Happy Easter!

I hope you had a great Easter. We were so happy to have Sandy, Jeff, Carson and Macie with us this year. They have never been here for Easter, so it was a special treat. In fact, they had been here all week. My camera is not working very well, so I don't have many pictures. But this one was Sunday morning heading to church. All 8 of us got up, looked at Easter baskets, hunted for eggs, showered, got dressed and made it to church by 9:25. I thought that was very impressive!

My beautiful sister and children. Neither one of us have pictures of our entire family. I guess the guys were the last ones to be able to get dressed, so they were a minute or two behind us. Plus, neither Jeff nor Carey like posing for these pictures!

All 4 of the kids - Carson (5), Bryant (10), Ann Bennett (7), Macie (2). Aren't the azaleas beautiful? I'm in the process of chopping them down right now. They have gotten very "leggy" and overgrown. I'm hoping I don't kill them! They look beautiful for the couple of weeks they are blooming, but after that they just look overgrown!

Dying eggs. Everyone enjoyed it, but Ann Bennett and Jeff earn the most into it awards! This is one of those times my camera did not cooperate, but trust me, Jeff's brown egg - which eventually was dyed blue - was a sight to behold!

Looking for eggs. We went to an egg hunt and picnic at our friends' house, but we missed the egg hunt. Our kids handled it VERY well considering. I have no pics, but they did get to play with real rabbits. This hunt was in our back yard.

I'm loving this shirt on Bryant. SueSue got it for B for Easter, and it looks really good on him. Too bad he isn't showing us his teeth since this is pre-broken tooth!

If ever there was a little girl who would have loved having a sister, it is Ann Bennett - especially if her mother would have been one who dressed the girls alike! AB LOVES to be a twin with Macie. It's not the best picture, but SueSue got the girls these dresses, and fortunately it warmed up enough that they could wear them together.

We hope you had a fabulous Easter celebrating Jesus' resurrection! Last year, we were in Georgia and Mom was still in the hospital. My dear friend Katrina came and led a celebration in singing hymns. We visited with Mom in the hospital, but it was hard to balance our time between the kids and the hospital. Sandy and I struggled with what to cook. We were not used to being the planners of holiday meals. We did better this year, but it was kind of strange not to be with Mom. She and Randy were in GA, and we were in NC. I'm so thankful we were all healthy and away from hospitals!

It's funny how this whole year has seemed like a year of firsts. Mom's first birthday, first Christmas, Easter, etc., since the accident. It is one of those defining moments in my memory. I'm thankful that our family is not defined BY that moment. Easter especially reminds me of how much God loves each of us and desires to be in relationship with us. I think back a year ago and remember just how much pain we were in at the time, but I also see how so many of you prayed for us, walked with us, loved us and showed us God's love. I remember that pain but with the pain, I also remember just how much I felt God's arms around us. I pray that each of you feels surrounded by God's loving arms! Happy Easter all year long!