Hello, May!

Well, as you can see I took most of the month of April off.  Whoops...

My intentions were to write more, post more, share more pictures, but obviously that did not happen.  But what did happen was more play time with my girls, more time spent with friends, reading just one more book before bedtime.  I also wrestled a lot spiritually and emotionally, and when the snow was still falling during the month of April, I struggled mentally.  This week the sun has been shining and it has been therapy to my soul.  I spent last week in Florida with Eric attending a conference and the first day my poor pale skin and soul felt the sun, I felt alive again.  I hate the heat, trust me, I complained 2 days ago about it being too hot, but I love the sunshine.

So now that I feel re-invigorated, I feel more motivated to share what has been going on...personally, spiritually, emotionally, and our every day crazy life.

Who knew buying and renovating an old Walmart in 72 days would take such a toll on your family?!  Well it has in exhausting but wonderful ways.  Overnight our attendance has almost tripled.  Seriously, and new people keep coming each week.  God has blessed us beyond our wildest dreams, and it has been amazing seeing people find God for the first time.  We are packed out to the brim in the kids area.  At times it can be challenging, but seeing kids learn about God and his love for them never gets old.  What's funny is our building is neat, but not fancy, we don't have a cross or stained glass, or anything that even remotely resembles a church building, but people are so intrigued by this church that meets in an old Walmart.  We had some lady come one week looking for the shoe department, no joke!

Eric and I have never worked for a church that has had a building, so it's odd to us to not set-up and tear down.  Trust me, I know we are crazy!  All our portable church friends hate me right now!

Speaking of portable church friends, last week Eric and I attended a church conference in Orlando, and we got to see our best friends, Eric and Kim.  And my best friend, Adrienne, picked me up from the airport.  It was so good to see her.  Something else my soul needed, seeing my best friend.  We have been best friends since kindergarten, and we can pick up right where we left off with no awkward pauses.  Eric and I flew separately to FL, so I had extra time to spend with Adrienne.  The girls had fun staying in Ohio with my in-laws.  They were busy, busy little girls each day!

The week in Florida was filled with great speakers, catching up with old and new friends, and soaking in all the good God is doing through the church {big C church, not just ours}.  I also got to hear my girl, Jen Hatmaker, what, what!  She brought it and made some funny jokes about pleated khakis :)

Now it's May, we are home, Spring is trying to peak out from the darkness of winter, and our plants are trying to bud up from the ground.  Lots of changes and big steps of faith are happening all around us.  I covet your prayers for our family.    

Happy May!       

Miscellany Monday

It's Monday, it's miscellany time...

1. It has been over a week since I last blogged, I miss it so much, yet I am trying to be more intentional with my time, and also more scheduled, which includes making time for blogging :)

2. Molly participated in a local salons "Cuts For A Cause" and she donated 7 inches of her hair for "Wigs For Kids."  She was so excited and so happy with her new haircut.  Molly hammed it up the whole time, I mean the whole time!  All the stylists came over and watched her, and the news guy there filmed her getting it cut and then interviewed her and me after she got her haircut.  It was surreal.  I just wanted to go in, donate her hair, get a nice cut, and come home.  It felt like we were on a reality show or something.  Random people in the salon wanted to take Molly's picture, it was so bizarre to me!  Lucy could have cared less about the whole thing, ha! 

 

They straightened Molly's hair before they cut it.  Which worked out really well!  We were probably able to donate more that way.  And for those of you wondering about her curls, yes, she still has them!  That's the first question we get from a lot of people.  Her curls will never leave her, never.  We had such a great experience today, and hopefully can do it again next year!

3. One week from today I will be in Florida, hallelujah!  We got snow here yesterday!  So Florida will be a nice change of pace and weather for us!  Eric and I are going to the Exponential Conference in Orlando, anyone else going? 

4.  Last Saturday Molly had her first official sleep over.  It was our first time having someone sleep over, and the little girl who slept over, it was her first time sleeping over at someones house, too.  We made it!  I think I lost the most sleep checking on them all the time.  I was so nervous our little friend was going to wake up scared, but nope, they both slept like rocks!  Even Lucy had some fun!

5. I am a sucker for anything paper and pretty.  So when I saw this journal at Barnes and Noble, I knew I had to get it.  I actually needed a new one, so it was perfect timing.  The ironic thing is I struggle with having joy.  So hopefully seeing and writing in this journal I can be reminded to live joyfully.    

CRAFT Package Pals- Reveal!

Do y'all follow the blog C.R.A.F.T?  She is great!  Her site is all about Creating Really Awesome Free Things...fun, huh?  Well a couple times a year she does a package pals exchange.  It's like a pen pal but with craft supplies, super fun, huh?!  So I signed up and got in!  They only take the first 100 people.  Truthfully, I was on Facebook at the right time, which might be all the time, ha.  So I got in and got paired up with my new friend, PJ, over at Planned in Pencil.  She is awesome!  We have become email and blog buddies over the last month and it's been so much fun.

I will admit after looking at PJ's site I was instantly intimidated!  She is an actual craft blogger, and not a try-to-be like me!  She sews and creates, and is really good!  Check out her apron!

So I racked my brain and racked some more, then told myself to stop stressing over the package and have fun.  And have fun I did!  I loved putting her box together and trying to find the right things to fill it.

I am sure PJ had a hard time figuring out what to give me since I hardly craft!  Poor girl!  But she did an AMAZING job with my package!  Oh.my.word!  Amazing!  I am so excited :)

Here is what I got...

Do y'all see that fabric?  

It was wrapped so pretty then 2 curious little girls unwrapped it!

Some and yarn and hooks...I am determined to learn something with this!

  

 Do y'all see that felt, it's already cut and together for me to make little flowers!
PJ made the red flower sitting on top, and she sent me alligator clips to
put my new flowers on...so pretty!!

And hello...she made me a PURSE!!

That PJ is so crafty and thoughtful!  I love it all!  Getting mail is fun, but getting paired up with an awesome package pal makes for a truly fantastic mail day!  Thanks PJ!

Miscellany Monday

It's Monday, I am blogging and it's all sorts of miscellany!

1. Easter time!  We had great success with the Resurrection Eggs this year.  Usually I have the best of intentions and we start but never finish, or never even start, but this year we did all 12 eggs!  We did them after Lucy went to bed, after night 1 it was obvious this was still a Molly year...maybe next year Lucy May :)

The girls were spoiled and got 4 Easter baskets this year {3 from grandparents, 1 from mom/dad}.  My mom got these cute book bags for the girls.  They love that their names are on them, plus it helps with the whole "give it back to her" thing.   

2.  Molly's Spring Break started out with a trip to the doctor's...both girls have sinus infections.  I hate never knowing sinus/allergy/colds...ugh.  So we are all medicated up and I think they both are feeling better.  They took a little snooze on the way home from the pharmacy. 

3. Easter morning was fun...we hid Molly's and Lucy's Easter baskets, they had no clue.  I kept giving them clues and I was waiting for Molly to ask me how I knew where they were, but she never did.  I struggled with the basket thing this year.  I bought the girls matching pink Toms and that was about it.  We have been so busy I just didn't get to the store this past week.  So at the grocery store on Saturday I snuck some bubbles in the cart, then I found some workbooks I bought on the Dollar Spot a while ago to do this summer, and put those in their baskets.  I am not against Easter baskets, and honestly wish someone would send me one, ha!  But I just struggled with the whole having more toys/books/crap around that we don't need.   

4.  Happy Opening Weekend!  So you know our church bought an old Wal-Mart and renovated it...you know a 6 month project that we did in 72 days, yea that one.  Well, as of late Saturday night we were set to go for Sunday morning.  Praise the Lord, because it was only God that made this happen.  I get choked up and teary just typing about our church.  I will write more tomorrow about it all and post pictures, but for today here is our "after Easter services" faces. 

5.  The weather was finally "warm" enough {40 degrees} to go play outside.  My kids are going stir crazy inside, and so am I!  Or I might just be going crazy!  While our ham baked yesterday we went to a new park and played! 

 

Poor Lucy could not figure out why this seat kept spinning in circles, it was so funny watching her!

 

Happy Monday, friends!!

Cue the Crickets

Nothing, nothing, nothing is what you all have been hearing, err...reading around here.  In the last week I have planned and executed a 30th Surprise party for my hubby, we celebrated last Friday with 50 of our closest friends, yes 50!  Molly had 3 dress rehearsals and a dance recital, and I planned a housewarming party for our church's new building.  It's been a tad busy in our house.  Plus this week we are gearing up to celebrate Easter in our church's new building, so my husband's every waking moment is spent at church and mine is trying to stay sane at home!

But hopefully I will get back into my groove of sporadically blogging, ha! 

My in-laws were able to come for a visit to celebrate Eric's 30th birthday and watch Molly's dance recital.  It's always fun visiting with them, staying up late playing cards, and laughing over silly things that I usually say or do.  The girls love seeing their grandparents and running around with grandma playing games.  We did an Easter egg hunt on Sunday with the girls.  My mother-in-law and I stuffed and hid eggs all over our house, and Molly and Lucy ran around finding them.  It was a lot of fun!  Lucy of course enjoyed the candy and Molly was intrigued by the Mexican jumping beans she found. 

Despite Spring officially happening last week we still have about 3 feet of snow on the ground with no hopes of it leaving.  With Spring break next week, I am a little worried we will be trapped inside all day, everyday!  I am actually trying to find some cheap and fun day trips to do with the girls.  Eric wants to finish our work-in progress basement, so the girls and I need to escape for a couple of days. 

Well, time to move one to the next thing on my to-do list today...and hopefully I can get caught up on reading some posts from the last 3 weeks! 

Happy Wednesday!  

Blessed

Tonight I am feeling blessed, beyond words blessed.  Which is funny becasue all I did was hang out with my kids, something I do on a daily basis, but tonight it just felt different.  I just don't want to ever forget this feeling. 

blessed: enjoying happiness

{according to Webster}

 

Resurrection Eggs

One thing I love about Molly's age {5} is I feel like we are getting to the point of intentionality with each passing holiday and she is getting it.  Since she was little we have always talked about the importance and significance behind Christmas, Easter, Thanksgiving, etc.  But now I feel like she gets it, or is getting it, and it makes it fun for us as her parents, too.   

Three years ago I bought resurrection eggs after Easter on sale.  I thought they looked like a fun way to share the Easter story with Molly {and now with Lucy}. 

 What are resurrection eggs, I am glad you asked.

Resurrection Eggs are 12 eggs that come in a carton, each egg is filled with something physical {it fits in your hand} that you will use to tell the Easter story.  Each day you will read the "daily devo/thought" from the little booklet, open the egg for the day, and then discuss it with your kid.  Molly likes to hold the object in her hand and examine it, she will ask questions and we will talk about the object for the rest of the day. 

I am a visual learner so I love anything that can be a physical reminder of what I just learned about.  If I look at a stone I can remember the stone that was rolled away from the tomb, etc.

With Easter coming up on us you can still probably find Resurrection Eggs at your local Christian Bookstore, or find them online.  Even if you miss the first day due to shipping, it's easy to catch up.

We also will be reading some stories from the Jesus Storybook Bible.  I love that Bible! 

How do you make Easter come alive for your kids?