Happy Easter!

For our family, Easter is a much anticipated day on the Christian calendar.  After contemplating the death of Christ and the weight of our sin that He bore on His own shoulders, Easter is a morning of triumph and joy!
This year, we decided we would forgo a couple of Easter traditions in favor of a more relaxed, Christ-focused celebration.  The kids did not get new clothes (with the exception of hats for the girls and a pair of white shoes for Allison since she didn't have any), and they did not receive Easter baskets from us.  Instead, they chose favorite clothing from their closets, and we gave them each a token gift that we knew they would appreciate.  The boys each received a pack of baseballs (I think they are the sole providers of them at school), and the girls each received a flower to plant and care for.  We had a full and productive day on Saturday, and felt relaxed and stress-free as we went to bed.  We attribute that to bypassing the commercialization of the day, and may do it again next year.  :)
The boys like to escape when the camera comes out, so I didn't get any pics of them.  The girls were happy to pose for a couple...mostly happy, anyway.  You'll notice that Allison's mood changes slightly as the photo session continues:

Best friends

Lovely locks

Pretty little pumpkin

Little Miss Green Thumb

No more pictures!

Just a lil' smile

"Glorious Morning!  Jesus is risen!"

Showering Harmony...

It's almost impossible for Greg and I to believe, but our "little" niece (who served as our flower girl almost 14 years ago), is getting married next month!  We are excited to welcome her fiance', Chris, to our family.  It seems like he's already part of us because they have been dating for a few years, and we've been able to celebrate several holidays together.  We are thankful that God brought Harmony and Chris together, and are excited to help them begin their lives as a married couple!
On April 16th, I hosted a family bridal shower for Harmony.  It was so good to see many of our aunts and some cousins again, and to be able to meet Chris's family.  Here are a few photos of the day:

The happy bride

Greg's cousin, Pam, works at a bakery, and their shop did the cake.
 It was beautiful!  I think they used it in their demo book.

Kristen, Kaitlynn, and Allison with their creation

Gaylene, Harmony, Amanda, Tina

The food was great!  My wonderful extended family usually
brings a dish to family showers, and they were happy to
participate in this one, as well.  That greatly lightened
my load!  We had shredded ck. sandwiches, pasta salad,
fresh fruit trays, fresh veggies, and fruit salad, along with
a terrific "Taste of Home" punch that Alberta put together.
 Chris's mom, Kim, allowed us to use her daycare center.
 It was perfect!

Another creation  :)

Aunt Marlene and Alberta - Aunt Sarah was to the right, but I think
 she was in the middle of a blink when the photo was captured.  Aunt Joyce
was able to make it, too.

Really great (and useful) gifts!

Lovin' her cake!

Amanda getting into the game

One of the younger party guests - Chris's sweet little niece

Chris's grandma playing the purse dig

Sisters

And that was the really great part of the trip...but there was a "not so great part", as well.  We had debated whether to take our 5th wheel up with us (260 miles) and leave it at Greg's parents until the wedding, which is in late May.  After calculating fuel costs, hotel rooms, and overall comfort and accessibility for visiting, it seemed like it would be worthwhile to go ahead and haul it up.   So...we left our home at about 5 o'clock that Friday evening, hoping to make it to Cedar Springs by no later than 10.  It is normally a 4 hour trip, but we knew that it would take a little more time to pull.
Starting out, things were great.  Greg had done a little work to the truck, and he and the boys were thinking that it was pulling a little better than last year.  This was my first time to actually ride with them, since I usually follow along in the van (a more fuel-efficient and comfortable vehicle for riding around while camping, etc).
We stopped just north of Findlay to pick up a bite to eat and grab some fuel.  About Bowling Green (just a few minutes north), so popping noises started to be heard, and as we continued, it became worse. 
Thankfully we were able to get to an Advanced Auto store, and the employees stayed with us until almost an hour after closing, trying to help diagnose/fix the problem. 

Daddy's helpers

See if you can tell what is going on here :)

It became worse instead of better, so we called our 'emergency hotline' - my dad.  :)  We had a couple of options, but decided that they would bring his truck up to us, and we would switch off.  He has a 5th wheel as well, so it worked out well (besides the embarrassment of having to 'borrow' a vehicle - grrrr.)  We were able to continue on from there, and arrived in Cedar at 3:30 in the morning.  I sat in the truck with Kaitlynn asleep on my lap and Allison in the car seat while Greg unhooked and set up the camper.  By the time we were able to go in, it was 4 a.m., and we were starting to see double.  Fortunately, the shower was set late, at 2 that afternoon, so we were able to rest up for a few hours before the party!  We are thankful, though, for a safe trip.  Long, but safe.

Gotta Love Spring!

On Sunday, our family was able to attend Family Life Weekend services in Dayton, OH, and hear Ken Ham (Answers in Genesis) speak in the morning and evening sessions.  We had planned to make a weekend out of it, but since some of the kiddos were struggling with allergies we thought it best to stay home and not subject others to the drainage issues they were having.  :) Fortunately, they were doing much better by Sunday.
In the a.m., Mr. Ham lectured on The Relevance of Genesis in Today's World, and in the p.m. he spoke concerning One Blood, One Race.  Of course his teaching is so rich that one's head feels about to explode after 90 minutes of solid information!  Each of us came away with our eyes opened to new truths that affirm our faith and belief in our Creator God!

Ken Ham

For the afternoon, we packed a picnic lunch and found a really nice, secluded park area.   The kids really enjoyed the 87 degree temps, and explored the area looking for the perfect carving stick, bugs, and all the other fun things that hang out in the woods!

Sweet lil' sisters

In search of the perfect stick!

Give him a stick and a knife, and he's happy!

Love our baby girl!

Somebody has been in the cookie jar!



Happy Campers!



Current Events...

at our house:

The family photographer has been really slacking lately, but life has been happening at the speed of light, so it seems!  Grandma and Grandpa Burley returned from Florida last week, and stopped through on their way home.  We enjoyed a terrific Cracker Barrel dinner together, as well as some catch-up conversation after a long winter.  So glad they made it home safely!

Hobe Sound Choir was here a week ago, and we kept four girls in our home.  This gave us a head start on spring cleaning, and we had so much fun showing them hospitality.  It's always a blessing to connect with 'old' friends, and make some new ones as well!  So glad for that opportunity. 

There have been a couple of disappointments in the last couple of weeks:  Our cat, which we had for about two years, did one of his disappearing acts and then never reappeared.  My mom has probably been praying to this end, but the rest of us are a little bummed.  He was an outdoor cat, so we weren't seriously attached, but things are a little different.  I, for one, am not mourning the removal of the litter box from the garage.  Never could stand those things! 
On another note, the boys were tentatively looking forward to playing spring baseball for a church/school team in Lima.  Unfortunately, there wasn't enough interest (in their particular grade levels) from that church/school to be able to facilitate teams, so they won't be able to play this year.  We don't do city leagues (cause we're wierd and protective and all that), so that eliminates most of the athletic opportunities for them.  They were all good with the fact that God has something different/better for them, and some of those things are falling into place.  :)

School continues to move along nicely.  I think we are all ready for Spring Break, but since IHC is late this year, so is spring break!  When we return from spring break, we literally only have 4 weeks of school before summer vacation!  Yay!!!!

The next couple of weeks are going to be hectic, but we'll blog about that when the time comes.  Until then, have a great weekend and try to find some sunshine!

Allison and Kaitlynn enjoy a crazy ride
on the three-wheeled bike that Grandpa
bought and refurbished in Florida.
(Never mind Alli's monster face)

Fun Stuff!

The last couple of weeks have been busy as usual, but some of our activities have been a little out of the ordinary.  Special, in fact.
During our revival, Dad wanted to do something special with the Durkee boys (their family were our evangelists), so he and Dan decided to take them to the Dayton Air and Space Museum.  They invited Ryan and Evan to go along.  After a short night's sleep Friday, they crawled out of bed unusually early on Saturday morning.  We have been to the museum many times on field trips, but it was lots of fun for them to go with Papa and the Durkees.  In the afternoon, after getting back to Lima, they hit the softball field with the guys for awhile, and got their first real "sun" of the season.  Always love to watch the freckles reappear. :)
They didn't take any pics, so here is one from the museum website.  If you've never been there, you should make a day trip this summer.  It would even be a fun thing to do during IHC.  The museum is free and the IMAX is only like $5.  The shows are great.

Due to some unusual circumstances, Rev. Paul Pierpoint spent a few days in Lima this past week. It was our privilege to take him out on Friday night for a Bob Evan's dinner, and then entertain him in our home after he preached on Sunday night.  He is such a funny guy, and had us cracking up.  Growing up in a parsonage, I had the honor of being with traveling evangelists quite frequently, but since leaving home, those opportunities are much more infrequent.  We were glad to have our kids spend a little time getting to know Bro. P., and look forward to having him back for revival in the fall!