A parent’s guide to surviving the Southlake Easter Egg Hunt

by Kathryn Hopper

Before they hire lawyers and forensic accountants to investigate rival cheerleaders, Southlake parents can focus on simpler things – like making sure their kids rack up at the city’s annual Easter Egg hunt.

It’s an annual ritual that begins with recharging the videocam, dressing up your kids in their Easter best, then priming them for the competition with tips like “make sure you run fast and head for the outfield.”

I consider it a baby step into unbridled Type A parenting that’s all but required in this town. It starts with getting the most eggs, then moves up to getting in the school’s Quest program for “gifted and talented,” then Accelerated Math, pre-AP, Honors-AP and of course making the A team in football, cheerleading etc.

Oh yeah, then there’s getting your kid into your alma mater, which seems all but impossible despite the fact you somehow gained admission with a measly 3.2 GPA and no AP Microbiology class.

But those goals are far in the future for most of the parents who gathered Sunday when the Southlake Parks and Recreation Department held its annual Easter in the Park celebration with egg hunts in three separate divisions – ages 2- 4, 5 to 7 and 8 to 10- a good idea because otherwise the littlest tykes would likely get trampled by older kids hardened by years of competition and already on the Pee Wee A team.

Parks employees did an admirable job this year holding back the crowd. In the past, some kids would jump the gun, throwing off the official countdown and leading to uncontrolled melee and meltdowns.

Still, it wasn’t for the faint of heart. The mad dash of screaming kids and their videotaping parents left a few victims in their wake including tearfully eggless toddlers and moms whose Prada slides got stuck in the mud.

They’ll recover in time of course and be battle scared and ready for next year and the years and all those competitions yet to come.