Try to picture this scene last Saturday at the Bethesda Park Aquatic Center in Lawrenceville: Children diving underwater, as if they were Jacques Cousteau, in search eggs of many colors as mothers and fathers help them along.
Also, throw in a 5-foot-7-inch Easter Bunny for posing in photos.
It’s an idea the center’s aquatic supervisor, Kristin Hahn, siphoned from another center and thought why not try it here.
Yes, why not.
Just as kids’ birthday parties have evolved into mass productions, so have annual Easter egg hunts, signaling yet again our penchant for excess or boredom with the ordinary or both.
Indeed, Easter egg hunts have been changing since the 1700s when the Germans migrated to the New World, bringing the tradition and the belief about the egg-laying rabbit with them.
Although many parents still hide decorated hard-boiled eggs at home on Sunday, an array of Easter egg hunts are hosted each year at local parks, recreation centers, churches and even museums.
The Fernbank Museum of Natural History, for instance, will host its annual Dinosaur Egg Hunt 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday on its front lawn, with music, games and other activities. And starting at 10 a.m. at Callandwolde, in addition to hunting for eggs, families will be treated to a live performance, tickets to Atlanta Braves games and prizes, and of course a chance to meet the Easter Bunny.
Such elaborate productions are proof America’s egg-hunting tradition has come a long way since those first parents started hiding them centuries ago.
Honestly, though, the eggs at the aquatic center weren’t even hidden. Except for a few golden eggs that promised the finder free admission to the center or free swimming lessons, the majority bobbed atop the 82-degree wet surface as children -- the youngest with their parents in tow -- collected them and then turned them in for prizes: a bag of candy or a bag of toys. With five eggs, you could take your pick at a table near the shallow end of the pool.
“I had twenty hundred fifty-five,” a 7-year-old exclaimed as water dripped from his lean body.
Of course, he was kidding; it was more like 20.
Jay Williams was his name. He came with his mother, Mary, and older cousin Hannah Hardin.
“It’s super fun for them, plus it gives them a chance to swim before it's warm enough outside,” Mary Williams said.
They agreed the hunt was a lot of fun, but it was also a great way for them to hone their swimming skills.
“It combines kids’ two favorite things, swimming and Easter-egg hunting,” Hannah said.
In past years, the cousins have done their hunting at the nearby Ronald Reagan Park, but as Hannah noted, combining kids' two favorite things is the kind of opportunity that’s hard to pass up, especially for a kid like Jay who dreams of swimming in the Olympics.
“This helps me improve my skills,” he said, still grinning.
He and Hannah soon made a splash back into the deep, circling the water with more than 200 others, including 6-year-old Aniya Jones, who came with her older sister Destiny and cousin Nia Johnson.
The underwater egg hunt was one of several they would be participating in, said Kisha Jones, Aniya and Destiny’s mother.
“We go to at least five hunts each year,” Jones said.
Just a week ago, she said, they turned out for one at Malibu Grand Prix in Norcross, only to discover the wrong date for the event had been listed. They stayed anyway, she said, to play games and have lunch.
This weekend they plan to attend hunts at their church and at Gwinnett Place Mall in Duluth.
Here's a listing of other hunts, some age-specific, some not, scheduled for Saturday:
First Baptist Church Atlanta, 4400 N. Peachtree Road, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., for sixth-graders and younger
Peachtree Road United Methodist Church, 3180 Peachtree Road, Atlanta, 10 a.m. to noon
Birmingham United Methodist Church, 15770 Birmingham Highway, Milton, 10:30 a.m., for children 10 and younger
Midway Community Church, 3365 Francis Road, Alpharetta, 2 p.m., for toddlers to fourth grade
Sweet Apple Elementary School, 12025 Etris Road, Roswell, 11 a.m., for children up to age 7
