My Little Skeptic

We've had a weekend filled with Easter activities -- and by "Easter activities," I mean the secular celebrations we've come to associate with that holiday. Egg hunts at the park with a costumed Easter Bunny, dying hard-boiled eggs, and waking up to baskets full of candy on Easter morning. As will surprise none of you, we don't attend services or reflect on the religious meaning of this holiday -- when the girls are older, we'll talk about it and encourage them to decide for themselves what they think about it. But for now, Easter is all about the candy.

Still, even the Easter Bunny gives the girls an opportunity to exercise their budding baloney-detection skills.

Last night before bed, after much excited discussion of what the Easter Bunny might leave for the girls to find in the morning, Evie said to me, "Mom, is Easter real or pretend?"

I said, "What do you think?"

"Real! Real! Real!" both girls yelled in reply. And still my heart was glad, because she thought to ask the question in the first place.

Later, Evie was talking about the egg hunt we'd gone to that morning: "And there was a guy in a white Easter Bunny costume!" She wasn't fooled -- she saw right through that fluffy costume to the human underneath.

I can't tell you how much I'm looking forward to watching these kids explore and consider the world around them, reveling in the wonder and joy while setting aside superstition. It's very important to me that they choose their own path and find their own way, but I think we're off to an excellent start!