He is Risen Indeed!
We went to the early church service today. As a family of seven, we take up almost a whole pew just by ourselves. Tim convinced us to go to the 8 am service this morning so visitors could enjoy our favorite pew at the later (and more populated) services. Oof! I know it wasn’t a sunrise service (and I have to admit I’m grateful) but it was still a bit early for this sleepy family. Especially since we were out late the night before. Tim even left early to go and pray for the pastor before church.
Can you say Prayer Warrior in the training? Or maybe Prayer Armor Bearer? Prayer Serf? Something like that.
We had a delicious pancake breakfast after the service, served by the high school youth group. No dishes to wash, which makes my day (and the children who push paper plates as often as they can). We had a good group join us for Sunday School (studying I Corinthians 14). Lively discussion on prophecy and tongues.
Our Easter guests canceled because of illness. Sniff, sniff. No Grandma and Grandpa time. I decided to still prepare a nice Easter dinner. The temptation to slap some of those paper plates on the table and call it lunch was strong, but I resisted.
Inspired by Joshua’s dinner presentation the night before (blog entry on that still coming), I picked out a pretty tablecloth and even managed to find some placemats and cloth napkins that vaguely coordinated. The kids begged to use the crystal goblets. I think they just like making the crystal ‘sing’ (by rubbing their fingertips around the top of the glass). Ah, we’re a classy bunch. Rachel had already changed into her play clothes so her matching purple outfit was nowhere in sight. Use your imagination.
After a lovely dinner, I snuck away to the couch and fell asleep for a little bit (amidst two computer games and the other general ruckus). Tim and the children cleaned up much of the kitchen. Daniel ran off and got me a blanket and pillow so I could nap in comfort.
My nap was short lived but precious. We managed to clean up the house and get it ready for company, all the while leaving just enough time to watch an episode of Bonanza. Ah, yes; I think this little treasure is going to be a new family favorite. What’s not to love? At least 400 episodes (all in color), brothers, guns, bad guys versus good guys, all resolved in one hour. The boys (and I include Tim in that group) were captivated. Our company arrived just as the show was coming to an end. Tim forbade us to watch the conclusion until he gets home from work tomorrow. Pure torture!
We spent all evening playing games with friends from our Small Group. We started off with a few rousing rounds of Scum (always popular with church groups), moved on to teach the crowd Bang (where you basically attempt to kill the other players) and returned to Scum as a finale. Tim and Don snuck in two games of chess while the outlaws and sheriff were duking it out in Bang.
We ate a casual dinner. Some of the children joined us for games. Rachel was the Bang Consultant – running back and forth helping people with their cards. The little ones played with dolls and cars and the like. It was a very fun evening.
Daniel spent some time holding baby Emily.
Hope you enjoyed your Resurrection Weekend and spent some time with friends or family.
Kathy
Lucky! Our Easter it snowed! You and your nice weather make me jealous! We had a pretty boring Easter, no friends or family at all at our house (well I guess you can’t expect family to fly all the way to Norway just for one Easter).
Sounds like a VERY nice day! Is Scum also called Scum and Scuz where there’s a Pres and VP and then a bunch of peasants that try to work their way up to Pres or VP? If so, we also like to play that game! And, as for the napping.. I can sleep though anything.. usually X-box football games (LOL).
Yes, the game of Scum involves the rotation of players to positions of varying authority, based on their performance in the previous round. We play the version that has a King, Queen, various minor nobility, a merchant/tradesperson class, peasants and scum (the lowest-ranking person). The lowest (scum) has to give his or her best two cards to the King, and the deputy-scum must give his best card to the Queen, according to our rules. We’ve also played with hats identifying the roles, which adds a touch of fun to the game, and makes for some interesting photos.
Tim,
Sounds like we play the same version, but we call them the Pres and VP instead of King/Queen… it’s a LOT of fun! The hats sound like a great addition to the game.
sounds like a beautiful day – and the photos are gorgeous.
It IS fun to eat more formally, don’t you think? We use our dining room for holidays only, and it’s such a wasted space otherwise. But it adds to the specialness, and we all enjoy eating in there.
Sounds like a wonderful Resurrection Sunday!
Cindy – the hats definitely MAKE the game. I don’t know why we stopped using them. Oh yes, because we started playing with more grown ups than teenagers and grown ups won’t wear silly hats. Ha! What do you call your lowest person? I try to call the game Kings and Queens (not fond of the word scum) but it never seems to stick.
Kristine – I don’t know. I think I’m of two minds about formal dining. I don’t like things being stuffy or uncomfortable but I love a pretty table. Part of me rebels at the idea of taking things out of one dish (cooking) to put it into another, prettier one (serving) because of the extra work it makes in clean up. Still, it’s so nice to have a beautifully set table. Maybe I just don’t like the work of it all. Ha!
Don’t you use your dining room for school work? Where are your kids working when I see them at the table?
Samuel – do you remember last year’s Easter egg hunt out on the property? That was fun! I loved having you all so close by. Sharing holidays and celebrations with family was wonderful! You can come home any time.