Time to Play Catch Up

So, it has been a while since I last posted something. It has been a crazy week. We had two rehearsals for Easter during the week, we both played on Saturday night and then rushed to an orchestra concert after that (in downtown Orlando) and then played in 3 services this morning, plus, Brian played during the sunrise service. Goodness! But, I cannot help but say that it was magnificent. I always get such a renewed sense of faith whenever I have a chance to play for a service. There was a point in one of the services where the choir was singing "Shout to the Lord" and everyone in the congregation started standing and hands started raising. It was amazing to watch the spirit moving in these people. It brought tears to my eyes.

Today was the big day, bunny day. Brian and I have really been thinking about how we want to handle the whole bunny thing with Savannah. Growing up, we both had very different experiences with Easter. For me, there would always be a basket waiting for me from the Easter bunny and the eggs would be hidden and waiting for me to run around and find. And when I say eggs, I mean real eggs. Like, the ones we had dyed. I look back and wonder about that. When did mom and dad hide them? Were they really good to eat after that? Then we would go to church and have a big dinner. For Brian, Easter morning meant heading off to church first thing. They would not get their Easter baskets until they came home. I think I recall him saying something about getting them while eating lunch. The Easter bunny would leave the basket on the front doorstep and ring the door bell. So, now we have our own child and the challenge is to figure out what you want to keep from each tradition and what you want to add that is your own. Brian has been at church every Easter before Savannah wakes up, so it is really hard for her to get the basket when she wakes up because Brian would not be there. So, we have been sticking with the "basket at the door" approach. She really gets excited when the doorbell rings and she opens the door and there is her basket! I was worried that she would feel left out at church when she heard everyone else talking about what they got from the "Easter bunny". However, I was pleased to hear that there are other children out there who do not get their bunny basket until later. The more I thought about it, the more I really like doing it this way. It really helps to set a routine of Jesus first. After all, this is the reason for Easter. The amazingness of Jesus and the sacrifice he made for us.

Here are some pictures of Savannah in her "Cinderella dress" that she wore today. Her Great Aunt Judy and Great Uncle Charlie gave her the dress as a Christmas gift. It really is beautiful, and I love the color. I have always loved blue on her because it really brings out the color of her eyes.

One tradition I have carried over is the dyeing of Easter eggs (although we do not hide the ones we dye. We stick with plastic). Savannah really enjoyed dyeing the eggs this year. She made an egg for everyone that was at Grammy and Papa's house today (mommy, daddy, Uncle Guy, Aunt Carol Lynn, Christopher, Ashley, Grammy, Papa, Great Grandma and, herself, yellow, of course). I found a really neat egg dyeing kit. I had a great time with it! It marbelized the eggs. Of course, I sprayed the green dye all over me! I had green dots going all the way down my pants (which thankfully came out) and green all over my shoe and toes. Unfortunately, I still have green toes :( Here are some pics of the eggs and of Savannah finding eggs is Grammy's backyard:

Finally, an update on our continued construction zone in our backyard. We keep adding more and more toward a completed project. Savannah now has two swings and a glider, which she loves! She can actually make that one go on her own, so mommy and daddy love that one too :) The glider took a lot of work to get up because we had to add support beams going in the opposite direction of what was already there. This is due to the fact that it attaches with four brackets instead of two. There are still no slides, which seems really silly because they are probably the easiest thing we have left to do. I think my dad is going to help out some this week with getting some things built and added on. I really would like the side fencing to go up so that it is more safe for her to be up on the second level on her own. Anyway, here is a pic of her glider:

I would like to thank everyone for their ideas for how to help Savannah with the situation at school. I am helping her add some new phrases to her vocabulary to help her interact better with these children. I think that a big part of the issue is that I am so very sensitive that I take in the hurt as if it is my own (although this is also just part of being a parent!). I know I need to learn to set aside my feelings so that I can help her to have a strong self-esteem and also to help her learn how to handle these type of situations.

I pray that everyone has had a blessed Easter!