This year, my Easter celebrations were great! It contained some firsts, and lasts and memories that will always stay in my heart.Ok, so the thing that was a first for me. This Spring, as I posted before, I got baptized (an amazing experience). This was the first Easter after I have been baptized. I know it's just a symbol, but it almost feels like Easter now is more special to me, now that I am baptized. I rejoiced in the fact that Jesus died on the cross for ME! To forgive MY sins! So that I could live an eternal life with Him, in heaven! It makes me so thankful to know that I don't have to pay for my sins, that He pays for them with His own blood. So praise God for sending His Son for that purpose!Every year, since I can remember, we have celebrated Easter with the Pitchers (and then with the Tills when they came, and the Bozonovi later too), and every year, as a tradition, we have done an Easter egg hunt. Sadly, this year was the last egg hunt we were doing. What with the Pitchers moving, and all of us kids getting pretty old, we thought it was time to end that tradition. It was a little sad (and kinda cool too though) to think that the next time we do an egg hunt here, at this house, will probably be when we come back with our own children. How weird is that! We enjoyed the pleasure of hunting for candy filled eggs for many years of past, but now, we must go on in life, and find new traditions for our Easter celebrations. :)Something that I will remember from this Easter, is that feeling I had on Sunday, when I read the passages in the Gospel talking about how He rose from the dead. I got a tingly feeling inside that made me so happy, and I could imagine just how Mary, the disciples, and all the people who loved Jesus, must have felt when they discovered Jesus was alive! It must have been glorious. Just imagine...Mary walked to the tomb, saw an angel who told her Jesus was alive and then got to see Him herself! That's just awesome!I am so thankful to God that He sent His one and only son, so that I could believe in Him and have everlasting life! Amen!
The picture is of all of us kids participating in the Easter celebrations at the Patty house.
Here's a list of some of my favorite things right now, the little simple pleasures of my life. :) Since it's the 15th, I will post 15 favorites.1. I love drinking hot tea in the morning...ahhh!2. A new box of colorful crayons is definitely one of my favorite things. I love all the colors!3. The Spring sunshine. It's so nice!4. The Bio City Cafe: a cafe in our town that serves only bio/organic things and it's the cutest thing ever! I go there all the time for lunches and tea.5. My devotions book I got from my Auntie Kristi (thank you auntie Kristi!). I really love them and they are really helping me as I grow in my faith and love for God.6. Traveling! I love traveling to new places and old ones alike, especially with my family and friends!7. The yellow Crocuses blooming in our little garden! The first signs of spring!8. Taking pictures: I love capturing the beauty around us in still photographs...I think that is so cool!9. The Narnia books: I am re-reading some of them and I just love them so much! They are so much fun to read! One of my favorite Narnia books is The Horse And His Boy.10. My "fuzzy Crocs". They are Crocs with a lining of fuzzy cloth on the inside. I wear them all the time because my feet stay warm when I wear them! :)11. Playing songs on the piano that I can finally play fluidly. I always feel so accomplished after I finish playing a song! :D12. The birds singing in the morning- "Chirp, Chirp!"13. 'Lavender and mint tea'. It's so-o-o-o-o-o good!14. Having flowers in a vase on our dining room table. It brightens the whole room up!15. Spending time with people I love!
Last Sunday I got baptized and it was amazing!I had been thinking about getting baptized for a while, but just now felt it was time. I got baptized at our church in Frydlant by my pastor, Ken Pitcher, and my dad, which made the experience even more special!It was so cool the moment I came out of the water. It was such an amazing feeling going under that water and then coming back up, knowing that I am now baptized with Christ. And I love that it was a symbol that I am dead to sin (Romans 6 I think) and alive in Christ! I was buried with Christ ( going under the water) and then rose (coming out of the water) and I had new life!! Its great to be a child of God!I am so happy that I can know God, that He cares about me, and that I can trust Him with everything and anything!
If you want to read more about that day, you can go to my mom's blog at livingbylysa.blogspot.com.
This Christmas was an especially good one for me. Great time spent with friends and family, yummy food, fun presents, and celebrating Christ's birth were definitely highlights!I woke up on Christmas morning to a fresh blanket of white snow, and ran downstairs to start off the day by opening up my stocking (a Christmas tradition. We always get to open our stockings before mom and dad get up). My family spent the rest of the morning reading the Christmas story, eating cinnamon rolls and eggs for breakfast, and opening presents!Later that day, we had Mark, Jonny and Lisa over for a yummy Christmas dinner and fun games.On New Years Eve we had the Ellenwoods. It was really fun spending time together, exchanging highlights of the year, and watching spectacular fireworks erupt all over town.2008 has been a great year, and I welcome the year of 2009, hoping that it is filled with joyous moments, and surprises as good as, if not better than the ones last year! HAPPY 2009!!!
On Saturday, we decorated out house for Christmas! We set the mood by turning on some Christmas music, and then we got to decorating!We pulled out all of our ornaments, candles, angels and anything else Christmas-y. It was a lot of fun decorating, and I really got into the spirit if Christmas. I'm now officially "ready" for Christmas to come!We also got our tree that day...and not just any old tree, but one from our yard! My dad and Caleb scoped out the yard and found the perfect tree, but it was just a bit to big, so they just chopped the top off of it, and that's our Christmas tree! Mom and I then decorated it, while watching "Christmas with the Kranks"! Now I'm all cozy inside our warm, decorated house...all that's missing is some snow outside! :)
My time in the States was great! My brothers, my mom and I flew in to Chicago on Wednesday and stayed at the JV house (the Geneva house) while we were in the U.S. Then, Thursday evening, we went to the JV vision night! It was so cool!!! My Dad and all the other people who came up front did a great job. If I weren't already a missionary kid, I'd totally want to come out here. God is working in powerful ways in Eastern Europe!Friday, was our SHOPPING day! We went to Old Navy, TJ Max, JC Penney's etc. My favorite things I got that day is a really nice blue coat at Old Navy, some pink Converse shoes (Tyler's idea! Thanks Tyler!) and a pretty scarf. It's so much fun shopping in the States, there are so many stores to choose from! :)
Saturday, was our family day. We drove downtown Chicago to the Museum of Science and Industry and were there for a while. We got to see how a whole bunch of things work, we saw some of the first airplanes built, a mini fairy castle and beautiful Christmas decorations in the main hall! Our family really enjoyed each other's company since we hadn't been all together in 4 weeks!Sunday, we went to Grace church and did more shopping, and then Monday, we left! So it was a VERY short trip! But I am SO glad that I could go, and I feel very blessed! Thanks God, I had a WONDERFUL trip!
This year, my Easter celebrations were great! It contained some firsts, and lasts and memories that will always stay in my heart.
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