The Exersaucer

I brought out the exersaucer today, and although Shane didn't seem too interested in any of the toys attached to the tray, he did seem to like the new position in which it allowed him to be. He was pretty content to hang out in there and look around for quite a while.



Caleb, being the wonderful Big Brother that he is, was very intentional about trying to teach Shane how to play with the toys. He would even take Shane's hands and put them where they needed to go in order to make the toys work. What a sweet brother he is!


Tonight, I was in our room when I heard some major giggling.

I looked in the hall to see this...


...which turned into this. =)


In her defense, it wasn't really that long ago that this was her toy! Oh, and I have a feeling that our sweet and petite little miss doesn't exceed the weight limit for it either!

Easter

Despite having the stomach flu, today was a great day. After celebrating Easter at an amazing service at Harvest, we spent the rest of the day at home, and my parents joined us as well.

Celebrating at Harvest!

If you would like to check out today's sermon, click here to watch and/or listen!

Check out his new water bottle...he loves that it can hook on to his pants!=)


Taking a peek before hunting for eggs...


Egg hunters...



Pretty girl...


Typical...


Bubbles!


Shooting some hoops, with Grandpa's help...


So handsome!


We hope that you and your family had a wonderful time celebrating Christ's triumph over death! Praise the Lord for the hope He has given to us.

"Empty Tomb" Rolls

Caleb and I made these "Empty Tomb" Rolls together last year for the first time, after we received the recipe from a friend....it was a great (and yummy) way to illustrate the empty tomb of Christ. We made them again today (and included Meredith), so I guess you could say it has become a tradition! (Thanks to my friend Lisa and her mom for the great recipe!)

Working hard to dip the marshmallows into melted butter and a yummy sugar-cinnamon mixture....



Before baking:
Inside each "roll" is one of the large marshmallows that we previously coated.


After baking:


When you bite into the roll, you realize that the marshmallow is gone. The roll is empty!

This was a great activity to supplement the learning that was already going on around here about Easter. And, it made for a yummy afternoon snack as well. =)

And, just for an extra dose of sweetness...

Isaiah 45:22

Caleb's memory verse for April...

Isaiah 45:22
Turn to me and be saved, all the ends of the earth. For I am God and there is no other.

Love Song

One of my all time favorite songs. A great reminder of Jesus' love and sacrifice for us.

Today is many things. It's Friday. It might be your birthday or your anniversary or your child's birthday. Oh, and it happens to be Earth Day.

But more important than anything else, today is a day to remember.

To remember what Christ did for us so that we can have hope......if we believe in him.

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life." - John 3:16

Shane is 4 Months

I am 4 months old today!

It's nice to be bigger than sock monkey.

Hosanna!

Since today is Palm Sunday, we helped the kids make palm branches. This was a perfect activity for Caleb, because he LOVES to cut!



They had fun waving their branches around, yelling "Hosanna!"




We also began our version of the traditional Resurrection Eggs. Each day, from now until Sunday, 2 eggs will be hidden somewhere for the kids to find. Inside each egg is a Bible verse and a picture/item that represents that verse. The verses will take us chronologically through the main events leading up to Easter Sunday, with the very last egg being empty to symbolize the empty tomb.

Caleb "helping" Meredith find her egg...


"Egg!" she yells...


Caleb looking hard for his...


He found it! And wasted no time opening it. =)


Egg #1
Matthew 21:7...
They brought the donkey and the colt, and put on them their cloaks, and He sat on them.

We talked about Jesus' entrance into Jerusalem, and how he rode on a donkey. Maybe next Easter, I will get an actual donkey figurine to put in here, but for now the graphic will have to suffice.


Egg #2
Matthew 21:9...

Most of the crowd spread their cloaks on the road, and others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. And the crowds that went before Him and that followed Him were shouting "Hosanna to the son of David! Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!"

We talked about how all the people welcomed Jesus into the town, and waved palm branches as he came by. We also talked about how Hosanna is a word of praise to the Lord.

And, a cute clip of Meredith waving her branch and saying "Ho-na-na"...=)


The kids of course loved looking for their eggs. We will continue this throughout the week, 2 eggs/day, and hopefully this will be a fun way for the kids (mostly Caleb) to understand the story of Easter. And most importantly, I hope that this very basic activity will help them to grasp, even in the smallest of ways, the sacrifice that Jesus made for us.

Unconditional Love

I was thinking today about how much I love my kids. Of course there are challenging moments (some days it seems there are more of those than anything else). And obviously, there are stinky diapers to change and floors that need incessant cleaning. Such is life with children.

Sometimes hard. Sometimes dirty.

But, have I ever once doubted my love for them? Nope, not once. My love for my kids is truly unconditional.

Of course there are days when my expectations are not met. There are days when my kids misbehave. There are days when I wonder if anything I am trying so hard to teach them about life and love and friendship and God is really making a difference.

Even on those days, I never doubt my love for them.

And I so badly want my children to KNOW that I love them unconditionally....and for them to know that they can come to me if they are afraid. Or if they need a hug, guidance, help. Unfortunately, though, I am not perfect. Such a calling is likely to bring moments of discouragement and failure.

As I was thinking about this, I heard a song on the radio, a song that I have heard many times before, although I never paid much attention to the lyrics. A song about God's unconditional love for us. And as I listened to this song, I was reminded of how amazing the Lord's love for us really is. Even on our worst days, when our lives are dirty and stinky, when we misbehave and do not meet expectations, His love for us is unconditional. Even when we miss the point of what He might be trying to teach us about life and love and friendship and Him, His love for us abounds.



And, because His love is not only unconditional, but perfect as well, He is all that we really need. HE never fails in His attempts to love us unconditionally. He never misses the mark.

While I will never be able to love my children like the Lord loves us, I am thankful that He has given Himself for us as a perfect example of unconditional love. I can only hope to be a mother who depends on Him for wisdom as I seek to love my children unconditionally.

And most importantly, I hope to be a mother who teaches her children that the love of the Lord is greater than anything.

Meredith's First Haircut

My pretty little girl has some interesting hair. She has a "double swirl" cowlick type of thing in the back which accounted for her Kewpie hairstyle when she was a baby. And, while there are parts of her hair that grow pretty well, there are other parts that don't seem to grow quite as much, which results in some uneven locks. I am trying to grow out her bangs, and in the meantime they hang in her eyes unless she has a ponytail or a clip in to hold them back.

Some "Before" pics...




So, I took her in today to get her 1st haircut, hoping that they might be able to give her sweet head some style. It turns out that there isn't much that can be done for her double swirl, but they did manage to trim up her hair a bit so that the length was even. For the most part. =)

She sat so still and patiently. Such a good girl!



In the end, her hair didn't look all that different from before we went in, although the ends are not so dry and the length is much more uniform. And, you may be seeing my pretty little girl with a braid in her hair on a more regular basis!

"After"...



Meredith got to "drive" a race car, watch Elmo, and pick out a necklace, a balloon and a sucker. Overall, good times. =)

Click here to read about Caleb's 1st haircut!

My Boys Today: Lil' Sports Fans

Matching shirts for church!


Still his favorite sport...


Sorry, Grandma!

A Most Beautiful Day

I really believe that the very first mildly warm, dry and sunny day after a very long stretch of cold, wet and cloudy days is truly one of the most beautiful days there is!

Today is that day.











Thank you, Lord, for a most beautiful day!