Are they too old, or am I too grumpy?

So, I  do realize two days before Easter is not the best time to start shopping.  What can I say?  I've been busy, and this has been a stressful year for holiday figures.  The existence of both Santa and the Tooth Fairy have become purely capitalistic collaboration by our kids.  While trying to Google-search the "right age" to put an end to the charade, I came across this funny post about negotiating Easter baskets with a teenager.  I could so totally imagine having that conversation next year!

Since we're still "in transition" at our house, I've eyed the packed baskets in the local drug and grocery stores, but passed them by for being too young for my boys, now 9 and 12.  The following are what they usually contain:

• Sidewalk chalk in egg shapes (got a ton which they don't use anyway)
• Pink plastic girly stuff--this eliminates half the stock
• Bubbles--nah, 3 years past that even for the youngest child
• Plastic ball with rackets, catchers, etc--we've thrown all those away recently, don't want to bring more into the house
• Matchbox cars--just got rid of a ton of those
• Coloring books
• The wrong kind of candy--not enough chocolate!

Barley has braces this year, and 6 recent extractions of baby teeth.  Jelly beans, marshmallow peeps, and anything else sticky is out of the question.  This leaves...chocolate.

OK, so I get that I'll just have to buy some of that.  But some kind of basket with some little toys would have been great.  I tried costco--no luck.  ToysRus was also out of stock.  I picked up a few items, then hubby called with a new video game suggestion.  So not what I wanted to give them to celebrate the ascension of Christ...but it would make them really, really happy.  I caved.

At the drugstore to buy candy to stuff plastic eggs with, I witnessed a perfectly predictable (but still awful to witness) total meltdown by a 4-year old who wanted Easter candy NOW!  Her poor mom was trying to check out, and calmly reassuring her that the Easter Bunny was likely coming Sunday morning.   That was way to far away to mean anything to this bedazzled child standing in front of a mountain of pastel edibles.  Crushed disappointed toddler, stressed-out mother, distraught bystanders.  Way too commercial, too sugary, too too everything.

I am just glad that we've finally found a welcoming church to go to Sunday morning.  While there will be some small Easter egg hunt, we will also enjoy a community potluck, and that seems like the right way to celebrate Easter to me--with lovely people, and remembering the original reason for the day.