Thursday, April 28, 2011

Celebrating Easter

I am truly beginning to see how the holidays take on a more special meaning when you have children. This Easter was especially meaningful to me because it was the first Easter where we could explain to Jadon the true meaning of the holiday—aside from the Easter bunny, Easter baskets, candy, etc. We talked to him about our savior Jesus Christ and the sacrifice He made on the cross for us.

With the craziness of moving, unpacking, reorganizing and adjusting to a new city, my heart and mind was not focused. For example, I usually take note of Ash Wednesday –the beginning of Lent , the 40 days prior to Easter. This year, I was completely oblivious. I didn’t even realize Easter was approaching until about two weeks before the date! So, what better way to focus my mind and heart than to teach my sweet two year old about Jesus’ ultimate sacrifice? I decided to do a craft day to show him instead of tell him. (Now if you know me, you know I am not a crafty type of person so this was going to be interesting.) I did some research (btw, there is ton of fun stuff on the Internet for preschoolers!!), and I called in some reinforcements. My sister-in-law, Andrea and cousin, Cherie have been doing preschool letter days with their little ones where they do awesome crafts. I thought that this would be a great opportunity for Jadon to hang out with his cousins while mommy got some help from a few experts. And what resulted was a beautiful morning of fun and learning!





Here the cousins wait for their craft instructions.





First, Aunt Andrea explained the importance of Easter. Then we made "Resurrection Rolls". They are a combination of a marshmallow dipped in butter, cinnamon and sugar, and then wrapped in a crescent roll! YUMMY! The marshmallow is suppose to represent Jesus' body, the cinnamon represents the oil and spices that were rubbed on Him after His death, and the crescent roll represents the tomb. Awesome, right? (I found this activity online).





































When the rolls are cooked and ready to be eaten, we see that the marshmallow (Jesus' body) has disappeared and the roll (the tomb) is empty! Jesus is alive! The kids LOVED this! They loved eating the rolls too!







Next we made a replica of the cross and empty tomb with sticks, yarn, rocks, plastic grass, an empty eggshell, and paper plate.













<



On Easter Sunday, we dressed up in our Sunday best and went to church.







Afterwards, we gathered at Jessie and Allie’s house for a pizza party and Easter Egg Hunt.




This was Jadon’s first Easter Egg Hunt. Here the kids are getting in position for the big race!






It took him about two seconds to get the hang of it and then he was on a mission to find as many eggs as possible!















The end result was a bag full of eggs! He was so proud of himself that for the rest of the afternoon, he refused to put down his bag. He literally carried it with him running about the backyard with the other kids for an hour or so. We kept asking if we could hold it for him but he said, “no”. Later we found him in a secluded part of the backyard, under a tree, eating his chocolates. That was probably his plan all along. Who knew he could delicately unwrap the thin foil from around those chocolate eggs?…



Before the afternoon ended, we took some pictures with the family.















This Easter holiday was wonderful, we got to spend some quality time together as a family. Last year, Arrielle was still in my tummy. This year, we were able to share this awesome holiday with our two sweet babies! And, the most important part of all is that our Savior has risen from the dead and we no longer have to face eternal damnation –because we believe, we are saved and have the promise of eternal life. Thank you Jesus!!!























Tuesday, April 19, 2011

Ode to Oakland

Through a series of events stemming from career changes and some serious prayer, God relocated us from Oakland to Fresno (I say God because I wasn’t too keen on the idea of moving but now I am starting to adjust). I got to thinking about why this move has been so hard for me and, without getting too sentimental; I came up with a weak attempt at my “Top Ten” Reasons. Here they are below:





10. Berkeley Bowl --This place made me feel like I could actually be a gourmet chef. The fact that they had every exotic fruit and veggie known to man under one roof made me feel cool to shop there. I will NOT miss the parking lot and the circling 3 to 4 times to find a too tight spot where I know my car doors would be dented in upon my return.


9. Jeremy's--Where else could you find Tory Burch"reva" flats for $60, or a full length J.Crew pea coat for $50, or better yet, J.Crew cargo capri pants for $1.50 (no kidding). I love that place and will miss it dearly!





8. College Ave. -- When we first moved, I used to ride the 51 bus from Oakland to campus. The bus route takes you straight down College Avenue. It is one of my most favorite streets in the East Bay. It's full of small novelty shops, clothing stores, salons, and restaurants. It's broken into sections by beautiful bungalows and cottages. With this combo, you feel the urban pulse of the city but the charm and history of a small town.





7. Zachary's Pizza -- Hands down, the best pizza EVER! Part of the mystic is when you dine in you have to squeeze past the other 100 people or so who have decided to eat there too. You put your name on the wait-list and then sit for like an hour, salivating until your seat is ready. I've convinced myself that this process makes you enjoy the pizza that much more.


6. Knowing the 7 different routes one could take to get to the Grocery Store Outlet on Broadway.




5. The fact that most of our friends have no idea what my maiden name is.





4. Driving through Piedmont and fantasizing about which house we would purchase once we collected our lottery winnings. We used to look in the Montclarion Real Estate section on Sunday and pick a few $1 and $2 million home open houses to check out. In that area of the Bay, that price tag on average only got you a 3/2 at about 1700 sq. ft. and at times, it would still need some TLC. I will not miss the Bay Area's inflated housing prices




3. Running Lake Merritt





2. Running the hills of Lake Chabot. This place was seriously a majestic oasis in the middle of the city. It was amazing. I would run there any chance I could. There is no way one could run there and not feel the presence of our God. I have had some wonderful times of prayer while running --I will miss that part the most.



1. Our wonderful, amazing friends who were really like family. When I think of Oakland and the time we lived in the Bay Area, my heart is filled with love and I reflect on the genuine, loving relationships we developed. As I get older, I am realizing that relationships like those should not be taken for granted. I thank the Lord for them and know He has plans for us to develop and strengthen our relationships here in Fresno too.


Runner-ups:


Volvo station wagons --they're everywhere


BART


Getting on the freeway to simply go to the grocery store...3 miles away


East Oakland side shows (not really)


the weather--I have become accustomed to wearing scarfs in the middle of July