Easter 2011

He is risen! He is risen indeed!

..."Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here; He has risen!..."
Luke 24: 5-6

Easter. Resurrection Sunday. What a glorious time of the year! I am so thankful to have a living God who is just as powerful and mighty and miraculous today as He was thousands of years ago. "Shout with joy to God, all the earth! Sing the glory of his name; make his praise glorious! Say to God, "How awesome are your deeds! So great is your power that your enemies cringe before you. All the earth bows down to you; they sing praise to you, they sing praise to your name." Psalm 66:1-4

Growing up, I can remember going to at least a few sunrise services. Of course, my dad went to all of them. After all, he was the pastor. I remember standing outside trying my best to listen to what Daddy was saying while also trying to swat away mosquitoes and gnats. By the end of the service, I was covered in bug bites and itching like crazy. BUT, even with the swarming bugs, I loved the sunrise service. There's just something about the early hours of Easter morning. I can't even imagine what it must have been like on that first Easter morning. Wow.


As much as I love a sunrise service, I'm very sorry to say, I hadn't attended one in years...until yesterday. In the almost nine years we've lived here, Heath has attended just about all of our church's Easter sunrise services. For whatever reason, I never went. He has always been involved in the service somehow (i.e. playing in the band, guiding people to the beach with flashlights, passing out programs, etc...). This year, for the first time, I was the one involved. I was the one who woke up at 3:45 AM while he slept for a couple more hours.

I have to admit, I wasn't looking forward to waking up so early, but I was excited about the service. It was wonderful. The weather was perfect. It was a beautiful morning on the beach. As the sun came up, the dolphins were swimming and jumping in the ocean and the birds were flying in formation above. I missed seeing the dolphins, as I was facing the crowd much of the time, but the sunrise alone was amazing. It was a truly worshipful experience.


At the end of the service, a lady walked up to me and said sincerely, "I want you to know, your sweet voice woke me up this morning." She pointed to the hotel in front of us and said, "I was sleeping right up there in that room when I heard you singing and came right out to worship with you." She said she was planning on attending our church later that morning, but hadn't planned to come to the sunrise service. "I am so glad you woke me up," she said. "Your singing was just beautiful and this was just wonderful." Now, I don't know if it was actually my voice that she heard, as I sang as part of a trio. But, I do know God certainly uses us in very unexpected ways sometimes. This singing thing (other than singing with a choir) is fairly new to me. I've been extremely nervous and hesitant about it. I love to sing, but have never been a fantastic singer. After many long talks with God, He is slowly teaching me that He can do anything and if it is His will for us to do something, He will equip us to do whatever that "something" may be. In any case, I am happy this lady joined us on the beach and that the service was so special to her.

While I was singing on the beach, the kids were at home with Daddy discovering what the Easter Bunny had left in their baskets.

As usual (on Sunday mornings), Annabelle had to be woken up.

Annabelle woke up with "Easter hives." Obviously, she had an allergic reaction to something. She gets hives every few months or so for no apparent reason. So far, we haven't been able to pinpoint the cause. Ugh. Super annoying.


Despite the hives, we all had a great Easter. By the time we got home from church, Jacob and Annabelle were tired, hungry and a bit cranky, but I was able to take a few pictures before the whine-a-thon began.

The kids have enough Easter goodies to last them for a while. Well, that is, if Heath and I can stay out of their baskets. Last night, I saw Heath eating a certain four year old's Little Debbie Easter cake. Later, I ate a little bag of Oreos. Hopefully, we won't get caught. :)

The Little Gymnasts

Kids are bundles of endless energy. They run.....away from you as you call their full names five times. They jump.....off the coffee table. They climb.....over any furniture or object in a room. They yell.....and pull your pants leg to get your attention the second you answer the phone. They scream.....when a toy is yanked from their hands by a sibling. They talk incessantly.....about ANYTHING and EVERYTHING. They sing.....any song they have ever heard. (If they hear a song once, they have already memorized the words.) They dance.....to any song, no matter how fast or slow. All they need is a steady rhythm. But sometimes, no music is needed. And they never slow down. At least, mine don't. Jacob and Annabelle are constantly on the go all day long. If they aren't sleeping, they are at full throttle.

And that's the way they should be. They are kids. That's what kids do. They wear adults out to the point of utter exhaustion. But isn't it fun getting to that point? Well, a lot of the time anyway. :)

A few weekends ago, Jacob and Annabelle were invited to a birthday party at The Little Gym -- a fantastic place to burn off some of that excess energy. I knew they would have a great time. We don't live near a Little Gym, so this made it even more exciting. The kids absolutely loved it. They played, bounced, jumped, popped bubbles, and jumped some more.

Annabelle's favorite activity was walking across the balance beam -- not the little one closest to the floor. She preferred the big one and was adamant about walking it by herself. Eventually, she gave in and let me hold her hand.

Amazingly, she did walk the beam a few times without holding my hand. I walked closely alongside, my hands ready to catch her if she fell. It didn't happen. She is, indeed, a little gymnast.

Jacob ran from one activity to another, jumping, walking the balance beam, hanging upside down from the parallel bars, and he even flipped off the bars once. He loved every minute of it.

I have to say, The Little Gym wore Jacob and Annabelle out. By the time we left, their energy supply was just about drained. Three cheers for The Little Gym!!

The only other time when they're not at full throttle is when they're sick...and that's no fun at all...for any of us. The week after the party, Jacob was sick with a bad cold which (no surprise, here) resulted in an ear infection. As much as he wanted to play, he just couldn't do it. The more he played, the worse he felt. The more he ran, the more he coughed. I let him curl up on the couch one afternoon to watch Curious George. Annabelle, feeling sorry for her big brother, joined him -- a sweet, but pitiful moment.

A week later, Annabelle came down with a cold. She still has it, but thankfully, no ear infection. And it hasn't slowed her down at all. In fact, she seems as energized as ever. Jacob is also feeling better. As I type, both of them are headed for the "elevator"....full speed ahead!!

Running

I am not a runner. Never have been. And I think I'm pretty safe in saying...I never will be. Waaaaaay back when, before Jacob and Annabelle came along, I pretended to be a runner. My husband was a runner. Why couldn't I be one too? Then, we could run together. Now wouldn't that be fun? I went to the gym 4-5 days a week, hopped on the treadmill and ran for as long as my legs could go, or until all the good "running songs" from my playlist had finished playing. Anything by Beyonce always helped me pick up the pace. But even with my best playlist, full of Beyonce and 90's hip hop music, the most I ever ran was just over five miles...and that was on a treadmill. No matter how long I ran, no matter how many days I ran, no matter how good (or bad) I felt after I ran, I can't say I ever enjoyed it. It was never fun, which brings me back to my original statement: I am not a runner...and I am perfectly happy with this truth. Besides, I can think of a million other forms of exercise that I do find fun (i.e. having dance parties with my four and two year old children). :)

BUT, just because I know I am not a runner, doesn't mean I don't ever do it. Ok, so I hardly ever run, but I do give it a try every now and then when I am feeling extra energetic or when I notice I'm having to dance just to get my jeans on...or when there are thousands of other runners (or people who are pretending to be) running alongside me like last weekend during the Cooper River Bridge Run.

I love the CRBR. It's so much fun -- all the people, the energy, the excitement. I love being a part of such a huge event, runner or not. I've done it several times now, always participating as a walker or walker/runner. For me, that's why it's fun. I used to say, "Next year, I am going to run the whole thing." I've stopped saying that. If I were to actually run over that bridge, believe me, I would not be having fun. For my husband, it's just the opposite. If Heath participates, he runs. He challenges himself, trying to beat his time from the year before. That's what makes it fun for him. To each his own. Two years ago, he didn't feel like he was in good enough shape to beat any of his past race times, so we walked the bridge together (along with JoBeth and David) pushing the double stroller. He said he had fun, but I knew it was killing him not to be running the race. Later that day, he confessed those very feelings.

This year, he ran. And I walked...and ran a little. Heath's finish time was just a couple seconds shy of being his best ever. My finish time wasn't so bad for a walker, but boy, was I feeling it at the finish line. Exercise hasn't exactly been a priority lately. Long gone are those days of hitting the gym several days a week. A 10k over a bridge was exactly what I needed to get in gear and start moving. It almost inspired me to take up running again. Maybe train for another big race. Nah. Excuse me while I go crank up the music and dance with my kids. :)