Easter 2015

Our little family had such a wonderful time celebrating His resurrection in my hometown -- it was seriously the perfect way to end such a peaceful and spiritually fulfilling Lenten season!

On Good Friday morning, Jackson and I surprised my parents by coming earlier in the day than Brandon (I told them we weren't going to be able to and my mom called right as we were pulling into town to see what we were up to.. Jax and I walked into the office while we were still on the phone and the look on her face was priceless!) which was the perfect way to start the weekend! We spent the rest of the day catching up on soaps, relaxing, and waiting for both Brandon and my brother to get off work and join us!

Saturday was the official kickoff to the fun & cliche Easter festivities! Brandon, my parents, and I took Jackson to meet the Easter Bunny, we had lunch, came back into town to take the babe to his first ever Easter egg hunt, napped, played outside, feasted on my mom's fabulous pepperoni bread, and celebrated our Lord and Savior at a beautiful Easter mass. After church, we all got comfortable and sat around visiting for the remainder of the evening.

This boy pleasantly surprised us all by going right to the Easter Bunny and sitting nicely with him while we all snapped our pictures (we were fully expecting crying and panic to ensue).

 

*Ignore me in the background picking up the eggs for him**

He's definitely my son -- he likes his candy (though I tend to prefer mine unwrapped)!  

Headed to mass with my beautiful family -- how did I get so lucky?! 

On Sunday, Jackson woke up to find that the Easter Bunny had visited Grammy & Grandpa's house! Jax wasn't too into the Easter egg hunt itself (it took us a good 45 minutes to hunt/open all 12 eggs) but enjoyed opening and closing all of the eggs..  oh well, there's always next year! The Bunny spoiled Jax with new books, puzzles, toys, chalk, and other little non-candy knick knacks that he's been playing with ever since. After everyone was up and moving, our gang packed a picnic lunch and headed to the lake to do a little fishing -- we used to go fishing on Easter when I was in high school and I'm so glad we decided to do it again this year! It's a fun tradition that I look forward to carrying on with my family. 

I lied.. a few of the eggs actually did contain candy. 

We fish you a Happy Easter.

Dad with the first catch of the day!

Awful picture but this is some of the picnic spread -- my mom made her famous fried chicken and it was as delicious as ever!

Jackson was asleep on me so I had to take this picture one handed but here is Brandon with his first fish of the day. 

I re-shaded his face as soon as I had my picture :)

We couldn't have asked for a better way to spend such a special day and it made me realize again just how blessed we are to have such wonderful family (both near and far) and to have a God who loves us so much that He gave His son for you and me. I hope that you all had a wonderful day with your family and friends! 

Give Thanks Friday

Today is Good Friday and I am completely baffled by the fact that the Lenten season has come and gone.. I really, really love this time of the year because everything just seems so calm and peaceful as we reflect upon our Lord and the beautiful gift He gave us all because of His abundant love for us. Every night after Jackson falls asleep, I've been going into his room to pray over him and to thank God for giving me this beautiful life and for giving His only son for us. It's true: we love because He loved us first. 

As I mentioned on Ash Wednesday, I brought back my "Give Thanks" posts as a way of putting things into perspective for me during Lent -- now that Lent is over though, I'm still going to try to continue writing down the things I'm most grateful for either on here or in a journal. I encourage you to do the same. 

1.) Last weekend, we began to landscape our front yard (and even though it's only a patch of dirt right now, it already looks SO much better than it did before with the gigantic, trash filled hedge). I'm so thankful to have a husband who works so hard on these projects and takes such pride in our home.

I kid you not; I filled two full size trash bags with cups, papers, etc., that littered this gigantic, ugly hedge.

2.) Brandon took me to a couple's cooking class at Sur La Table for my birthday and we had such a fun time cooking, shopping around the store, and feasting on our 3 course Parisian meal -- I'm so glad that Brandon thought to do that for my birthday date!

3.) We had some wonderful (and unfortunately not so wonderful) weather days last week and enjoyed many park outings/stroller pushing excursions. We're so blessed to have nice neighbors two doors down who we can meet at the park to play with! 

4.) I'm so thankful for my little sidekick who is always by my side ready to help with anything :) This week is was helping me read books, clean, and decorate our homemade Easter cookies (which I hope to turn into our annual tradition)! 

5.) Above all, I'm thankful to have a Father who loves us all so much that he died so that we can have life everlasting. I don't think I ever really thought about and appreciated this until I got married and became a mother -- how lucky are we?! Thank you God for loving us all unconditionally and giving us such a beautiful gift.

I hope you all have a wonderful Easter weekend with your families -- don't forget to count your blessings and give thanks for all of the beauty in our lives. 

Friday Funnies (Easter Edition)

..yes I know, Easter was last week.

However, I didn't get to post an Easter Funnies last week because of travel/family visits so I'm just going to do it today (plus, the season of Easter has technically just begun--the only part of it that's over is the commercial/Easter Bunny/Peeps part of it)!

If you like my Facebook page, you may have seen my Easter countdown with daily pictures of the Easter Bunny (keywords being may & have--only 10 or so people see my posts because I don't pay FB to "promote" me.. whatever, Zuckerberg)--Easter Bunny pictures seriously crack me up so I'm going to be sharing a few more of my favorites with you..

..today..

..like, right now..

..let's go.

Is that not the cutest little boy ever?!

Have a great weekend, y'all!

Easter 2014

Sunday was Jackson's first ever Easter and it couldn't have been better!

I absolutely love Easter--it's such a joyous time of the year and I'm so happy that we were able to share it with such wonderful family and church community! Jax was spoiled rotten by his extended family and by the Easter Bunny which was really fun for us, but I'm looking forward to when he gets a little older and can comprehend the true meaning of Easter season and why it's so special (though I'd be lying if I said I wasn't excited to see him Easter morning when he finds his basket--seeing that joy is always fun).

Here's a recap of our Easter weekend!

Thursday

• Brandon, Jax, and I woke up early to go to the DMV to get our Colorado plates and tags--I figured it'd be a really unpleasant experience and that we'd be waiting forever but we didn't have to wait at all to talk to someone and were in and out within a half hour (when we left, the waiting room was packed)! 
• Jax and I headed to my parents early in the afternoon so we could go to Holy Thursday mass with my family. 
• Dinner, visiting, and relaxing before church. 
• Church. 
• Greeted Brandon a little after 9pm (he gets off work at 7 and left right after).
• Bed.

Friday

• Brandon and I woke up and headed to my hometown DMV to get our driver's licenses (the place we'd gone the previous day only did tags and plates, not licenses) while Mimi Carol babysat Jax.
• Rested and kicked back.
• Enjoyed seeing my dad's side of the family at my Grandpa Julius' 92nd birthday party.
• Back to my parents to watch the end of the Rockies game.
• Bed. 

Nana (Brandon's mom or "Mamma Nancy") sent Jackson three new shirts for Easter!

Jax and I sat in the car and nursed, played, and Snapchat'd while daddy and Mimi Carol picked up a few things at Walmart.

More on my Grandpa's birthday dinner tomorrow.

Dad is so much fun to play with!

Saturday

• Slept in, played, and watched cartoons.
• Met the Easter Bunny (Jax was not amused)! 
• Had lunch at a benefit for my parent's neighbor (she's a really neat lady who was diagnosed with terminal cancer--the thing I love about small towns is how tight knit everyone is and how the community comes together to help their neighbor and friend. Please pray for Laurie and her family!). 
• Naps. 
• Holy Saturday mass.
• Chinese dinner with my family and Auntie Sharon, Ross, Turin (one of my besties & Jax's godmother), Peter (her fiance), and Reid--can't wait for the big wedding in June!! It'll be our first road trip as a family of three! 
• Bed. 

All smiles before meeting the Easter Bunny!

The face of pure terror.

My gang before church.

Sunday

• Woke up early to help my mom with last minute Easter preparations (which included making my famous fruit pizza). 
• Visited, ate hors d'oeuvres, and drank wine (on my folks' gorgeous patio) with my family, Aunt Nancy, Uncle Rolf, and family friends Jim & Ilsa. 
• Delicious dinner of steak and chicken kabobs, rice, grilled pineapple & veggies, deviled eggs, and homemade rolls.
• Fruit pizza, lemon bars, and coffee on the patio. 
• Long country walk with my mom and Jax (thank you, Ergo!). 
• Call the Midwife.
• Bed.

Jack's basket from the Easter Bunny (the three books were from Papa Tony & Mimi Carol--Jax also received three new outfits from his Nana, a radio & stuffed bunny from Papa Bryan & Gramma, a knitted bunny from Great Aunt Nancy, and two cute outfits from Ilsa)--such a blessed boy!

Pretty table with Jax's Easter goodies, chips & salsa, and flowers.

My bunny and me.

Since I haven't blogged about it yet.. I got Jax's Easter outfit at Kohls for $.83 (I had a $10 gift card that came in the mail and then I got an additional 20% for starting a charge card)!

Good food..

..good company..

..and good desserts!

Brandon headed home after the Rockies game on Sunday night and Jax and I left first thing Monday morning (Jax travels much better in the morning). We had such a wonderful weekend and will always remember this beautiful Easter--we are so blessed to have a Father who loves us so much and to have such wonderful family and friends (on both Brandon's and my sides).

I hope all of your Easter's were just as blessed!

Simple Homemade Easter Cookies

Are you looking for a simple and festive dessert for Easter Sunday?

Don't worry; I gotcha covered!

Here is a recipe for some really simple (and yummy!) sugar cookies and frosting--seriously, if I can make them, anyone can!

I made the cookies and set them in the fridge overnight and had nightmares about how they would turn out.. The result? These are by far the best cookies I have ever had (and I've tried a lot of different cookies in my day)--Brandon, who isn't a big fan of sweets, even agreed!

Seriously, make them. 

Here's the recipe (from allrecipes.com): 

Original recipe makes 5 dozen

•  1 1/2 cups butter, softened
• 2 cups white sugar
• 4 eggs
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 5 cups all purpose flour
• 2 tsp. baking powder
• 1 tsp. salt

1. In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugar until smooth. Beat in eggs and vanilla. Stir in the flour, baking powder, and salt. Cover, and chill dough for at least one hour (or overnight).
2. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Roll out dough on floured surface 1/4 to 1/2 inch thick. Cut into shapes with any cookie cutter. Place cookies 1 inch apart on ungreased cookie sheets.
3. Bake 6 to 8 minutes in preheated oven. Cool completely. 

The frosting is super easy make too; I made a big batch of this buttercream frosting (from Taste of Home), separated it into three different bowls, and mixed in blue, yellow, and pink food coloring.

Easy, pretty, and festive!

Jesus & Baseball (Two of My Favorite Things)

Happy Monday Friends!

I hope you all had a relaxing and wonderful weekend--we spent ours eating burgers (review coming tomorrow) and visiting my parents (for my dad's Easter concert; we ended up having to leave before the concert though because of the weather). Here's a picture of my cute little bunny on yesterday's drive home:

Today, I would like to share with you Fr. Robert Barron's Lent Reflections from Thursday. I have been receiving Fr. Barron's daily emails throughout Lent and have enjoyed them immensely (I read them everyday while I'm laying down with Jax)--this reflection in particular really stood out to me and I believe it's a message we all need to hear.

Enjoy!

Lent Day 37 - The Invasion of Grace

A few years ago, news reports revealed that baseball superstar Alex Rodriquez had been using steroids. By his own admission, the great A-Rod joined the sad ranks of Ken Caminiti, Rafael Palmiero, John Rocker, Mark Maguire, Roger Clemens, and of course Barry Bonds. But when I reflected on the two most prominent players in this scandal--A-Rod and Barry Bonds--something struck me with particular power. These two figures began using steroids--Bonds in 1998 and Rodriguez in 2001--when they were at the top of their games, when they were generally regarded as the best players in baseball. They both had sterling records, both were guaranteed a place in the Hall of Fame, both had more money than they could spend in ten lifetimes, both could out-hit, out-run, and out-play practically any player in the game.

But why would these gods of baseball, these men who were, without artificial help, dominating their respective leagues, turn to steroids? It has been suggested that Bonds was jealous of the national frenzy around the Maguire-Sosa homerun race in 1998 and that Rodriguez felt the pressure of living up to the expectations generated by his unprecedented contract. Fair enough. But I think that things go deeper than that.

St. Augustine spoke of "concupiscent desire," by which he meant a perversion of the will. We have, Augustine said, been wired for God ("Lord, you have made us for yourself"), and therefore, nothing in this world will ever be able finally to satisfy us ("our hearts are restless until they rest in thee"). When we hook our infinite desire for God onto something less than God--pleasure, money, power, success, honor, victory--we fall into a perverted and ultimately self-destructive pattern.

When money isn't enough (and it never is), we convince ourselves we need more and more of it; when honor isn't enough (and it never is), we seek honor desperately, obsessively; when athletic success isn't enough (and it never is), we will go to any extreme to assure more and more of it.

This awful and frustrating rhythm, which Augustine called "concupiscent," we would call today "addictive." Barry Bonds and Alex Rodriguez were not addicted to steroids per se; they were addicted to success, and we know this because they were at the pinnacle of success and still didn't think it was enough.

One of the most liberating and salutary things that we can know is that we are not meant to be perfectly happy in this life. When we convince ourselves otherwise, we, necessarily, fall into one or more forms of addiction. Bonds and Rodriguez still felt, at the height of their success, a nagging sense of incompleteness. That was not an invitation to take desperate measures; it was the invasion of grace.

As Lent nears its end, let your incompleteness be filled by God and not by any of the false, unsatisfying substitutes.  

 This post is in no way sponsored or affiliated with Fr. Robert Barron or Word on Fire--I did not receive any compensation for this post.

Our Little Bundle of Joy

Remember my birthday recap post about the saddest birthday story ever? I'm happy to report that the story ended up having a happy ending!

Brandon and I have been wanting to get a pet forever so we went to the humane society on my birthday to adopt a cat. We looked at all the cats and instantly fell in love with Bitsy, a 9-year-old female who was "looking for a second chance." She was described as "very shy at first but very sweet."

We talked with the volunteer and learned that Bitsy was previously owned by an elderly couple who had recently passed away (within one week of each other). Nobody else had been looking at her since she was an older cat and we were the first to show any interest. That was all I needed to hear. Bitsy needed a good, quiet home and we could offer her that!

Buttttttt.. we found out our landlord preferred we didn't get a cat. I. was. heartbroken.

I snapped these photos on my phone right after we met this adorable face.. every time I looked at them, I would tear up. I was so worried about this poor cat who was without a home.. she had been living at the humane society for 3 weeks now and we were the first to show any interest? It wasn't sounding too good for Bitsy.

So I cried. And prayed. And sniffled. And laid awake thinking about her.

That's when I made the decision that we were getting Bitsy no matter what.

And we did.

We picked this precious face up on Saturday and brought her to her new home! She was extremely shy at first and wouldn't come out of the storage room (where we have her litter box and table w/food and water) but is slowly starting to warm up to us and explore the house a bit.

She has a favorite place under the couch where she goes to be alone and sleep. If I put my hand under, she will come right over to be pet (which is what is happening in this picture). We're giving her space for now and are hoping she'll warm up to us more in the coming days.

On our first day with Bitsy, we thought we lost her in the ceiling (we went to church, came back, checked the storage room, panicked when she wasn't there, decided she had hopped to the top shelf and made her way into the ceiling which resulted in Brandon and my dad pushing up ceiling tiles and searching around with flashlights. She was behind the hot water heater the entire time. I'm sure she was sitting there wondering how she got so lucky to have us adopt her..). On the second day, she got stuck in the couch and needed help getting out. I can't wait to see what the rest of the week has in store!

Stay tuned for more stories.

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