Resurrection Sunday

 He Is Risen!  He is risen, indeed!

As I think back on my childhood there are only a few sweet moments I can remember, the Easter holiday is one of them.  I would wake up to a basket filled with treats from the Easter Bunny and my dad made sure we were ready to go to church.  We ate a traditional ham dinner, usually with my grandparents and I would continuously sneak pieces of candy I had received that morning.  The yucky black jellybeans always went to my dad.  

Even though I leave baskets of goodies for my kids, I make sure they understand the true reason for Easter.  The chocolate bunnies, marshmallow peeps and jellybeans are delicious but our main focus is on the Resurrection and the sacrifice Jesus made for us on the cross.  I think about that every day.  Every.  Single.  Day.  

For Easter this year it was our plan to attend our church's first ever sunrise service at 6am.  Then we would go back for breakfast and the regular church service where both kids were to perform in the orchestra.  Then my parents were expected to come over for an untraditional barbecue.  Well, my husband woke me up on Sunday realizing that he had the alarm set for the wrong time so we all jumped out of bed and dressed as quickly as we could.  Luckily, it did not seem to matter how we were dressed since the service was held outside in the dark.  My daughter threw a fit because, well, she's thirteen, so the ride to church was not pleasant.  Hey, you need to know the good and bad of what I go through.  We made it to the church just as it was starting and it was a beautiful time of fellowship as we sang songs and listened to the message of Easter as the sun was rising.  We went home and the kids had time to look in their baskets.  This year I failed at taking a picture of their baskets.  I also wished I would have snapped a picture during the sunrise service but I was in the moment.  Then after a little bit of time to rest and change into more appropriate church attire, we went back for a breakfast and service.  The kids and the orchestra did a fantastic job of performing The Power of the Cross.  Matthew on trumpet, Brianna on violin.  

We went home and waited for my parents.  I tried calling a few times and there was no answer.  My daughter gave it a try and Dad picked up.  He said he had sent me a text this morning that they cancelled because my mother wasn't doing well.  There was no text so I'm not sure what happened there.  He apologized but I was okay with it.  We enjoyed the rest of the day together as a family, still enjoying the barbecue and took a stroll around the neighborhood - Rob and I by foot and the kids by bike.  

The evening ended with us watching The Passiom of the Christ.  Thank you, Jesus!