Easter...And More Pagan Rituals.....Yes That Happened Too....

Well,  like i said, i'm playing catch up here, but today's blog is the Easter one.  So this year i pondered on the all beloved jelly beans that go in eggs, that are put there by rabbits, and thought, "What the heck?  How did we come to this utter nonsense?"  ;-)

Well i never told the (to me) utter nonsense that there really was a giant bunny delivering candy for the kids, to my kids.  Call me a hypocrit, but for some reason Santa and the Tooth Fairy just seem way more believable. No one seems to mind that the Easter Bunny isn't real, in fact i think it's quite frightening.

Anyway the kids do like jelly beans and candy (go figure) so even though we really try to put the focus on what Easter is really about, which is the resurrection of Jesus Christ, we do still celebrate it with Easter candy and i lately have been buying them some sort of present too.

This year Sarah and Iman got MP3 players, Edy got a Rascal Flatts and a Taylor Swift CD, and Jack got some more Lego.  They were all pretty pleased, and this year seen as half of my kids cannot have food coloring we put pennies, nickles, and dimes in the plastic eggs for the egg hunt.  To prevent tantrums and fights we hide exactly the same number for each child and tell them that when they have reached that certain number they have to stop looking.  Everyone seems to be fine with this and they all had a great time on their "treasure hunt."

Date Night with Mum.....

A couple of weeks after we moved into our new place we took the opportunity to enjoy our new conveniences of being close to a city again, and Mum and I went on a date. 

It was really nice to sit down, chat and catch up with my mother again as it had been almost 2 1/2 years since i had seen her last.  After driving around a bit and tunring down P.F. Changs because the wait was 90 minutes, we found a fabulous little Indian restaurant.  It was perfect for Mum and I who love Indian food (it being something more common to find and eat in the UK where we are from).  I had lamb....mmm...lamb....need i say more?  ;-)

We then went to a couple of stores in the absolute pouring rain and then headed to a late movie to see "Hanah".  It was an interesting movie to say the least, but i did actually like it and we both enjoyed ourselves very much.  Hopefully sometime soon we will make the time in our busy lives to do it again.  :-)

 Heading out....

...at the Indian restaurant.

Mollie-Moo-Moo.....

In addition to my wonderful mother joining us here in Tennessee, we also have Mollie. Mollie is my mother's NewFoundland dog and is 120lbs of pure love! She is the sweetest dog and is very protective of the children and already thinks they are her babies to watch.  Jack has nick named her Mollie Moo-Moo, but sometimes that spills onto other people's names like, "Mommy Moo-Moo"....er yeh, not too cute.  ;-)

Mum and the kids go out regularly on walks with Mollie, and this time i was not at work and I was able to join them and go to a dog friendly park.  Luckily for us it was on the brink of rain and so we were the only ones there and Mollie seemed to have a terrific time on the slides and park equipment.

I think the best reward for me though was seeing my mum laugh when Mollie was going up and down the slides. :-)

Ugh!  I despise sand pits!  They were quickly banned from that!

 On your marks, get set, GO!  Sarah cheated and got a head start!  ;-)

Sarah and Nana - beautiful!

Holiness to the Lord....

Okay, so i told you we were going to recap from forever ago, well here goes...

In the middle of April we had the awesome opportunity of going down to Atlanta, Georgia for the open house of the Atlanta Georgia Temple.  To learn more about temples click here.  The Atlanta Temple needed some renovations and was closed for almost 2 years to completely redo the inside of the temple.  After this is done the temple needs to be rededicated again before it can be used again for sacred ordinance work.  So before they rededicate or dedicate an LDS Temple they have an open house where anyone can come inside and see what it's like. 

This then became an awesome opportunity to show our children what a temple is like inside (although they all are a little different in construction and decor etc, they serve the same purposes worldwide). 

The grounds were beautiful and the Spirit was plentiful as we walked through and had a tour of the Temple and i took the opportunity to share and explain things a bit more to my kids as we entered each room. 

There's really not much more to say....it's something that needs to be experienced in real life.....however the children enjoyed it and i think they thought it was well worth the 4 hour drive to see.  When i asked the children what they liked the most about the temple they were unanimous in their comments that they enjoyed the feeling of peace and the Spirit as they went through and they also really liked all the pretty chandeliers.  ;-)

The Sunset on the way home was spectacular!  After we got home we finished up the day by taking the kids to the movies.  :-)

Dusting Off the Cobbwebs......

Sheesh, i am SOOOOOOOOOOO behind with my blog!  I think i will do a mini recap per photo album i've loaded to catch up as quick as i can.  There just have been so many busy days and then when there are not busy days (which is rare) i have wanted to do nothing...at all.  Ever feel like that?  Anyway life has been even busier for me since we moved and some days i feel stretched pretty thin.

From time to time John and i will be reminded of a past experience we had and then we think out load and reflect on how "life seemed so much simpler back then."  The fact i always feel this way about the past, when at the time going through those experiences it felt pretty complicated, makes me have a little anxiety about the future.  I always think, "can it get more complicated and busy then it is right now?"  And somehow it always does.  Don't get me wrong, trials change, and some things get simpler or easier rather, but then new challenges come up and new experiences are to be had.  Oh how sweet is the word "SIMPLIFY!"

But i suppose along with it came more blessings too, as you learn more, you gain more, things are not more simple, but to a large degree they are more full of knowledge and wisdom....growing sure can be hard though eh?  If i take away the complicatedness or business of today i also simultaneously take away all the knowledge, wisdom, joy, blessings, etc., etc., etc.....

And even when i have a day where i feel like crawling in a hole and being alone, i still would NEVER take away all of the growth.  It is who i am and ya know what?  I like the person i am and am becoming.  :-)

I think this quote  by Paul V. Johnson says it quite well, "Sometimes we want to have growth without challenges and to develop strength without any struggle. But growth cannot come by taking the easy way. We clearly understand that an athlete who resists rigorous training will never become a world-class athlete. We must be careful that we don’t resent the very things that help us put on the divine nature."

So for now i will count my many blessings and submitt that even though life seems to get more complicated as the years go by, it is all worth it.....how could i trade my most precious blessings for a simpler time?  No, i cannot....not my marriage to the most amazing man alive, not my four delightsome joyful children (and there whinning and tempertantrums...for now anyway), not my wonderful glorious mother (who i only wish would realize her eternal potential), not the many places i have moved to and friends made along the way, not the beauty of Tennessee, that literally makes me smile every single day, not the promises i have made to God....no, not any of it.  

 

Me and part of my not so simple life...  ;-)

So now back to the recapping in the next few blogs,and then i will have documented the chaos, and all the fun, and all the memories that are priceless.

My Husband Never Fails Me.......

A tall order i know, but among the many things John is amazing at, one inparticular is being thoughtful.  He is thoughtful ALL the time (and no, i don't mean he remembers things....silly, he is a man afterall), i just mean he is fantastic at putting thought into doing things for people to make them feel good.

Mother's Day this year was no exception!  I got spoilt rotten and i am glad for every second of it!  :-)

My Sunday morning started with my traditional English breakfast in bed: sausages, fried eggs, stewed tomatoes, toast, and he even added his own idea of a fresh fruit cup with nutella as a side for dipping (boy does he know me!).  Mum was also given the same and she hopped into my bed and we sat and had breakfast in bed together. 

Then as i was eating breakfast i was overwhlemed with multiple glitter card creations from my darling children.  I have to admit my favorite was Eden's that said, "I'll always love you no matter where we are".  That note has so many meanings to me on so many different levels and was definitely a tear jerker for me. 

Then John apeased me by taking lots of photos of me and the kids and also me and mum on the front porch before going to church.  The night before John also had bought me tulips (my favorite) and chocolate covered strawberries.  My mother bought me zucchini plants for my gardern which she planted for me and a mini double headed putunia plant.  I also got this special jewelery we had seen at the Knoxville Farmers Market the day before at Market Square, where the lady puts a photo into glass and makes a pendant out of it.  John was sneaky and ordered one for me with a photo of all four children in it.  She is in the process of making it for me now.  :-)

Then Sunday afternoon we went to the Schutzes/Claytons to spend time with some of our most favorite people in the world and had dinner, which John and Vaughn made for us all.  That was topped with key lime pie that Amanda bought for me. ;-)  Man was i spoit or what?  I told you i was. 

I am truly grateful to me married to my husband and to have the kids i have, they are such a huge blessing in my life.  I am grateful for my mother who is constantly teaching me.  It was such a wonderful blessing this year that i got to be with my mother, who i had previously not seen in almost 2 1/2 years.  It is a huge blessing to us all here that she is now living with us (hopefully she won't leave any time soon,  ;-)) She is amazing in many ways and i am glad that through all of the day's celebrations she was there with me.