Egg hunting, Grandma Hoostrom style

This past week was Holy Week, culminating with Easter Sunday. I don’t recall having such beautiful weather, for Easter, in quite some time. I recall some days that were nicer than others, and some years that required a change of plans, at the last minute, because of several feet of snow.

This Easter was certainly an exception, with temperatures reaching into the 70s. I’m not the only person who reveled in the unaccustomed warmth of the holiday, as people were out in droves, taking advantage of the welcome respite from winter doldrums.

Easter egg hunts went off without a hitch, as little ones of varying age and size, sought to collect as many colored eggs as possible. My daughter, Hannah, and I went for a drive in the afternoon and spied several homes where the adults were sitting outside on deck chairs, lawn chairs or blankets spread on the lawn, chatting and laughing, while the menfolk manned the grill, with some cooking outside for the first time this year.

It made me happy to see the children laughing and squealing, as they ran searching for hidden goodies to put in their basket. It brought back wonderful memories I cherish and hold in my heart. I always think of Grandma Sjostrom, especially around this time of year. Eleanore Sjostrom was not grandma by blood, but rather related by heart. She was the sweetest, kindest, most spirited woman I have ever known, beautiful inside and out.

Eleanore was my brother-in-law, Rich’s, mom. When my nieces were little, they couldn’t say Sjostrom (pronounced Shoostrom), so it came out Hoostrom and the moniker stuck. Grandma Hoostrom always dressed to the nines. For the younger generation not acquainted with that term, it means dressed to the highest degree, or perfection.

The term is apropos and described her to a T. Eleanore was a true lady. She never went anywhere without being smartly dressed, complete with coiffed hair and manicured nails, ac- cessorized with necklace, earrings and the occasional brooch.

Grandma H. had charming, old school manners and, any time she was invited to someone’s home, wouldn’t have dreamt of arriving without bringing a dish to contribute to the meal, or a small thoughtful gift to present to the hostess. This lovely woman lived more in her 101 years, than most people would, if granted three lifetimes.

She had a delightful laugh and loved to tease. She enjoyed a good card game and played without mercy, as she did concerning anything competitive. It was irrelevant if she was playing against her grandchildren, no matter their age, she didn’t believe in letting them win unless they earned it fairly.

She came with my brother-in-law and sister, for Easter dinner, one year. My nieces, Ellen and Nicole, were still young, so an Easter egg hunt was planned at my Mom and Dad’s house. We had close to 100 brightly hued plastic eggs, filled with strands of beads, coins, press-on tattoos, small toys and candy.

We scattered them around the house and across the immense yard. When it was time to search, we handed a plastic bag to each of the girls and one to Grandma Hoostrom, once we found out she planned to participate too.

You knew she meant business when she pushed up the sleeves of the light jacket she had donned. When the signal was given to go, she took off at a run, catching up to, and then passing, the girls. I can see her now, running full tilt, heading for the same egg as one of the girls.

As she passed each grandchild, she casually reached out a hand, as she went by, and shoved her opponent out of the way. The funniest part of all of this is she was nearly 80 years of age at the time.

I don’t think any of us have laughed as much as we did that day. My nieces ended up spending more time on the ground, than they did upright. As they laughingly protested at Grandma’s “roughing of the players,” Eleanore would just beam and say, “You need to be faster then.”

When Hannah was born, she was automatically treated as one of Grandma’s other treasured grandchildren, who was a staunch supporter, showing off Hannah’s school pictures and proudly sharing her latest accomplishments.

It never fails to bring a smile of delight to my face when I see a spirited Easter egg hunt in progress, thinking to myself with a wistful grin, “You wouldn’t stand a chance against Grandma Hoostrom!”