Casting Crowns

Derek and I won tickets to see Casting Crowns in State College, PA last week. It was amazing, of course! A great birthday present for me. We also enjoyed hearing Caleb and Tenth Avenue North. Loved all three. Both Tenth Ave. North and Casting Crowns played my favorites so I decided to share one.

Casting Crowns never fails to come out with songs that are incredibly convicting and often exactly what I need to hear. I will never forget when I first heard "Slow Fade." I had been praying about a situation that seemed to rear its ugly head over night. Right then, Slow Fade came on the radio. It was literally like God was responding to my prayer of confusion, not only opening my eyes to the truth of the situation, but convicting me personally to constantly be on guard.


Everybody needs to watch this video and listen to the lyrics. While there is a specific story told in this video, it applies to every area in life. Ask God if there is a chain in your life leading you toward something horrible, and make sure to break that chain now before it's too late.

Blessings of being a parent

There are many sacrifices a person has to make when becoming a parent. But as I look back on the past couple of years I realize that those sacrifices have been replaced with blessings that make the "sacrifices" seem trivial.

I'm not just talking about the amazing blessing of getting to hold and love on and teach and adore my sweet, beautiful, precious child. That alone would be more than worth the "sacrifices," but God is also a parent and He loves to lavish on extra blessings just because.

Today I was thinking about where I would be if I wasn't a parent right now. My closest PA friend and I would probably not be nearly as close if we hadn't been pregnant together two years ago.

Another great friend of mine and I probably never would have met if we didn't both have baby girls in July. Those, I consider huge blessings.

 

Then there's the silly little things you would never think of before becoming a parent. Like how exciting it is to go to the zoo or the park. How suddenly an Easter egg hunt goes from simply traditional, to (a dozen pictures later) something Derek and I walked away from saying, "That was so fun!" I've never been a very social person, but now I get excited to bring Marie to the library or on a playdate. The blessing of watching her learn and grow is impossible to understand unless you are a parent.

And then when Derek and I get to go out on a date or I get to go out with the girls, something away from my little Goob, those things are so much more precious and appreciated. But of course I miss my baby girl the whole time and LOVE the huge hug I get when I return. It's all so worth it.

While life does change dramatically once you become a parent, nearly two years into parenthood I can't imagine life better than this.

Happy Easter!

What an amazing weekend full of family, celebration, and food!

We started out the weekend with a trip to Rickett's Glen, one of our favorite places on the planet.

We spent some time reading Isaiah 40. A must read and meditate on passage. It was a slightly different approach to Good Friday. It was because of our all-knowing, almighty, sovereign, compassionate, gracious God that we had something to celebrate this weekend. I highly recommend spending some time studying Isaiah 40.

Saturday we spend some time with family at the park. Marie loves to walk her cousin, Reese.

I love the toddler age! Okay, I always love whatever stage Marie is in. But Easter Egg hunting is a lot of fun at this stage! Marie loved it and we loved watching her on Easter Sunday.

After the fun little hunt we got our 2nd annual Easter family picture.

As if living, dying, and rising again wasn't enough, my Savior has blessed me beyond words. I love my life. I love my family. What an awesome God we serve!