Easter

"He isn't here! He is risen from the dead, just as he said would happen. Come, see where his body was lying." Matthew 28:6

"But God released him from the horrors of death and raised him back to life, for death could not keep him in its grip." Acts 2:24 

"And since we died with Christ, we know we will also live with him. We are sure of this because Christ was raised from the dead, and he will never die again. Death no longer has any power over him. When he died, he died once to break the power of sin. But now that he lives, he lives for the glory of God." Romans 6:8-10

"...Christ's love controls us. Since we believe that Christ died for all, we also believe that we have all died to our old life. He died for everyone so that those who receive his new life will no longer live for themselves. Instead, they will live for Christ, who died and was raised for them...This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun!" 2 Corinthians 5:14-15,17

Parties and Parties

 A few weekends ago, I took the day off on Saturday and we happened to have two birthday parties that day, so it worked out great. The first was a princess party for a friend in Lucy's ballet class, so you know Mark was all over that and volunteered to take her.....

Oh wait no he didn't.

Lucy and I spent the afternoon together at the princess party. And lemme tell you, it was quite a party. Like, "dont' get any ideas cuz there ain't no way you're gettin anything like this" kinda party. But we had fun. And the weather was perfect.

Lucy with the fairy godmother 

Cinderella!

This party made me SO want to take Lucy to Disney World. She would absolutely flip. 

Getting primped at the boutique. 

I told you this party was legit. 

Princess Lucy. Love this girly girl. 

We went home for a quick power nap and then took off to celebrate our favorite twins turning 2! They are a few weeks older than Annie and with every stage she goes through, I think about this sweet family dealing with it double time. Props to Mikey and Kacy. Cuz one of these crazies is hard enough....

Lucy is still sporting her makeup from earlier

Mark playing games with Stella in tow 

Lucy and Noelle playing. Noelle's older sister is actually Lucy's age, but for some reason these two have always taken to each other. They're kindred spirits. 

All the kids on the trampoline. I think I've decided what the girls should get for their birthdays....

 Tony teaching the kids some frisbee skills

Don't let that sweet jean skirt fool you. 

Future Mr. and Mrs.
I mean aren't they perfect for each other? It's ridiculous.

Yep, go ahead and get used to sharing you two.

5 months and a Revelation

Stella turned 5 months old this week! I can't believe my baby is 5 months old already. Time is going by so quickly, but it also feels like she has been in our family forever.

She is such a blessing to me every day. Stella is smiley, cuddly, and laid back. I think we are through the 4 month fussy phase because she seems like she is back to her jolly little self. I still haven't started baby food with her yet, but I can tell she seems hungrier and has been eyeing us whenever we are eating, so I will probably start that this month.

She is a little slower than her sisters as far as gross motor development, partly because I haven't had the time to work with her on rolling and sitting, and partly because she's pretty lazy and doesn't like to move :) She is perfectly content to sit and watch what's going on and suck on her fingers or play with a toy. And I am in NO rush for her to become mobile, because I know eventually it will happen, and things will never be the same!

One day last week my mom took the big girls for the day to give me a break, and I had a revelation.

Babies are easy.

Because I'm so used to juggling all three of them together, only having to handle Stella was like a cake walk. Nurse, play, sleep. Rinse and Repeat. 

There is no negotiating, there is no disciplining, there is no screaming or whining. There is no heart training.

We recently read Shepherding a Child's Heart in our small group, and this quote is more true than I realized at the time,

"You must raise your children in the fear and admonition of the Lord. Parenting is your primary calling. Parenting will mean that you can't do all the things that you could otherwise do.... It will mean that you can't develop every interest that comes along. The cost is high."

It's exhausting to do parenting right. It's exhausting to engage with my children all day long. To read to them instead of turning on a movie, to get down on the floor and play with them instead of sitting on the couch. To discipline and train their hearts instead of just sending them to their room for a time out.

I remember how much help I needed when Lucy was first born. My mom practically lived with us for the first two weeks. Now I think, what in the world did I need help with? Babies are easy!

But really, at the end of that day of just having Stella, I was still in my pj's and no laundry was done and the house was a mess and I spent most of the day on the couch. So really, babies are hard too. Breastfeeding and schedules and cleaning up puke is exhausting too, in a different way.

So to sum it up, Babies are easy. But babies are hard.

That's all the wisdom I have for today. You're welcome.

Instalife

Our life on Instagram....these are from the past month or so

Another head wound for Annie. I honestly don't remember how she did this one. 

 Dressed up as cowgirls for ballet

Meeting the neighbor's puppy, and playing with our "puppy". 

New outfits from Grandma 

Stella deciding to suck her fingers instead of her thumb like her sisters 

Annie being....well, Annie. I turned my head for MAYBE 30 seconds, and this happened. 

Sweet painted toes