Easter Weekend

Matthew 28:1-10
After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb. There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men.

The angel said to the women, "Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples: 'He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.' Now I have told you."

So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples. Suddenly Jesus met them. "Greetings," he said. They came to him, clasped his feet and worshiped him. Then Jesus said to them, "Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me."

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Just a reminder that the above scripture is why we celebrate Easter, NOT because of bunnies or candy. ;) Sometimes I have to remind myself what the real meanings behind certain holidays are. It is easy to get caught up in the commercialism that surrounds us, unfortunately.

My weekend was quite interesting. I stayed home Friday and Saturday and pretty much moped around the house. I was productive, at least, and cleaned my entire house. Friday night I finished "The Last Song" and of course, I bawled like a baby. I KNEW it was going to be sad, but I still lost it. Such a great story though, really makes you think. So then, since I am obviously a glutton for punishment, Saturday morning I watched the movie "The Last Song" with Miley Cyrus. I have never been a huge fan of hers but she sure made me cry. I bawled my eyes out while watching the movie. Then I watched the Miley Cyrus music video of "When I Look At You" and cried even more. My poor dogs - they probably thought mama had lost it! I know I am a sap if a Miley Cyrus song makes me cry!



For the rest of the day I was just bummed out. Not just about the movie/book, but about some other things going on around me that are completely out of my control. And Ryan being gone during this funk did not help either.




Luckily Sunday I snapped out of it and stopped throwing myself a pity party. I focused on the real reason we were celebrating the holiday on Sunday and made sure to enjoy the moments with my family that day. I am a very lucky woman to have such wonderful people in my life. To clarify, I was not sad this weekend because "my life is so dramatic, so sad" because we all know that is not true. I have an amazingly blessed life. Unfortunately, the world around me is not always as lucky. Not everyone is healthy. Not everyone has a stable job. Not everyone has a family like mine. People get sick, people get older, people pass away. People grow apart, relationships disinegrate. People let other people down. People make mistakes. This is how the world goes round. Nothing is ever perfect, and its not supposed to be perfect. Sometimes I just wish I could fix everything that is out of my control. But, of course, that is impossible.

I did not mean to ramble as much as I have in this post. Whoops. ;)

Anyways, Sunday was a nice Easter with my family. Mom and I cooked Easter dinner and it was delicious. Of course I ate WAY too much, but I always do on special meals. (haha)

Now it is Monday and I am ready to face the week. I will try and give all my worries to God, even though that is SO difficult for me! I need to stop being such a control freak, haha.

Hope everyone has a great week. :)

Here I Go Again on My Own

It has been a few weeks since Ryan's pass back home. It's pretty weird knowing that I will not get to see him again until the end of June. Even then I only get to see him for 4 days. I am adjusting though. :) I keep busy at work and try to stay busy at home as well. I spend a lot of my free time with friends and family. I also have finally started reading for pleasure once again. For so long I was used to only reading books relating to school and my job field. I had almost forgot how great it is to just get lost in a book for fun!

I read Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert first. Oh how I wish I could travel the world and "find myself", especially now, while Ryan's away. But, of course, I have to instead face reality and give in to the daily grind of 8 hour work days and taking care of my family (Abbie and Zoe). But that's ok. Ryan and I will have plenty of years ahead of us to travel and see the world. Anyways,I really enjoyed the book and now I want to see the movie.

Currently, I am reading The Last Song by Nicholas Sparks. This novel sucked me in right away - I am a sucker for romance. :) However, I have been told that it is a SAD SAD book and a SAD SAD movie. I am preparing to have a tear fest when I get closer to the end of the book. But that's okay - a good cry never hurt anyone. ;)

After that I will read a book my mom let me borrow not too long ago. It is Wish You Well by David Baldacci. According to both of my parents it is a fantastic read - supposedly it will make me laugh and cry. I will post once I have finished these sad books and let you know just how much I cried haha. Of course, I am a very sensitive person so it doesn't really take TOO MUCH to bring tears to these eyes. I am who I am.

I will leave you all with a few pictures from Ryan's pass a few weeks ago - we had a cookout at his grandparents' house that Saturday before he left. It was nice to be with all of our family (except my mama who was sick with bronchitis :( )

A Visit Home

Ryan came home last night for his "4 day pass" from training in Mississippi. It felt so amazing to have him home again - I had to keep looking over at him to make sure he wa still there! The last month has actually flown by and I hope the rest of the year will go by fast as well.

We are planning to spend lots of time together and while I am at work Wednesday and Thursday he will be able to spend time with his family. On Saturday we will have a family cookout at his grandparents' home to say farewell.

I made him an Easter basket full of chocolate and sweet candies and handed it to him as soon as he arrived! I know my man loves candy!



Tonight we are going to Pearl's Oyster Bar for appetizers and cocktails, just some nice time to spend together. I am planning on soaking up every single moment we get to spend together over the next several days.

It is so great to have Ryan here. I have been dealing with some stressful situations and seeing him just makes everything better.

Hope everyone is well!

My Amazing In-Laws

This past weekend I got to spend time with my mother-in law, sister-in-law, and grandparents-in-law. (that's a lot of in-laws!) It has been awhile since I have seen them, especially Grandma and Grandpa Clayton. Toshi (Ryan's grandmother) was helping out her church with a fundraiser for Japan disaster. She was even on the news:

 


Toshi and other members of the church put together a wonderful event that included Japanese cuisine, silent auctions, items for sale, entertainment and good company! I thought it was so neat that they pulled the event together in such a short amount of time and that the proceeds go to the disaster relief in Japan. I bid in the silent auction on a beautiful kimono and won! Spending time with my in-laws is always a good time. I am very lucky that God has blessed me with such a wonerful family. :)