CHILDREN SCRAMBLE FOR EGGS

The Easter bunny was busy Saturday.

Hundreds of children scrambled for candy-filled plastic eggs during the 11th annual Easter egg hunt at Cape Girardeau's Capaha Park.

Ryan Lyle, 4, of Jackson filled his basket with the colorful eggs.

He took them out of the basket and then put them back in the basket one by one, counting aloud.

"Sixty" he proudly called out as he put the last egg into the big, green basket.

Ryan said he found the eggs "everywhere," including on tree branches. He said he had to jump to get some of the eggs.

Ryan's cousins Miranda Purcell, 4, and Austin Purcell, 5, of Cape Girardeau joined in the Easter egg hunt. Their baskets also were filled with eggs.

So just how did all those eggs end up scattered over Capaha Park? "The Easter Bunny hid them," said Austin.

In all, about 500 to 600 children participated in the Easter egg hunts. Many parents helped out, steering their children to the colorful eggs.

Ducks swam in the Lagoon, seemingly oblivious to the children and parents racing around the lagoon.

Adam Lawrence, 2, of Cape Girardeau wasn't sure at first what to make of the Easter egg hunt.

"He didn't get the hang of it right away," said his father, Steve Lawrence. But once Adam figured out there was candy inside, he quickly took to the task.

Children, ages 1 and 2, searched for eggs in an area near the Capaha Pool parking lot during the 10 a.m. hunt.

At the same time, 3-year-olds and 4-year-olds searched for eggs scattered around the Capaha Lagoon.

Children, ages 5 to 10, got their chance to collect Easter eggs around the Capaha Lagoon at a hunt that started at 11:15 a.m.

Even the Easter bunny made an appearance, posing for Polaroid pictures with children and their parents.

The Cape Girardeau Parks and Recreation Department sponsored the Easter egg hunt. Park staff hid about 4,000 plastic eggs.

Chris Eastridge, recreation programmer, said the hard work was filling all those eggs with candy. "We filled them all in a week," he said.

Four eggs in each age group were filled with coupons, which could be redeemed for particular prizes at the park department's booth.

Ashley Marshall, 9, of Cape Girardeau has participated in the Easter egg hunt for six years. She knows how to spot the eggs. She said the trick is to spy where the eggs are hidden before the Easter bunny signals the start of the hunt.

"Before she blows the whistle, I usually look for most of the eggs," said Ashley.

Dawn Marshall said she knows her daughter will soon grow too old for Easter Egg hunts. But not this year.

This year, Ashley still enjoyed giving the Easter bunny a hug.