Easter Egg Hunt, Part 1

This year the kids hit the jackpot and got to celebrate Easter three times. By the end, we had some near-professional egg hunters!

 

Our first Easter stop was the annual egg hunt at our church, which happened the weekend before Easter. As you can see, the grass was just starting to turn green. It was a beautiful, warm and sunny day. We enjoyed a potluck lunch, visiting with friends and hunting the eggs. This is always one of our favorite church events of the year, even when it was raining and had to be moved inside.

Sunday Again

Here it is, Sunday again.  And here I am again, feeling guilty.  This is something that happens roughly every seven days.  Let me explain.

Every Sunday I have an internal struggle about taking my kids to church or not.  Before you start judging me, hear me out.  You see, we have a great church that I love.  We just don't go very often.  I joined this particular church when I was 21 years old, fresh out of college.  I've learned a lot and met lots of great people there.  I totally enjoy the pastor that we have and love our close-knit "smallish" congregation.  But, here it is--taking three small kids to church is just plain exhausting.  That may sound selfish, but keep reading.

When Big Sis was little, it was a whole different world.  Mainly, there was just ONE of her.  But also, because she was so quiet and still that nobody even knew she was there.  Easy peasy.  Fast forward a few years, and there are three kids.  When the twins were babies, of course, it was harder to get out of the house due to naps, feeding schedules, etc...so our attendance was mediocre, at best.  Then, it got to where I looked forward to Sundays so I could drop them in the nursery and have a couple hours off from diaper duty (sorry!). 

Now, in this season of our family, the twins have "aged out" of the nursery.  This means at age three, the kids are no longer able to go to the nursery.  They are expected to sit with parents during the service.  When they turned three, I thought we'd give it a shot.  Um, lesson learned.  Mama cannot handle three kids in church!  There are not enough sippy cups and crackers to help this situation.  I tried to adjust the arrangement several times by splitting up; one Sunday I'd take  only the girls and leave Boy Twin at home, other times I'd only take him.  

My next attempt was to start attending the earlier, contemporary service with the kids in tow.  They like the praise band music, and they don't have to be as quiet and still.  And, there are donuts!  This was an acceptable arrangement for a while.  Until we started potty training.  The last time I took them to church we left the service and went to the bathroom SIX times, we spilled a cup of juice, the girls crawled under two rows of pews and Boy Twin talked during the entire sermon.  I was embarrassed, sweaty and tired after an hour.  That's when I decided we needed a real break.  It's not worth going if I only hear 1/10 of the sermon.  And I can stay home and clean up messes on my own carpet.

I know I'm the mom. I should be able to "make them" behave. But it's not that easy.  I can't make them be still or listen; I can't make them not have to pee.  It's hard to get them up and dressed, keep them clean and make the nearly half hour drive to our church.  People always comment "how cute" they are, but nobody ever says "how good" they behave...or not.  In reality, they probably aren't bothering anyone but me.  But isn't that enough?

I didn't grow up in church, so I have no real grounded reason for this Sunday guilt I feel.  I went to church with my friends for the social time.  But I want my kids to have the opportunity; I want them to learn the stories and songs, and have church friends.  But for now, maybe the teaching at home will have to tide us over until we are in the next season.  I'll try again in a few weeks, and then again a few weeks after that.  In the meantime, we have to do what we can to make our life less stressful and easier in whatever way we can.  That, and I'd rather my kids not be the reason our 100-plus-year-old church building falls down.

Can anyone relate?

My (sorta, kinda) Random Act of Kindness

When I think about what "random act of kindness" means, I immediately think of someone paying for my meal or drink at a drive through.  That's just what I've always associated the term with, until recently.

 

As part of my work with Petit Jean Meats, I was given the opportunity to perform my very own random act of kindness.  In the process of brainstorming what I'd like to do, and for whom, I thought about many things.  Above all, I wanted to do something nice for someone who needed it.  But I also knew it might be a tad awkward to approach the homeless man outside our nearby grocery store and hand him a ham.  And, if I cooked him a meal, what would he do with the leftovers?  I'm being serious.  I'm practical like that.

 

So, I decided to make a meal for the youth at our church.  Each Sunday, the youth groups meet for dinner and Sunday evening events at church.  They often need the adults to provide dinners for them, so I thought this would be a perfect chance for me to pitch in and help.

 

With my trusty little kitchen helper, we made enough hammy sliders with cheese to feed a small army.  I also made a double batch of Rotel dip, and some homemade chocolate chip cookies to go with the sammys.   I threw in a few bags of chips, and it was done! I kept it simple because I know what I would have wanted when I was that age...and it wasn't a casserole! We delivered the goods to a very happy and appreciative group of kids and adult helpers.

 

 

 

 

This was a fun way for us to do something to serve others. I had to admit, it felt a little bit strange spending so much time in the kitchen that wasn't for my own troops.  But it was also quite soothing.  I love that it was a good lesson in being a servant that I could teach to Big Sis while she helped me in the kitchen.  Strangely, I didn't get her picture until we got to the church. Her reward for helping was getting to try out the brand new playground that just opened last week.  She gives it two thumbs up!

 

 

Disclaimer: I am a member of the Petit Jean Meats Blue Diamond Club. Through this affiliation, I get to try out products, and give my opinions on new products and branding for the company. My opinions are my own and honest reflections of how I feel. I was given product for this #PJActs, so that I could have an opportunity to pay it forward to someone else.  No money was exchanged.