I love wacky traditions. And by wacky, I mean non-traditional.

When I was 8-years-old, my sisters and I decided to pull a prank on my mom on Easter’s eve. She is a classy lady, therefore all of our holidays are celebrated with a certain aesthetic style. Though we appreciate her classy demeanor, we also like to keep her on her toes. (Read: buying her a “hot dog cookbook” for Mother’s Day).

After she went to bed, we began to plot our transformation of the table she had set for dinner the next day. We piled into Sarah’s Plymouth Sundance and headed to Walmart for decorations. We walked right past the “classy” decorations for the cheap stuff – and it was there we found the infamous “Cowboy Tablecloth.” (Nothing screams “Resurrection of Jesus” like a $2 southwestern tablecloth.)

We rearranged all the plates, making sure to place mismatching napkins all over the table. I took giant post-its and wrote “Happy Eatser” all over the sun window in the dining room.

The next morning, my mom opened the rolling doors to the dining room and quickly shut them in shock. (Which of course was followed by giggles from her four daughters watching from around the corner). Once her eyes adjusted, she began to laugh with us. She had officially been Eatser-ized.

That afternoon we dined at the ugly table and stumbled on the simple truth that traditions are only real when they’re ours.

My family is anything but traditional, but we’re finding our own DNA. With abnormal work schedules, most of us end up working holiday weekends. Throw in a few husbands and it’s hard for us to find all of us around a table on a given holiday. But we make it work – whether we’re celebrating alone or with just a few of us. This past weekend, my mom took the train out to Williston and we had a Good Friday pizza party at Sarah/Gary’s place in Montana (at 2pm because Laura had to work at 8) . They pulled out their “egg” grill (retails for $1,000+ but Gary acquired one in exchange for some cement work) to make the most delicious grilled pizza. My favorite was the Basil Pesto/Asparagus/Feta/Bacon combo – or as Sarah likes to call it “Ultimate Pesto Asparagus” (Food Network should contact my sister, for real).

We like to bring the cowboy tablecloth out from time-to-time (even though my mom has tried in earnest to destroy it). It always makes us laugh and makes my mom cringe. Most recently (and notably) it made an appearance at Sarah’s wedding rehearsal. My mom’s face says it all.

What are some of your Easter traditions?