1, 2, 3 Celebrate!

Our home has been celebration central lately with so many events back to back. My birthday and Easter were in the same weekend with more birthdays just days after. Nikolas turned 21 one this year! What a joy! I couldn't help feel the weight of the moment--we've come so far! Years ago, two lovely and faithful ladies, a bit farther along in life than myself, were such an encouragement to me as a mom of a strong willed child. They promised me that if I remained faithful, consistent, and loving, this spirited and intelligent boy would become a well equipped, independent, loving blessing to me around 19-22 years of age. While I was knee deep in discipline and really hard days, I often felt like it would be a miracle if we just made it to 20! And yet, here we are. And they were so right! Nikolas is a huge blessing, very intelligent, independent, and is such a love--God is good and Nikolas is a gift. <3 THANK YOU Debi and Fran for your loving encouragement which carried me through many a tough time over the years. Happy Birthday Nikolas! Welcome to full fledged adulthood. We are happy to have you with us <3

Now the day after Nikolas' birthday, we celebrate Bethany. :-) This year, Bethany said good bye to the teen years and stepped into 20. She's pretty happy to be a 20 something. :-) Happy birthday Bethany!

We had birthday dinners and cake for each of them. Nikolas tried his hand at making Grandma McMahon's recipe for old fashioned red velvet cake. He was pleased with it, but plans to try again with maybe a tweak or two. Bethany chose a chocolate raspberry cake. I will say, those fresh raspberries made the cake!

The day after their birthdays, Nikolas and Bethany celebrated their one year of dating anniversary--I'm telling you, clebrations galore here! ;-) They had their own day of celebration and we had left over cake together after dinner. :-)

Now for a breather--for exactly 30 days--before the jam packed month of May arrives! :-)

Celebrating His Resurrection

He is Risen! He is Risen Indeed! Because He lives we have hope. Because He lives we have joy. In joy we celebrate His resurrection and His anticipated return.

We had a wonderful Easter filled with family, fellowship, worship, and fun! Church was a divide and conquer as Jozsef was at his church and the rest of us at ours, but we were happy to meet up not long after service to enjoy lunch and a little down time before some fun activities.

We recapped the account of Jesus' resurrection both in story and with Resurrection eggs (now a long standing tradition). We played with both silly string and confetti eggs and had a blast! The weather was great as well which made it all the better.

There were video game challenges while dinner was being prepared and then we enjoyed a wonderful fish dinner. The day was over far too quickly--but more celebration was just ahead, so we called it a night knowing that with our faith in Christ, the best is yet to come! :-)

Half a Century

Birthdays are wonderful things. They mark important milestones in life. They celebrate the gift of life itself. Some birthdays are seen as bigger than others, though every day of life is a miracle. Ten, 13, 16, 18, 20, 21, 30, 40--are all seen as "big" moments, but I will say, 50 really did feel like a bit of a monumental milestone. It's weird to think that I'm now half a century old. I had a lovely birthday, filled with thoughtfullness. Sonja made lavender scones to start my day which I very much enjoyed with my coffee.

John and I spent the day at a winery. The weather of the day was beautiful. We learned about the winery, lunched on the terrace and enjoyed birds singing and the sound of the waterfall, we strolled the grounds and sat in the swing sipping. We had a snack on the deck and sipped a bit more while we chatted. The hostess gifted me a glass of birthday bubbles--it was very sweet of her and the bubbles were tasty.

We returned home to meet up with the family for dinner. We enjoyed a delicious sushi dinner.

After dinner, dessert was at home. Sonja made chocolate dipped strawberries and Nikolas made pretty chardonnay jellies.

I received thoughtful gifts and cards. Sonja's hummingbird card was impressive.

They day was very enjoyable. I was blessed to share it with my people. Thank you Lord for another year!

Wedding Five

Jozsef have been to and been a part of several weddings in the last year, which numbers more than five in total, but there have been five weddings now in thier guy group. THis one, however, was a little different because it was Levi. You may remember that Levi was our plus one in our family photos last year, so this wedding was cause for a little extra celebration. Both guys were in the wedding, but Nikolas was the Best Man. Levi's Bride is Alaina.

We enjoyed all of the traditional events leading up to the wedding--the shower, the bachelor party at the trampoline park--and then we enjoyed the wedding at a beautiful barn location.

This wedding felt more personal and a little bigger than the other guys getting married. We very much enjoyed being able to attend, to celebrate with friends, and to send this lovely couple off into thier future.

We wish Levi and Alaina the best in the years to come! <3