Easter

Easter was smaller than usual this year. Sarah brought one of her housemates to visit, and we instantly fell in love with Ruth. Saturday was full of baking coconut cake and strawberry trifle in preparation for Sunday's guests, but we found time to play Rails and Sails. It was one of the things Aaron brought back from the Solomon Islands.

The highlight of the weekend was introducing Ruth to Resurrection Cookies. 

We've been making them and sharing them for close to twenty-five years.

Sunday after church, our house quickly filled with loved ones from both sides of the family. 

Grandma didn't feel up to coming, and I keenly felt the hole of her absence. We fed fourteen this year and enjoyed the fellowship as we celebrated Christ's resurrection.

Good Friday

"O Lord, we want to skip ahead to Your resurrection, for it is painful to remember Your pain -- the torture, the death at the hands of people in power, the sacrifice of Your great love. We want to turn away. We want the storybook ending without any of the sorrows." 

~Kayla Craig, "To Light Their Way"

Good Friday was an odd combination of slow walks around the neighborhood to breathe in the newly blooming honeysuckle

and making hot cross buns as we have for so many years. Katherine played her cello for the Good Friday service at church, but Aaron and I were still reeling from our late night (early morning?), so we stayed home.

 

Easter Weekend 2024

 

"Our Lord has written the promise of resurrection, not in books alone, but in every leaf in springtime" ~Martin Luther

We had a lively bunch at our house to celebrate Easter weekend. 

Luke, Sarah, Olivia, and Connor stayed with us, so the table was full when we made resurrection cookies and sang.

What a sweet tradition to wake up on Easter morning and start the day with cookies that remind us of the empty tomb. 

After church, extended family began to arrive.

After living overseas for so many years, the opportunity to gather with family to celebrate a holiday is extra sweet.

I especially appreciate the time with four generations of family.

Of course, Sarah whipped up a coconut cake for the grand finale.

April (1st half)

April was an incredibly busy month for our family, but we still tried to start each morning with some Lenten devotional thoughts.

Katherine finished her biology dissections for school.

We soaked and planted beans as soon as we were safe from frost.

The first weekend in April, some old friends, the Havenga family, came for a visit.

John is an extraordinary runner, and when he saw that the 20k trail race "Hoof it for Heifer", held at Petit Jean State Park, was the same weekend as their visit, he signed up.

The morning began very early, Aaron and John left to get John to the race in time,

and Lori and I came later with all the kids. After the race, we enjoyed exploring the Cedar Falls trail and waterfall.

The first weekend in April was also Palm Sunday, and the CBC string quartet played for a worship service in North Little Rock. These guys give so much of their time and energy to serve their community!

The second Sunday in April was Easter, and once again we enjoyed a house full of people.

Sarah came up from Dallas, and Olivia brought several of her friends to celebrate.

The dogwoods bloomed,

The firepit cheered.

And the kitchen hummed with life again as everyone pitched in to help.

We made our traditional Resurrection Cookies.

And even though Hannah and Benjamin needed to stay in Houston,

we enjoyed a sweet Easter celebration with lots of lovely young ladies.

And lots of extended family, too.

Quite different from our Easters in Marulaon Village.

Also different from our Easters in Honiara.

But always celebrating with coconut cake!

Easter Revisited

We don't get all of Meat Cheato together very often anymore, which makes sense as we continue to spread out and pursue the amazing things God has prepared.  

But Easter weekend we did manage to squeeze in a couple of days together (plus one friend whose family lives overseas) to celebrate the resurrection.  We made Hot Cross Buns.

Hannah and I hit the gym together.

Sarah made her traditional coconut cake and served it on my great-grandmother's cake stand.

We laughed, drank coffee, and played cards.

We sang Lotti's Crucifixus, which Aaron and I sang with our college choir in cathedrals across Europe.

We mixed up some Resurrection Cookies,

and sealed the oven tomb with "Keep Out" & "This Means You, Peter!".

We took walks around the neighborhood and admired the dogwoods.

We laughed some more as we took pictures before church.

And we reveled in the fact that we could celebrate Christ's victory with nearby family.