Party all the time, party all the time, party all the ti-ime

Well, I'm sure you've noticed that there's been a lull.
Not in my real life, mind you.
Oh, no. That has been as hoppin' as ever! It's been one party after the next -- literally.
But there has been a lull in my blogging life these few days gone by.
This is, in fact, a direct result of the busy nature of my "life" life.
So, I would feel badly about not having written anything this past week, but . . . I'm too busy for that.
I would love to have hours, or even minutes, to sit and write about all the daily stuff that makes up life in our family.
Sometimes I get that. Sometimes I don't.
It is my life's hope to one day have time to write everyday.
If I were really dedicated, I'd get up at 5 a.m. I suppose.
Yeah. Tell that to my eyelids.
Anyway, on to the good stuff . . .
We had a birthday last week.
Josiah turned seven! There are several cultures in which seven is a milestone year for a boy.
His dad looked at me the other day and said, "I think this is going to be an important year for him."
I looked over. He was so solemn, concentrating on drawing the picture in front of him.
Josiah. He is my river-running-deep child.
He takes everything in. He is careful about what he lets out.
As serious as he is sometimes is as delighted at life as he is others.
When something touches him, he says, "Mom, my eyes are just leaking."
We had his class birthday party last Thursday. I made him chocolate cupcakes and brought sprinkles of different colors for the kids to decorate with.
I wanted to tell the class about the day Josiah was born, but I was facing seven sugared-up first graders and, well, I didn't get very far.
There was no teacher's meeting that afternoon, so we headed to gramps and I made Josiah's favorite thing in all the world to eat -- pasta e fagoli.
He had two bowls!
Daniel tried to help with decorations!
After dinner he opened gifts.
And then there was cake . . . again.
The next day we were off for Good Friday. It rained all day, a steady, soaking rain. It cleared up in the afternoon, and by early evening, I was out planting our 54 strawberry plants in the raised bed Joe built.
Saturday was Sunny and cool, but the right kind of day to have Josiah's "friend" party outside.
Joe and I cleaned and readied the house for our young guests. We put the finishing touches on the volcano cake and preped the snacks. Mom and the boys were busy decorating and setting up the yard.
In the midst of all that activity, Bekah and Donnie came over and planted lettuce and green beans.
Bekah and Donnie are helping out in our "backyard-farmer" adventures, and will reap the benefits of their labors -- again, literally.
From 2 to 4 p.m. the voices of seven young boys rang out across our yard as they played games and chased each other and had general good fun.
And there was even more cake!
It was a good day, and Josiah quietly beamed at his friends as he ate his cake, listening to everything everyone was saying, interjecting where he thought he should. You could see the happiness shinning out of his eyes.

When things began to wrap up, Isaac got on the John Deere to mow.

Little man wanted to try too.
After the party, the big boys went to a friend's house and mom and I went Easter shopping, and then to eat at the deli. It was a pleasant evening.
When we all got home, the boys washed up and watched the Sword in the Stone. After that, we read the first part of the Resurrection story. And then it was time for bed.
We did not do big baskets for Easter this year. To be honest, I haven't really done those for a while. The boys get a little something, but that is not what I want the focus to be on on that Day of all Days.
What we did do, was replace the beans in the sacrifice jar with jelly-beans, to remind the boys that the rewards from Jesus for our labors will be sweet.
Have I mentioned the sacrifice jar before?
We had a jar set out on a table with a bowl of dried beans beside it. We loosely followed lent this year, each giving up something to show that we were willing to sacrifice for the One who made the ultimate sacrifice for us. We didn't follow the readings this year like I would have liked to, but we started out that way, and we did the best we could. I am hoping for more next year, but it was a good first experience, all in all.
Lent runs 40 days, culminating on Easter. During those 40 days, anytime we sacrificed ourselves in prayer, fasting, acts of kindness or helping and preferring others, we put a bean in the jar. On Easter morning, the dried beans were "miraculously" turned into sweet treats. This also symbolizes the sweetness of Jesus' sacrifice for us, and of salvation.
After church (Doug preached a tremendous sermon about the reality of the Resurrection), We went to grandpa's for dinner.
Grandpa outdid himself this year.
He's pretty pleased with himself, and he should be! Amazing job, grandpa!!

Pictured is chicken cutlets, lasagna, and eggplant lasagna. Traditional Easter fare for our family. Ummmm-mmmm that was good stuff.
Our good friends, the Dowlings, shared this amazing feast with us.
For dessert there was cream puffs, sweet pie (ricotta pie), and Italian knot cookies. Again, yummy-yummy.
Mom handed out bags full of Easter goodies to all. In my bag: black flip-flops with white polka-dots, two Reese's peanut butter eggs and a small baglet of Jelly Belly jelly beans (which are the best jelly beans in the world, by the way).
We had a really good day, even though it was rainy and cold.
My plants are enjoying the rain, and sometimes, I like it too, especially when I can hunker down with a warm blanket and a good book, or snuggle in with my boys on the couch for a family movie.
Well, that has been the happenings here.
Now, the long day is over. The boys are all sleeping. The house is silent but for the ticking of the clock on the wall and the clicking of my fingers on the keys. Tomorrow is another day, a gift of grace, an opportunity to do things better, to do them right.
This gift came only through the cross of Christ. This new opportunity was won at his expense.
Thank you, Jesus, for your blood, and your salvation and your grace which opens my eyes to new mercies each day.