Christ the Lord is Risen Today!

I wanted to share my favorite Easter hymn with you.  

It's so triumphant, so joyful!

Thank you, God, for your plan for the salvation of all mankind

by means of your Son's death on the cross

and resurrection from the dead.

I know that my Redeemer lives!  Alleluia!

Very early on the first day of the week, just after sunrise, they were on their way to the tomb and they asked each other, "Who will roll the stone away from the entrance of the tomb?"

But when they looked up, they saw that the stone, which was very large, had been rolled away.  As they entered the tomb, they saw a young man dressed in a white robe sitting on the right side, and they were alarmed.

"Don't be alarmed,"he said, "You are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who was crucified...

Mark 16:2-6

We're spending Easter Sunday with our children.

We will be attending worship with them and then enjoying a lovely ham dinner at our son and DIL's home.

Don't think we'll have an egg hunt, but who knows?

My thanks go out to Melanie, at Only A Breath, for offering  these free buttons.

Hope you have a blessed Easter celebration!

Love,

Linking with
Lynn at Spiritually Unequal Marriage for

Michelle at SomeGirl's Website for

Emmy's Closet for 

I'm Thankful For...

...my Golden Retriever, Boomer. 

 I read about a local dog show this morning and began thinking about her.  

Realized I still miss her.  

Terribly.

Boomer, 1994-2009

I know many folks in the world are hurting, hungry, homeless, and hopeless.

But I just wanted to take a few moments to

remember her

with you.

She helped me greet the day, every day, for over 14 years.

She suffered a stroke in August of 2009.

She'd been hobbling around on arthritic hips for several years. 

Be assured, we gave her doggie-type medicine for her aches and pains.

But that morning, I had to come to terms with the finality of her stroke symptoms.

Her head was tilted to 1 side,

She could no longer grin at us for her mouth was slanted in an unfamiliar frown. 

She couldn't move off her bed, much less eat.

In the afternoon we took her to the vet.

He gave her 2 shots.

One to calm her.

One to send her quickly to heaven.

We like to think she's gone fishin' with my Dad there.

She kept her eyes and ears peeled for...squirrels.  Oh, how I miss petting her silky fur!

This morning, I wept as I read about the dog show.

Now I am tear-less.

 I truly am thankful for the years we had together.

Years when she acted like the dog she was:

spots on the carpet, chewing on forbidden things, leaving land mines, etc.

Years when her cheesy grin greeted me 

without fail

EVERY TIME

she saw me,

even if she was being naughty.

She was always in a good mood.

She made sure it was safe to...

...enjoy our quiet time on summer mornings.

In the spring of 2007, I asked God to let her stay healthy 

till at least fall, 

after our 3rd child got married.

I just couldn't imagine all that planning

without her.

I told God I needed her

sweet, unconditional companionship

as I pondered the wedding.

She combined these 2 skills seamlessly:  vigilance and nap-taking.

I asked that of the God Who...

created the heavens and the earth,

gave His only Son, Jesus, to be my Savior,

numbers the very hairs on my head, 

wipes away every tear from my face.

She loved car rides.  This was the last time she rode in our 20 year old minivan.
We gave it to a charity soon after this, dog hair and all.

As usual, God knew what I needed better that I did.

He let her stick around for another 2 1/2 years. 

And when  the new school year wasn't far off, 

when I began to dread leaving her 

in the laundry room all day,

He took her quickly

to heaven.

Okay, NOW I'm choking up.

Not so much because I miss Boomer

-although the heart of God surely knows I do-

but because I'm remembering

His grace, love, and mercy 

 to me 

and to my dog,

pressed down and overflowing.

The Sovereign LORD will wipe away the tears from all faces...

Surely this is our God;

we trusted in Him,

and He saved us...

let us rejoice and be glad in His salvation.

Isaiah 25:8, 9

And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered.

So don't be afraid...

Matthew 10:30, 31

Oh, the abundant grace and love of God!

May you be filled with it today, friend.

Love,

Want to meet lots of other bloggers?  Go check these fun blog hops: 

Linking up with Kristin, Jaime, & Melissa 

@ Take it from me

  

Lynn @ Spiritually Unequal Marriage

Java @ Never Growing Old

Hope In Winter

This was taken at sunset on Sunday.
I like the blue sky and clouds.
They give me
hope
that not all is as dismal
as our winter days want us to believe.

Having lived in the Northwest for 23 years,
-via San Diego, California-
I've learned to literally look for the bright side of life
in the weather department.
Although we rightly have a reputation for lots of rain,
it isn't the rain that gets to me
as much as the gloomy grey of the skies.

How about getting up when it's still dark?
That's a hard one for me and the DH.
I deal with it by
drinking hot coffee with hazelnut creamer
and reading the comics, the food section, and the home & garden section
of the newspaper.
DH:  Irish creamer, sports section, and opinion section.
Often times we'll fix what's wrong with the world
by discussing politics.
Oh, that last part.
We don't do that until we're well into
our second cup of coffee.

And for those of you who don't know,
we're empty nesters
so we don't have to get kids ready for school.
Pheeewww!
Now don't get me wrong.
I miss our kids so much sometimes
that my chest hurts.
Like my heart is literally breaking.
And I've had 10 years to get used to them being launched.
Will that feeling ever go away?

All that being said, it is nice to have the freedom
to drink coffee and read the paper at my leisure,

Boomer used to help me
with the coffee drinking and paper reading chores

or play in my garden,

Summer 2010 

in the summer.
But winter?
meh.


Another way I get through the dark mornings
is to celebrate December 21st.
Know why?
'Cuz the days start getting longer
-by 1 minute-
and I know spring is not far off.
HOPE
is the operative state of mind here folks.

It's supposed to snow a little here tonight.

Maybe a light dusting, maybe 2 inches.

Maybe there won't be any school tomorrow.

Either way it's a win-win situation for me!

Play with my camera, blog, etc. if I'm home.

[Notice I didn't include "clean my house."]

Or be with my students at school.

I'm good with it, no matter what.

What's your morning routine in the winter?

Does weather affect your outlook on life sometimes?

Are you more energetic when the sun is out,

even if it's cold?

This is the day the LORD has made.
Let us rejoice and be glad in it.
Psalm 118:24


Blessings on your day!
Love,

Linking with Darcy @ lifewithmy3boybarians