Last Week of April!

(Mommy and Bethany!)

First:  Please say a prayer for the six states that were hit by the devastating tornadoes in the United States.  Alabama, Mississippi, Tennessee, Georgia, Virginia, and Kentucky need help.  Do what you can.  Actually, say a prayer for all those who are suffering tonight.

You can also listen to this song.  Laura was a guest on z88.3 this morning and I listened to her sing Blessings live on my morning commute.  Read about her here.  The lyrics are beautiful and make you think.  Walking with God does not mean that you get everything you want.  Walking with God does not mean that your life is perfect or that bad things will never happen to you.  Walking with God means that you are loved by a good God who will walk with you through sufferings and who will rejoice with you in your blessings.  Walking with God means that you are saved by grace and that you matter to your Creator.  God is good and He is faithful.  And there is real, sustaining, everlasting life (and joy!) in Him.  (1 Peter 1:6-7)  (Romans 8:38-39) 

 Anyway, while I am thinking of and praying for those who have had their worlds turned upside down and ripped apart by storms and earthquakes beyond their control, I am also having a wonderful week and  I don't want to take it for granted for a second.  I am grateful and thankful.

We celebrated Jesus' Resurrection on Sunday!  We started the day with worship at Summit and got to see our friend, TJ, sing!  We also had lots of yummy Easter meals with our families.  There was a lot of traveling involved, but it was still a great day!

EDIT: See some pictures of the service in our Flickr set and a short video clip on our Vimeo!

The eighth graders went to see the local high school production of Phantom of the Opera.  It was incredible!  The cast was great and I felt nostalgic thinking of the high school musical productions that I was a part of way back in the day. 

I had my hair cut by the awesome and supremely talented JoBeth.  If you need anything for your hair, make an appointment with her!  She is awesome!  I had a great evening out of the house and really enjoyed visiting with her.  She has such a sweet and kind heart and I have loved every hair cut she has ever given me.

Another former student came to visit me today.  She just wanted to grade papers together and talk about high school.  I have felt crazy loved by the number of previous students who have come to visit me and grade papers this year.  Oh, and because of her - I am completely caught up with my grades for progress reports!  I am elated!

My house is clean!  Okay, so I had to stay up until midnight (I don't clean until baby girl is sweetly sleeping) in order for it to happen, but it's clean and I'm content.  I am getting better at letting certain things go, but when you live with two cats - vacuuming, sweeping, and mopping fairly regularly are health necessities.

My husband and I have big plans to do NOTHING this weekend.  Haha.  We have been pretty busy and are just looking forward to relaxing.  I am so excited about it!

Bethany is crawling like a pro.  She crawls toward me which just makes my heart so glad.  There is nothing sweeter than your baby crawling toward you with a great big smile on her face!