NATCHEZ — For a moment, everything was quiet, and the t-ball field at Duncan Park sat still, the sun reflecting off of a few remaining patches of dew and hundreds of pastel splotches on the ground.

Then came the signal — “Go.” — and hundreds of Miss-Lou tykes spilled across the field, a human wave of happy Easter Egg hunting pandemonium.

It was the 53rd annual Miss-Lou Easter Egg Hunt, and hundreds of area residents showed up to give their children a chance to win one of the many prizes or scores of candy hidden inside the plastic eggs.

Ruth Williams took two of her children to the hunt, something she said she has done annually for the last 13 years.

“Every year I come and I have fun — I love it,” Williams said.

“Every year it has been getting better, and I am proud that they have enough eggs that each child can get at least one egg.”

While they waited for their turn to hunt, children milled around, making new friends and taking turns to hug the giant Easter bunny, Jellybean.

But they weren’t there for the bunny, and when it was their turn to hunt for eggs, brother and sister Jordyn Anderson, 8, and Trinija Franklin, 4, had different opinions on how to collect as many eggs as possible.

Franklin said she preferred to to gather the eggs by running along and picking them up one at a time, but Anderson said he had worked out a plan to be the egg-collecting champion.

“I wanted the most eggs,” Anderson said. “I came to the section (of the field) with no people in it.”

Drake Corley, 6, didn’t see a reason why the most common approach to egg hunting wouldn’t work for him.

“I was running and finding eggs,” he said. “I saw them and was going right for them.”

Drake’s mother, Tiffany Corley, said the egg hunt was a great way for local children to spend their Saturday morning.

“It is good for them to get out of the house and get out and be with other kids,” she said.