03/23/08

Happy Easter!!

I have lots of pictures to share today. The first ones are of a dogwood in my parents yard. I realize it isn't full bloom or anything but the fact that it is already budding and it being Easter weekend and all... It is always amazing to me how a dogwood begins to bloom at Easter. It doesn't matter what part of spring Easter happens, those dogwoods bloom. They are a picture of Christ so it continues to show the world that God is in control and still shows the love He has for us.

We had a good morning. We went to church and enjoyed learning more about our Resurrected Lord and it was a beautiful day. I had thought it was going to be quite cold, windy and cloudy, but the Lord allowed it to be sunshine and a bit of a breeze. It was still chilly for us when I took pictures of the kids after church but the day proved to be wonderful. Here are a couple of pictures of the kiddos in their Easter outfits. Poor Mikayla was SO cold with the wind blowing. She was a trooper. I had put her hair up in a bun and she thought she was something. Her new white shoes also have a bit of a heel on them so she was quite tickled with herself. Wesley looked so sweet in his navy suit. That green looks great on him. I love it when my kids dress up and look neat.

I was reminded today at church that "Easter" is only mentioned once in the Bible. It is in Acts 12:4 - And when he had apprehended him, he put him in prison, and delivered him to four quaternions of soldiers to keep him; intending after Easter to bring him forth to the people. This "he" is King Herod Agrippa who had already killed James and had taken Peter in to prison to do the same to him. Only, God took control and Peter was taken out of jail by an angel. Easter is to mean "Passover" but the term Easter actually became a pagan holiday. We truly celebrate Resurrection Sunday because the Savior LIVES!! We talked with the kids a lot about it this past week and especially this morning. I want them to understand there would be no Easter, no eternal life, without Christ giving of Himself on the cross.

After church we went up to Mom and Dad's for lunch. The kids were excited to have an egg hunt. My brother and Daddy hid around 75 eggs!!! (I am sure Kevin knows the exact count now.... we had to go hunt for some more after they thought they had them all...) They had a blast and got some candy and a bit of money, too! They also got to open their Easter baskets. They both got another Webkinz to add to their many they already have, as well as more candy, peeps, drawing pads, pencils, etc. Wesley also got a mini John Deere truck and tractor and Mikayla got a few more My Little Pet Shop animals. They were quite tickled with their "stuff."

The lunch was awesome, as always. Mom is such a wonderful cook. While we were eating lunch, Wesley goes into Mom and Dad's sunroom and sees our red shouldered hawk friend, Brittany!! We all quietly but quickly jumped up from the table. I had my tripod and all my lenses, but hadn't put them up yet because I had gone to all of that work the last few weeks and she didn't come... or I took a picture of grass. lol Well, there she was today and she was staying!! I grabbed my camera, which had my wide angle lens on it at the time, and started shooting. I figured I wanted to at least capture her even though I really wanted up close. Well, she kept staying so Steve helped me get my telephoto lens and I went to town. It was awesome!!! She was enjoying the fat off the ham from our lunch!! They had put out the suet for her but it was still a bit frozen and she couldn't quite figure that out. I was SO excited to be able to get these. Also, I had to take these handheld because the tripod at that point would have been distracting. I was thrilled with how they came out. I know I have lots of different shots of her, but I wanted to capture as much of what she was doing as I could. You can click on them to see them larger. Her beak is amazing! You can see suet in her beak in one of them. You can also see her tallons and legs moving in another one. Her eyes are what amaze me. And to think, God created this beautiful animal!!!

After the egg hunt and all of the excitement with Brittany, I went around Mom and Dad's yard and did more photographing. I had a BLAST and was truly in my element. I will share photos in the next few days. It was therapeutic, truly... I did use the tripod more today because it is better for sharpness in the photos, but I also still did some handheld because I want to work on keeping steady.

After we got home we began working on Wesley and Mikayla's "trash to treasure" projects for school. It is where you have to take something that is "trash" and make it into something. We are making a tissue box, toilet paper rolls, and cardboard into a tractor for Wesley. Mikayla is making a butterfly out of wire hangers, tissue paper, paper towel roll and paint. They should be cute!! I will share pictures when we finish them. They have to paint and "assemble" tomorrow. It will give them something fun to work on.

Well, I need to get off of here. I think Steve and I are going to watch "The Passion of the Christ" tonight. You know, I have had this movie since it came out on DVD but we have never watched it!! I knew I had to be in the right frame of mind to see it. I figured today would be a great day for it. I know it will be moving.

Enjoy your evening and the rest of your Resurrection Sunday!! May the Lord bless you...