Happy Birthday To Me

I got the best birthday surprise... a month early! Mark got my present while we were in Texas. Isn't it beautiful? And it's just what I said I would like, too! Thank you, dear!

Update

We've had a fantastic 2 weeks spending time with family and are now settling back into Missouri life (where it is still 45 degrees). I am so anxious for spring to come!
Mark & I are busy wrapping up our big adoption application with doctor's visits (lots of shots!), fingerprinting, pictures, autobiographies, etc. Our next milestone is a workshop coming up in May and then our home study begins!

Here are a few pictures of our recent adventures.

New Residents

We have new friends living in our front yard! There are also robins everywhere and we have some cardinals nesting in one of our trees. We also had a deer in our back yard recently (she was caught in our fence) but thankfully no snakes yet!

Meet Chip & Dale:

The Best Holiday Ever

Sure, Christmas is great and magical and you get gifts and Thanksgiving is nice with the yummy food but I think Easter is the best holiday ever. Because it is so not PC to celebrate Easter! Sure there is the Easter Bunny but he doesn't begin to compare with Santa's popluarity! And so in our culture it's totally fine to ignore Easter altogether. But if you are part of the population that believes Easter marks the day when the world changed for eternity, then you realize it truly is amazing!

We met with some new friends recently who were wanting a 'sign' from God, to have clear evidence of His existence. If you read the crucifixion story where the sky went black in the middle of the afternoon and the veil in the temple tore in half when Jesus died, how can you need more? (See Matthew 27:45-51)Sure that didn't happen in our lifetime but that is where faith comes in. Anyways...

Without Easter I do not live in hope. Without Easter, I do not have peace that if I died in a moment I would go to heaven. Without Easter, I do not have confidence and assurance that I'm living for something greater than myself. And without Easter, I do not have access to the Almighty and therefore can not release my burdens, cares, dreams, and aspirations at His feet.

It is a great time to share the good news with those around you..."He is not here, for He has risen, just as He said."

Winter Schminter!

7 inches of snow today (as of 2:30 pm) and still falling....

Good Bye February

I am so glad that the shortest month, which felt like the longest month, is over! We had our first hint of spring this weekend (although it is supposed to snow again on Tuesday...) and I am so thankful for change in the weather and the promise of things to come that it brings. It just felt amazing to just be outside in our backyard again, to run around and breathe fresh air. Here are some pictures from the cold days we've endured. I'm hoping this winter spell coming is the last of its kind but we'll see.