BY THE WAY: MA AND PA CLAUS BACK IN BUSINESS FOR EASTER

Who says you need to wait until Christmas to turn your front yard into a holiday spectacle?

Certainly not Bob and Dottie Ramsey, a creative couple who seemed a natural for Ma and Pa Claus over the winter.

The Ramseys, best known for the 20,000-light winter wonderland they display each Christmas, are back in business for Easter.

Ma and Pa Claus have hatched a whole new theme with the help of an imaginative quartet of grandchildren.

Although the Easter display isn't nearly as elaborate as the Christmas panorama, the Ramseys have maintained a level of creativity and visual splendor that would be difficult to duplicate.

"If you want to come out and look at it, you better hurry because I think my sister, who's visiting from Georgia, might run off with the Easter basket," quipped Dottie Ramsey.

The Easter display came about at the behest of neighbors who live along highway 621, located just outside of the Cape Girardeau city limits. "The neighbors said they needed to see some bunny rabbits, so we decided that we should put some out there," Dottie said.

They didn't stop with the rabbits. There is also an illuminated outline of Thumper, fashioned from steel rods, patting his foot. A red fox can be seen sneaking up on the rabbits.

"We only got started on this about a month ago, so we'll have a lot more out there next spring," promised Dottie.

Not only does the display tickle the imagination of drivers passing by, it also delights the four grandchildren who stay with the Ramseys during the holidays.

"The grandkids are constantly giving us ideas," Dottie said. "In fact, they're coming up with so many of 'em, Bob is beginning to tell them to slow down."

Next year the Ramseys are planning to weave a religious message with the playful scenes. "Bob was talking about having a progression of Mary traveling to Bethlehem on a donkey for the Christmas display," she said. "We thought we might carry the whole thing over from one season to the next, from birth to ascension."

Thus the manager scene would remain in place and connect with the Easter scene. And that would mean more planning sessions, designing new figurines and ordering additional lights.

What will the Ramseys do in between. "Oh, we'll probably have an Easter egg hunt just to relax," quipped Dottie.

~Bill Heitland is a staff writer for the Southeast Missourian.