Early Easter Exitement PLUS Encore!!!

Recent Tradition dictates that we must go to Granny's for the dying of the eggs. We've done it the last oh, 8 years or so. Here we were in 2008. Like most traditions, you do the same things you did the last year and the year before that. But I'm telling you, at Granny's house, tradition NEVER gets old. It just grows more tender with each year.

This year, we actually got a little jump on Easter due to Spring Break. We went to see granny in her tiny, little nest on Friday. 12 of us showed up at noon and lo and behold, the woman, the completely amazing lady, had fixed US lunch. White beans, mashed potatoes and corn bread. The BEST! I felt awful... something told me I should have been bringing HER some kind of special lunch. But she just won't have it that way.

Here are the kids sitting around granny's famous round table. We've been sitting round that thing for the last 40 years. Well, I should say I have been sitting round it that long. Sure it's longer for my mom and dad.

Hallie, Ana and Ellie.

Backyard Easter egg hunt.Luke hid the eggs a little too well. Even he had a little trouble reaching them.

Con-cen-tra-tion.Woops!

Success. Kami was done in 5 minutes flat. Not so much the artistic type.

Grandma sat and watched all the kiddos decorate eggs.
Even gave her two cents on Ellie's eggs. The only thing cuter than Grandma I?

Maggie Rae. That girl is too cute.;Everyone relaxing afterwards and then...... the ENCORE!!!

The quilt giveaway (from Valentine's Day).

Who won?

Who could it be?

Surely not me!!!

My family has already won three!

But when she reached in to draw a name....

I could not believe my ears....

I won the quilt!!!! ~Happiness~

I know I gush about my granny, but I do not know anyone personally who truly embodies the quality of LOVE like she does.

We are blessed by her and our Easter Excitement at her house.

Perfect Pairings - 2 Corinthians 9:15

My amazing granny gives away a new handsewn quilt with each holiday. She draws a name out of a hat and the winner is always beyond thrilled for a gift so special, so unique, so cherished. This year, Miss Maggie's name was drawn! Granny's gift is beyond wonderful, and during this time of year, I want to meditate on the most wonderful, live saving, peace bringing, joy infusing gift of all:

"Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift [of Jesus]!" ~2 Corinthians 9:15

If the Quilt Fits....

Dream big for just a moment....

If you had a quilt custom-made
JUST FOR YOU,
what would it look like?

If you could thoughtfully pick out the fabrics
that would be used in your quilt,
what patterns and shapes and images and hues would you choose?

Shades of turquoise and brown?
Ahhh, my favorite colors right now....However, God knows that the crazy quilt below
is actually more befitting me at this point in my life!
Kind of cool looking though, huh?Tea... if you only knew the amount of tea I drink a day....
you'd be surprised my skin isn't turning GREEN!
(green tea is sooooo soothing!)
This tea quilt would be apropos for me.As I googled quilts in Google Images,
I noticed that there is pretty much a quilt for everyone.
Here's one for The Okie.And The OSU fan. (GO POKES!!!!)The tennis nut.
(side note: I am taking tennis lessons
and it is quite hysterical.
My sister got all the athletic ability.
Maybe getting the quilt would help me!
Then again, maybe not.)Those who love to read.Those who love snakes. Snakes!?!The Elvis Presley quilt.And gracious me, the Twilight quilt, as in Stephenie Meyer Twilight.Luke would dig this skateboarding quilt. Apparently, there is quite a quilting following of arcade games.
Remember Q Bert? I really loved Q Bert.And a Donkey Kong quilt, who knew?Tom may like this basketball quilt... ? .....And even a quilt for president Barack Obama. But....
Guess whose dream of sleeping under a hand made,
custom designed quilt came true?

Ellie won granny's Labor Day quilt drawing!!!!!!!
Here she is under her DOG quilt
(every little piece of fabric is wagging with a different dog design)
with her dog stuffed animals and her real dog resting right beside her.The Quilt fits!!!

A Few from the Fourth

Love this day too much to skip it. Here are a few images from our Independence Day....

Kissing Cousins and Loving Mothers

Will they hate me in a few years for taking this shot and then posting on the World Wide Web? I just can't help myself. Lauren's expression is just so pained, which is quite funny, and I unfortunately have to admit it looks as though my child is getting quite good at this kissing thing. Whether it's just to annoy the girls or he really enjoys it (Lord help me) I don't know. At the tender age of 4, he has learned the power of kissing. And now that I think of it, that cookie Lauren is eating looks yummy. Maybe he'd just like a bite of it.
The famous porch swing, which you can't actually see in my not so nicely cropped picture. I promised you all I would get better at my photography, and although my subjects are lovely, I don't see much improvement. It looks like my son is hexing me. Maybe that is my problem. Well, the hex didn't last long because Tom won the quilt drawing, which really means that I won it!
At least that was what I thought until I went home and walked upstairs to see the quilt neatly folded in half on HIS side of the bed, an obvious dig that he was the big winner. His competitive streak knows no limits. But, like a true victor, I did find myself peacefully sleeping under a certain purple quilt that night! Thank you Grandma I! You are awesome!

Blogger Smoothie

It's not like me not to post. In fact, I now go throughout my day thinking in terms of blog posts. Creating titles, opening lines, blog concepts. I can hear my non-writing sister laughing out loud at this. You DO WHAT? she laughs. Well, it's just the natural way my mind works. But due to March Madness (not just the basketball kind) I have not been able to get myself in front of a computer long enough to compose any of my thoughts! So, here they are, in a blended sort of way.

March 4th. March Fourth. March Forth. A day always overshadowed by basketball, but that's OK. My favorite birthday gift? A phone call from Granny. She's 97. Tears flowed silently down my cheeks as she sang to me. Luke has a new level of words. He's past the -sp world and onto the -ch world. Yes, I said world there, not word. I think in terms of blog posts; he thinks in terms of worlds, a la Super Mario Brothers. He IS Mario. Great is thy faithfulness, O God My Father.Are my emotions an indicator of my faith? I am sitting in the stands to watch the first conference tournament game and I think my heart must be heard by everyone in section D!!! Does this mean I don't trust HIM? Happy Birthday to You, Happy Birthday to You, Happy Birthday God Bless YOU, Happy Birthday to You. After the song, we talked. About my day. About quilting. You really only need to use 2 different sized strips instead of 4, she offered. The quilts are just as pretty with 2, and less to think about. How many more birthdays will she sing to me? -chocolate -chill -chin -chacket (no chacket starts with a "j" baby). I believe. I do believe. That HE will watch over us. If that means winning ball games, then He will do it. Is it petty to pray to WIN? Do you pray that your husband has success at his job? That he will do well and find favor with his boss? That he will be blessed and be promoted? Ditto. Everyone wanted to know how it felt to "almost" be 40. Are you kidding me? Absolutely wonderful. I am alive. I am here to enjoy my precious husband and wonderful kids. My parents have showed me nothing but love my entire life, and God has surrounded me with friends on every side. Are things perfect? Of course not. But I am happy, even if I am going to have to check the 40 and over box sometime soon. She's making an Easter quilt. It has lots of pinks and purples and some green too. We WON the first game vs. Centenary! Our awesome and spirit-filled Moses, the same one who read to Ellie's first grade class, hit 8 three pointers! Way to go Mo! And my friend Nicole got me through it, all the way from Florida, she lifted me up with text messages like this: "u hv bn here b 4 he is faithful and just." God, I can't control my emotions, but I control my reaction to my emotions. I react to nerves by saying, "I trust YOU!" and I do. 2nd game: down by 7 at halftime with only 17 points. Incredibly, He gave me peace. You're going to pull it out, He said. We did. Emotions didn't rule. -challenge -choice -chip. I felt it that morning. Grossly, I think I felt the bug actually bore itself into my right nostril. It was downhill from there. I spent the evening of our 3rd victory in my bed. Didn't even watch the game on ESPN. While my entire family celebrates our awesome victory vs. IUPUI until midnight, I am in bed with the flu. Humorous, really, but you know, what, it's OK. Great is His Faithfulness! -CHAMP!!!!