Easter and Other Bits

We had a great Easter here.  We began early, as always, with our family egg hunt in both the basement and the playroom.  I got a few pics in the basement, but the playroom was way too messy for publication.  Yes, we could have done all this outside, but I was pretty sure the neighbors were not going to appreciate the squeals of glee at 7:09 AM.

 Sorry this picture is so blurry.  This is Paul finding his first egg.  He was so excited, but I was across the room and not close enough to get a good shot.  They are fast little egg finders!

 Luke finds his first egg and it matches his shirt.  I love it.

Each boy was tasked with finding six eggs.  We then headed into the living room and opened them together.  Our fabulous neighbors gave us this set of Resurrection Eggs a few years ago.  They do a great job of telling the story again.

The boys also received books and pez.  Paul is looking at his new Usborne book entitled Trains.  Luke sat and read Volcanos, also an Usborne classic, sharing fun tidbits with the room whenever he found them.

After this Erik and I sang hymns for about twenty minutes.  I'd love to say the boys joined us, but they weren't really into it.  That's okay!  We loved it.  Then the Daddy-Man made waffles and bacon for breakfast.  Yum!  There aren't any pictures because I was too busy eating.  :-)

We headed west for a delicious brunch with Uncle Bob and Aunt Cindy.  The most hilarious part of the morning occurred shortly after we arrived.  While we were greeting everyone with hugs and Happy Easters in the entry way, Paul quietly slipped his pants off, revealing, you guessed it, his bathing suit!  At our house I had been so busy straightening my hair that I hadn't noticed his double layer.  I couldn't help but giggle at his goofiness.  :-)

We headed home around 1pm, knowing that our day was far from over.  At 2:30, having skipped rest time completely, we headed toward Shepherd's Door to set up for Roots' inaugural Easter Gathering.  The boys and I prepared two classrooms while Erik set up the projector, laptop and such for the adult gathering.  Both Luke and Paul did a great job either helping or keeping themselves entertained during set up time.  My classroom volunteers, the inestimable Willseas, arrived on time for prayer and prep.  Can you believe this family gave up their Easter afternoon to come do church with kids they don't even know?  I can.  They do stuff in Jesus' Name and for His glory.  That's just who they are.  I'm blessed to have them in my life.

The gathering itself was AWESOME.  It is such a huge blessing to us to be with these folks and celebrate Jesus Christ with them.  Roots only meets once a month right now, but I cannot wait until we launch weekly gatherings.  I just love this community and want to grow, deepen and reach with them as often as possible.

After the gathering, we packed out in record time.  Let me explain that a little.  The rooms we use are actually adult meeting rooms which we completely dismantle and reassemble after each use.  We pack in free play toys and all classroom materials, which them must be packed back into their bins and stored.  We've never left Shepherd's Door before 6:15pm.  We were in our car at 6pm this time!  Thanks again to the Willseas who helped and carried and completely rocked.

Easter dinner?  TAKE OUT!  We drove to a nearby strip mall and the boys got Panda Express while Erik and I grabbed Baja Fresh.  Sitting around our dining room table enjoying a very non-traditional Easter meal, I was filled with so much joy.  Jesus is alive.  He blesses us beyond what we ask or imagine.  Our entire day was evidence of this fact. I'm pretty humbled by all the Lord has for our family right now and I pray that in all things He will receive all the glory.