Easter Sunday 2011

Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and belives in me will never die. Do you believe this?"

John 11:25&26

We had a very blessed Easter and after church, spent the day enjoying family and resting. As a Christian saved by grace...I cannot imagine what life would be like without the reconciliation that Jesus provided to us by his death on the cross. Apart from Him I am a slave to the wickedness of this world. Praise God, that it didn't end with His death, but that three days later, He arose from the grave! The ending was written, death and satan were conquered....Today, we can rest in the truth of His victory and anxiously await the day He will return to call his children home!

The look of exhaustion!

Her First Bunny Cake...She has a Mimi who loves all things Easter

Easter Basket!

After the Egg Hunt, we headed home to give Avery her Easter Basket. When discussing what our Easter traditions would be, we decided to do baskets on Saturday...a decision that will hopefully make Sunday mornings before church a little less stressful. Easter for our children will involve dyeing and hunting eggs and a basket, but they will know that the basket comes from us. We don't want to play up the Easter Bunny, but they will know that bunnies are just like eggs and yellow chicks, they make the holiday fun, but are not the reason that we celebrate. We had a lot of fun watching Avery pull each gift from her basket! This year, it included several books, the one I am most excited about is the 'Jesus Story Book Bible.' Each story points to Jesus and the gift of salvation He gave when He died for our sins and rose again. Avery has already enjoyed several stories read to her by Levi. In addition to the books, it had an Elmo DVD, PJs, hairbows, a bug capturing kit, gardening tools, and an apron.
Her big gift was from Mimi...a water play table :) She loves it! I am continually amazed at how smart she is and that she knows exactly what to do with any new toy she is given. This is such a fun age with new developments almost daily.

Easter Egg Hunt 2011

I have looked forward to taking Avery to her first Easter Egg hunt for several weeks now (See post below on practicing). The annual hunt in my town continues to be one of my favorite childhood memories. It was a big deal to try to get a prize egg...In all the years we went as a family, I think I only got one. They didn't separate the age groups, so all of the big kids ran ahead and took them all. So, I was excited to see that Opelika was going to separate the eggs by age and thought that it would make the hunt more enjoyable for Avery

After the stampede, Avery was actually able to participate in the hunt

Well, I hate to say it, but I was really disappointed in the set up of the hunt. They had the 3 and under section in a very small area and that was probably the majority of the children represented. I was with Avery during the hunt and really didn't have any intentions of helping her pick up the eggs, but oh my goodness, if had I not picked up the eggs for her, she wouldn't have got even one! Other people were scooping up every one in sight for their child and some kids had two or three people hunting with them. No kidding, 30 seconds after the announcer said go, everything was gone. I am not sure this will be an annual event for us. We will probably stick to hunting in our yard :)

Playing Mark, Set, Go with Mimi

Riding the train...possibly the most fun she has ever had!

All in all, we had fun and definitely made memories. Avery loved the train and side walk chalk. It is really nice to have some of our family here to share such special times.

Story Time with Ma Mize

Avery is one lucky little girl, she has the privilege of getting to know all four of her great grandmothers! When visiting our hometown, she enjoys riding the mule (the motorized kind) with Granny Smith, seeing MaMaw Brown smile when Avery sweetly says her name, and chasing the cat at Grandmother Christine's house.

The last time we visited, her Ma Mize came over to Levi's parents house for supper. Afterwards, she and Avery read Come on Baby Duck!, which just happens to be Avery's favorite. She can tell you what is happening on each page and points out objects in it with great enthusiasm. I am thankful we were able to get these precious shots of the two of them together :)

Eater Egg Hunting Practice

Early in April we made a weekend trip to visit our families in North Alabama. Before leaving Auburn, we made sure to pack Avery's Easter egg basket and a sleeve of plastic eggs. Our hope was that we would be able to get in a little practice before the real hunt on Easter weekend.

Sunday morning, we got up early for Levi to hide the eggs. Afterwards, and in our pajamas, Avery, Granmommy, and I headed outside to begin the hunt. To our surprise, Avery didn't need any instruction on what to do. She laughed and giggled as she happened upon each egg and then placed it carefully in her basket. She loved bending and looking under obstacles to see if one had been placed there.

Avery has such a sweet spirit and loves to try new activities. She really is an easy child and Levi and I feel blessed to call her ours!

Blogging Life Revived...

So, we have been using the computer I got for Christmas in 2003...After 7.5 years, you can imagine that the relationship has become a little tumultuous. It is with a heavy heart that I must say goodbye to my"Dude, I got a Dell" era computer and say hello to this beautiful new piece of machinery. Thanks to it, my blogging life will be revived soon! Our wireless router is going to be installed Saturday...so excited I can hardly wait :)