Slice of Lime-Strange Traditions

Some families have lovely sentimental traditions which bind the generations together. Other families eschew tradition altogether. Then there are those which observe some rather strange rituals year after year.

Case in point, my brother and I were not taught that there was such a thing as an Easter Bunny. Judging by the bananas we are holding it would seem the Easter Monkey came to visit us. I believe my brother is actually taking a call from him.

I know this next tradition may come as a surprise to you all because every picture I have ever posted of myself is one of restrained and quiet dignity but I have enjoyed making ugly faces at cameras since I was small. there's a shot in my mother's photo album from when I was 4. My parent's were celebrating something and wanted a nice family picture. I got very tired of sitting nicely and waited for the photographer to tell us, Say cheese!" At the moment the picture was taken I stopped smiling, stretched my face into a grimace with my fingers, and stuck out my tongue. The photographer suggested that when I was all grown up I'd regret ruining the picture. Either I have yet to grow up at the tender age of thirty-eleven or the photographer was just W-R-O-N-G because I still laugh when I look at that picture.

Anyway, my mother-in-law bought my kids their Easter clothes every year until about 3 years ago. She asked for a nice picture of them in the clothes in return. I always met her request but typically we'd take one or two nice shots then I'd let the kids act like lunatics for the rest of the roll (back in the film days). Here's one of my favorite years.

Here is last year. There was a certain lack of enthusiasm among some individuals for either smiling or grimacing last year. Ennui seems to be the new grimace.

Finally, here is a tradition that stretches back to the days when my great grandmother filled the baskets. We'd all get the standard basket fare of chocolate bunnies, jelly beans, malted milk ball eggs and.....decapitated marshmallow peeps. To this day my kids know better than to expect an intact marshmallow peep in their baskets.