What a fun, special, kid-filled weekend! And when I say "kid," I mean NINE kids over the age of thirteen, and also very tall kids who are adorable and who also eat a lot. But we had a really fun time! They started trickling in Thursday afternoon, and by Saturday afternoon, Ladd had them on Easter egg filling duty. For years he has headed up the Easter egg hunt for the little kids in our church, and he considers it his permanent assignment now.
He also considers it our kids' permanent assignment. It's part of their annual tradition! Jamar, Paige, and Bryce were on one side of the room with the candy, while Ladd and Paige's FRIEND (ahem ahem, more on this below) were on the other side of the room with the toys. I was on keep-the-house-from-completely-falling-apart cleanup duty since we now live in a much smaller house (will share this whole story another time!!) and things can go downhill really fast with dishes, dust, and clutter.
Six hundred (😂) eggs later, and they were all done! And I had to laugh, because the candy crew, without any prompting from their banana-hating mother, instinctively pulled all the banana Laffy Taffy they encountered because, they all agreed, "No little kid wants to open a plastic Easter egg and find a piece of banana Laffy Taffy inside." Truer words were never spoken!
The best part is that later Saturday night, when Ladd and I filled the money eggs for our family Easter egg hunt the next day (Nan started this tradition many years ago!), Ladd stuffed all the banana Laffy Taffy into a large gold egg for one of the kids to find. What a "treasure!" Ha!
Sunday after church, we went to my father-in-law Chuck's house to have brunch! Chuck was proud to have baked the Easter ham all by himself (it was delicious!) but the problem was, it was a 30-pound ham and a lot easier to lower into the oven than to lift out of the oven. Fortunately we had a college football player on hand to help...but it was certainly an adventure. I'll share more photos of the ham removal in a separate post, because I'm still laughing about it.
Speaking of Bryce (and his mullet! Help me! 😂), here he is with Mauricio. Love the sweet bond these two young men share. And yes, mullets. They are back, evidently? Are you aware of this? I tried to complain to management, but my concerns were not acknowledged.
And speaking of football players in general, here is Todd with his high school football teammate, Noah! Noah lives in Pawhuska, but goes to church with us and we were so glad he crashed our family Easter!
The more the merrier, I say! And along those lines, here's another Easter crasher. Meet Mitchell, Paige's FRIEND. We were so happy he came to town to join in the fun! Mitchell's a very sweet guy, easy to talk to, and we think he's just neato.
And while we're on the subject of cute couples...it's so nice to have Alex and Mauricio in town, almost a year after their wedding on the ranch! They're fun to have around, because Alex is a sweet big sister to Todd, and Mauricio loves Bryce, and Paige and Mauricio bicker constantly about each other's football and basketball teams, and Jamar loves Alex and Mauricio like they're his mom and dad. 😂 Sweet dynamics all around!
Finally, after all the eggs and all the egg hunting and all the ham and all the food, I got the kids together for one big group pic. Elliot was here from Seattle! Look at how tall he's getting!
It took a few tries to really nail the perfect shot. Actually it took about a hundred tries. And anyway, it's not about the perfect shot. It's about the fun memories!!
I love these kids! From left to right: Noah, Todd, Stu, Bryce, Alex, Mauricio, Elliot, Paige, Jamar, Mitchell! And Stu's mustache. 😂
Hope you all had a very happy weekend!
Ree Drummond is the founder of The Pioneer Woman and a lover of butter, basset hounds and life on the ranch! Ree started her blog in 2006, and now millions visit ThePioneerWoman.com every month for her trusted recipes and fun family stories. Here’s what she has been up to since it all began:
New York Times Bestselling Author
Ree has written two memoirs (Black Heels to Tractor Wheels, and Frontier Follies) plus nine bestselling cookbooks:
The Pioneer Woman Cooks: Recipes from an Accidental Country Girl (2009)
The Pioneer Woman Cooks: Food from My Frontier (2012)
The Pioneer Woman Cooks: A Year of Holidays (2013)
The Pioneer Woman Cooks: Dinnertime (2015)
The Pioneer Woman Cooks: Come and Get It! (2017)
The Pioneer Woman Cooks: The New Frontier (2019)
The Pioneer Woman Cooks: Super Easy (2021)
The Pioneer Woman Cooks: Dinner’s Ready! (2023)
The Pioneer Woman Cooks: The Essential Recipes (2025)
Food Network Host
Since 2011, Ree has been sharing simple, family-friendly recipes—and the occasional kitchen prank!—on her award-winning show The Pioneer Woman, filmed right on Drummond Ranch. Ree is also a regular judge on Food Network competitions, including Christmas Cookie Challenge.
Founder, The Pioneer Woman Collection
Ree has been creating and selling kitchen and home products at Walmart since 2015 and she’s involved in designing every piece and pattern. The line now includes best-selling appliances (you have to see the floral blender!), plus hundreds of pieces of cookware, tableware, and more. Ree doesn’t like to play favorites but the Agatha print has a special place in her heart.
Restaurant and Hotel Owner
Together with her husband Ladd, Ree has opened several bustling businesses in Pawhuska, Oklahoma, including The Pioneer Woman Mercantile—a bakery, restaurant, and general store that draws visitors from across the country (many come for the biscuits alone!), P-Town Pizza, Charlie’s Ice Cream Shop, and The Boarding House, a charming hotel with eight different rooms decorated by Ree and Ladd.
Media Personality
Ree appears regularly on national TV shows like Today, Good Morning America and more—all while managing to keep flour off her shirt.
Wife, Mom and…Grandma!
Ree’s kids (daughters Alex and Paige and sons Bryce and Todd) are all grown up, and as of December 2024, Ree is the proud grandma of the cutest baby ever, Sofia Scott, born to Alex and her husband Mauricio. Ree still cooks for Ladd (and the kids when they’re home), and she also looks after a few mischievous ranch dogs.
