Happy Easter!

Inspired by some friends, I decided to help Gabi dye Easter eggs this year. Mine don't look nearly as pretty as theirs, and now I have no idea what to do with a dozen hard-boiled eggs...


Happy Easter from Gabriella and Annabelle

This year, Easter is very early -- March 23 (and hasn't been this early since 1913!). The date of Easter is determined using the lunar calendar that Hebrew people used to identify Passover (which became the Last Supper).


Bella feeling Merlin's soft fur.
Poor rabbit gets tortured on the one day of the year that you'd think would be focused on her!


Uh-oh! Bella grabed Merlin's ears!
After this picture, Annabelle got ahold of both ears and
tried to put them in her mouth. Mommy had to intervene.


Gabi petting Merlin, too.

Easter is the 1st Sunday after the 1st full moon on or after the Vernal Equinox (pretending that the Vernal Equinox is always March 21, since that was easiest for the bishops calculating a table of Easter dates back in the year 325). Thus, the earliest Easter can be is March 22. The last time Easter was on this earliest possible day was in 1818, and the next time will not be until 2285.


Bella reached for the dyed eggs, but Gabi told her not to touch them.
Gabi likes to tell Bella "no."


Mommy said it's okay; Bella can touch the eggs.

The latest that Easter falls is April 25, and we'll celebrate Easter on that date in 2038. Interestingly, the cycle of Easter dates repeats every 5,700,000 years. (Another Easter fact: the Eastern Orthodox Churches set the Vernal Equinox differently, so their Easter is a bit later.)