Easter 2010

We made it to church this morning for worship and celebration of the Resurrection.
After church, we did lunch/dinner at Grandma's. (This is pretty much an every Sunday thing but more special today.) There was also the addition of fabulous Easter baskets courtesy of the Easter Bunny via Steph.

After lunch/dinner and sitting around talking, we took Easter naps and the rest of the day has been a pretty normal Sunday. Grocery store, laundry, and Sunday night tv (Amazing Race!) then watched Alice in Wonderland (the Disney cartoon) with Steven.

However, it has not been a normal Easter for me. The past few years, Easter has been full of emotions for me as it was Easter weekend in 2006 that my team and I were forced to leave the city we were living in and doing ministry in. We knew it was coming, but it all came to a fruition and rush out of the city the day before Easter... leaving behind lots of very special people we never really got to say goodbye to. And also leaving behind about 100 students who were in the process of gathering to watch a film that portrayed the meaning of Easter in their own language. It happened very fast.

This year, it definitely crossed my mind and I felt sadness, though it wasn't as painful as it has been the previous years. I'm hopeful in this. As much as I loved that place and those people and that season of life, that's not where I am now. And I should definitely not let the sadness of leaving Uz overshadow the power of Easter. I mean, it doesn't. But, in some ways, emotionally, I have allowed it to.

I fought against that this year, and I'm thankful. Thankful that God is the author of my life story, as ever-changing as it is. Thankful that God used coming home that Spring 'prematurely' to intertwine mine and Matt's lives that eventually led to our marriage. Thankful that the power and impact of Easter hasn't been affected at all by my emotions the last few years. Jesus is beyond emotions. Jesus's death and Resurrection was not and cannot and will not be overshadowed by anything!

He is Risen! He is Risen Indeed!

Catching Up: Happy Valentine's Day!

Valentine's Day this year was definitely not as fun as last year. (I honestly don't know if we'll ever be able to do something like that again!)

This year, we started off with Valerie's birthday breakfast (as mentioned before). Then, I worked all day, so Matt was home alone most of the day. Not exactly the most romantic way to spend the holiday of love. But at least he had this to keep him company...

Catching Up: SNOW in Charleston!

On February 12-13, 2010, something happened in Charleston that hasn't happened in almost 20 years. It snowed!!

I even got to leave work early due to the fact that all of the bridges were being closed as the snow was really coming down pretty steadily for a few hours on the night of the 12th.

Here's what my car looked like in the parking lot when I left work around 10pm.This is what our neighborhood sign looked like when I pulled in:We had a fun time introducing Nala to the snow. She really didn't know what to do with it at first, but it was fun to watch her figure it out.By noon, the next day, a lot of it had already melted. It was fast but fun while it lasted. :)

Catching Up: Tyndall Gals' Birthday Celebrations

Valerie kinda got the raw end of the deal this year. Because of schedule conflicts, breakfast was the meal out that she got. And because her birthday was on a Sunday, lots of the local places we like were closed... so, we did a birthday breakfast at IHOP. That was a first. She was a good sport about it, though, and definitely earned an extra special celebration next year for her 25th! :)Mom's birthday was different as well. We spend the morning (and most of the afternoon) moving Dan's furniture out and loading his truck. Tons of people showed up to help (even without being asked and even with very little notice), and one neighbor described the day as very 'cathartic', with which I completely agreed. But the people showing up was just another testimony of how much my mom is loved, which I think was special for her as well.After moving for hours and hours, Mom and I spent some time looking for the slide show we made for her 50th birthday, but we couldn't find it. Sad. We did some other browsing and laughing and playing around online. Then, I went home and got ready, and we all met up at a semi-fancy restaurant on Shem Creek called Water's Edge. (This was also where Matt and I had our rehearsal dinner and neither of us had eaten there since then.) It was nice to be dressed up and pamper Mom for her 55th birthday. We got her a couple of little gifts, but her big gift was a very nice amethyst ring (her birthstone) that Valerie actually cut part of. Val has been learning about cutting stones from a friend of hers, so this made it extra-special for mom.Mom's friend, Teela, helped with moving and also joined us for the birthday dinner. :)

Catching Up: Birthday Oyster Roast

February is a busy month for birthdays in both of our families. (Not to mention friends!)

Gail is Feb 4th
Matt is Feb 6th
Grandma is Feb 8th
Valerie is Feb 14th
Grandpa is Feb 17th and
Mom is Feb 20th

Steph and Mark were really smart this year to throw one huge birthday bash for everyone on the Powers/Flagler side. It was Sunday, February 7th for a few hours. Everyone gathered at their place for an oyster roast/lowcountry boil. (And hot dogs for those like me who aren't huge fans of seafood.)It was lots of fun, and we're thinking it might need to become a tradition. :)