My apologies that this blog is a novella really. It has been an ongoing project to put all that has been going on the past month down for posterity! I guess the sun has given me the energy boost I need to get back to bloggin'.
We had a spectacular Easter of thinking about Christ's sacrifice and how loving and living he is in our lives!
We hunted our eggs, made a chick craft, and played Jesus Bingo! "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His abundant mercy has begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead" 1 Peter 1:3, NIV I realized this year that many scholars say that 1 Corinthians is the best account of the ressurection b/c it was written by Paul on 35 years after the event
1 Cor 15: 17 And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins. 18 Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ are lost. 19 If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are of all people most to be pitied
20 But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.
That verse always reminds me of how short THIS life is and how LONG the next one is with Christ...I should be doing so much more to prepare for my next phase of life! My goal this year is to simply share the gospel message more and more intentionally.
Caleb had a good time hunting eggs this year, but when he discovered the chocolate inside he sat right down and took a nice break mid-hunt.
The whole clan hit North Myrtle for spring break this year.
We took DC's boat down the intercoastal waterway to explore a fun, deserted island (well there were other sunbathers, but no one who lives there!). It was fun and we had a blast jumping all over the dunes that were more like mountains.
We played in the sand a lot and had some good laughs playing whole-family beach baseball and kickball.
I love the shot of Cay giving his signature thumbs up in the sand. I have tons of shots of him giving a thumbs up and each one still melts me. He is so much FUN!
Then, we got home and our house was struck by lightening--not fun. Our losses so far include: TV/DVR receiver, 1 truck, phones, electric fence charger and some lights around the house I think. So bummed. Life is always throwing something at ya.
We love a new book we discovered at the library: Cowlick. Check it out if you have two or three little boys!
Our chickens are show chickens now. The boys have had a time teaching them to do "tricks" around the garage and screened porch! They have grown so much and have moved out to their own apartment in the pasture. I hope to release them to their new family of big chickens who hopefully won't "henpeck" them to death. C still loves chickens like no other child I've ever known.
Our babies are doing well. As you can see from the shots 2 (Billy and Cami) of the 17 are quite friendly, and more like little pups. They come out of the fence to see the boys and follow them around, jumping on them like dogs. It is too cute. Camellia even lets the boys put her in seats and tractors.
The ipad has been a hit with J. He enjoyed teaching Papa D all about it and it was FUN finding games and trivia to put on it for our ride to the ocean.
The boys built their first rabbit gum with Daddy this spring.
The garden is going in and some of our early crops are here! We are enjoying our collards. I used chicken broth and some other Paula Deen hints for some YUMMY greens! Our broccoli, garlic, onions, potatoes and lettuce are getting ready for harvest. We are planting peanuts this year for the first time.
Our small group gang had fun dying eggs and playing on the lake over our break. The kids rode the tube ALONE and the that left the mamas with some fun, uninterrupted time to chit-chat. Babies are fun, but having independent kids is so liberating. I still have an impulse to buy diapers, but it is waning. I don't miss bottles and baby food at all right now, but will embrace it again one day when I get that call and see that little face!
The not so grand finale of our spring break was J's fractured elbow. J was racing a boy quadruple his size on an inflatable obstacle course and though he pretty much beat the kids when the kid got to the end he catapulted J off the bouncie. So, in the end we were the losers! On Easter morning after church we logged our annual 4 hours at the ER and got that fixed up. He was sad, but once the Easter candy IV began that cheered him up.
