimmings.. There as a lot of us at the Easter dinner table with my aunts and their daughters the total was about 20. I remember my aunts making a makeshift table each year in the dining room out of doors and horses (the wooden ones) than covering them with beautiful snowy white linen covers. Everyone had matching linen napkins that grandma let me assist a few days earlier ironing. The dinner table looked so fancy when I was a kid with white dinnerware that had a pink design, not flowers but more a landscape design. We all had the same drinking glasses made from glass not the plastic or tin us kids usually drank from. This was the only time of the year the entire family ( moms side) all got together for a meal. Everyone was happy, there was a lot of laughter and love. For me it was better than my basket of candy, better than even Christmas. Such wonderful memories...Now they are almost all gone... my mom, grandma, brothers, aunts...I have a few cousins left. But I can still see it all as it was way back when..I can even hear the laughter.

I don't remember family Easter dinners but remember always getting a new dress and Easter hat. My blonde hair was curled into those huge Shirley Temple curls and my mother and I both got big pinned on corsages.We lived across the street from our Lutheran church when I was little. I always had white socks and high white shoes when I was really little, later patent leather ones. Pictures were always taken in the backyard. I don't remember egg hunts but got a basket with a huge hollow chocolate bunny and hardboiled eggs. Way different today.No one in the family goes to church.

I was talking to my son and DIL today about Easter outfits as a child. We got new shoes, hats and dresses, and sometimes a purse. That outfit was our warm weather church outfit, just that one outfit, and for special occasions too. They were surprised at the more modest approach we had had as kids. My mom loved dotted Swiss on us girls, so we often had dresses made of that fabric. Easter baskets were candies and eggs; the kids down the block got toys, and we were envious of their good fortune. I can't believe the amount of stuff we buy for the grandsons' baskets these days.

Also, when did Easter turn into Xmas? Kids today get more toys than I did for Xmas. Traditionally baskets had colored eggs, chocolate eggs, hollowed bunnies, and now toys of all kinds are featured in all the stores.

Anglo....I just read your post on “someone else’s” post. It was the exactly the way Topeka was...and it is still accepting of others. My DD’s family lives there and I live 65 miles from there...so I go there often. They have wonderful Catholic High school there now, as well as several elementary schools ...in fact, I have three grandchildren who are/have attended them. Many students attend their schools because of the high quality education and standards they maintain, even though they are not Catholic.

Topeka is still a diverse city and hopefully it will stay that way. The Menninger’s were world known for their work, but they have all passed and the foundation is no longer in operation. I think there are 6 high schools there (or in the immediate surroundings)...two large hospitals...and the NOTO district in north Topeka is an arts area and developing nicely. The old downtown where we had all of the clothing stores has past...shopping gone out to malls. Mead’s is now on the historic register and has several yearly events. Forbes Air Force base has closed and now has several businesses and an air museum out there. You need to make a trip back there some day and walk down memory lane.

I grew up in a little town near Emporia and we always had a lot of section gangs...always Mexican workers. They pretty well stayed to theirselves...except for pay day and then they walked to our “beer joint “ to get beer and go back to their work train.

Our little town NEVER had any blacks, so I never knew what that would have been like to go to school with them, but a year ago the Methodist church assigned a black minister (who was married to a white woman)..WOW what a shock for that little town! I would say he is pretty well accepted, but many have started attending other churches...don’t know if it was because of his race or preaching. I am not sure it still is on their books or not, but when I was still living there, there was an ordinance that all blacks were to be out of town by sundown or they would be locked up in the little limestone “jail” or taken out of the city at day break. (I need to call city hall and see if it has changed.)

I am sorry to high jack your original post!, but Topeka caught my eye!

Sounds like a wonderful town, to be shocked by and reject a minister because of his skin color. Is that how such people practice their "Christian values"?

There's probably no need to call city hall, you can be sure that blatantly racist laws like the so-called "sundown" laws are long gone. Although, the attitudes of too many white people who lived in such places and are still alive, unfortunately may not have changed.

Two fondest memories.

an egg hunt after church, wearing a new dress with GOLD patent leather Mary Janes. The hunt was held in a park full of giant Trees, I want to say my love of trees started that very Easter. I was eight-ish.

easter holiday at the beach. Dress was very casual and tropical. Egg hunt was equally fun but there was some sand in the candy. It was a multi family holiday, everybody got along, everybody was content. I was a pre-teen. My new bikini was orange.

As mentioned above, I have such strong, fond memories of my special Easter dress ... but I have no recollection what so ever of shoes. I know Mom wouldn't have let any of us go to church barefoot, but ??? LOL.

This is a very interesting post and sounds like a lot of lovely memories. I do have to say Anglo's last paragraph struck me the most (and I know that was not meant to be the focus of her post). I am sorry about the feeling of sailing alone and know my own version of it very well. That is what it feels like when one does not share all those commonalities (either back then, or now).

Our parents would fill an Easter basket for me and my three siblings and hide them in the house. After returning home from church, we would search for our baskets while our mom made Easter brunch. One year as I was searching for my basket, I found my younger brother's basket and decided that it wasn't hidden well enough, and moved it to a better hiding spot. Not too long after the rest of us had all found our baskets except for my younger brother. He went to our mother on the verge of tears saying he couldn't find it. She gave him hint saying "did you look behind the sofa?" He said he had but went to look again and came back a minute later, with no basket, crying, Our mother called us in demanding to know what happened. Our sister, the oldest, fessed up, saying that she found it there and moved it to the cabinet beneath the TV in the living room. He ran off to look in there, and it wasn't there either. He came back bawling. My older brother said he moved it too, and it was behind in one of the "lockers" in the mudroom. As he started to go there I called out "Wait, its not there. I moved it too, it is inside the base of the electric organ. He tried, but it was too far back for him to reach so I had to retrieve it.

As a part of our punishment he got to select two items from each of our baskets.

Bob, that's too funny! All of you hiding and re-hiding your brother's basket ...!

My first MIL had a great way of dealing with the age difference and egg-hunting capabilities of her grandchildren. Each child's name was written on the egg with a wax pencil and then dyed - one could easily read the name on the egg. One had to find only ones OWN eggs during the hunt! Level playing field. My Easter egg hunts and those of my children always involved real eggs - no plastic.

When DD's boys were little, she had an annual Easter Egg hunt that afternoon, and the parents were also invited. The fathers had come by the day before with plastic eggs filled with candy, and had climbed over the lovely old stone wall a the back of her property, that separates her yard from a rather small National Cemetery (a President is buried there!). There is only one small street in the cemetery so it's a very safe place for children and it really quite beautiful - lots of spring-flowering trees. The children used a ladder to climb over the wall and hunted for their eggs. All were still in their Easter finery and they looked adorable! Parents stood on her back deck and ate and sipped mimosas! She said it was always the easiest party she gave each year!

She still does an Easter basket for her boys - one will turn 18 on Thurs! She orders the candy (usually a large solid chocolate bunny and a few other things) from Karl Bissinger's in St Louis, where I always bought her Easter candy. They are a local company and still hand-make all their candy - it's SO good! No Brach's or Russell Stovers for our family - Bissinger's all the way!

My memories as a child was going to Church in the morning, and then going to my Grandparents house after for an egg hunt! There where about 10 kids, because they always invited some friends, and others they know who didn't have any relatives in town to celebrate with. My Grandma hid some really good treats in a few, like a dollar bill! Others had a few pennies or candy. The hunt was always special because the prizes where so great!

After, we would eat and have pie. Then my Grandpa would read the Easter story from the Bible. Easter was very special (and still is) when I was a child.