He is RISEN!

I don't have time to say a lot because it's almost midnight and I still have to fold all my laundry and make my bed before I can go to bed and then I get up at 6:30.  Yay college.

Anyway, my day started with some early morning babysitting as Mom took Chelsea to work.  Good thing this kid is easy to appease with cartoons at 6:30 am.

After that, I went back to sleep for a while, and then spent most of the afternoon on Blake duty until Chelsea and Mommom got home around 4:15 because Mom was cleaning and cooking.  Good thing, too, because this meal was SO WORTH IT.

Cornish hens, sautéed green beans and onions, garlic mashed potatoes, homemade mac and cheese, fresh sweet corn, and baked asparagus wrapped in bacon and drizzled with butter, brown sugar, soy sauce, and something else that I'm forgetting at the moment.  Oh my word.  That was the first time Mom made those and they were INCREDIBLE!  So incredible that Mom is actually making another huge batch on Tuesday (yay for her being on Spring Break) and bringing me some on Wednesday. :D

We finished dinner just in time for Duke's Elite 8 game, and towards the end of the first half, we had dessert.

Flavored cheesecake from the Cheesecake Factory.  Mom had strawberry and Mommom had blueberry with white chocolate.  I had chocolate mousse, and it was hands down the best cheesecake I've ever eaten.  And that's coming from a girl whose favorite dessert is cheesecake!  I was so amazed by the first bite that I literally forgot to chew it for a minute.  And yes, I really did take a picture after I'd eaten half the piece.  I didn't remember to before I started eating, and if anything of the meal was worth putting on Instagram, this was it!  Classy, I know.  ;)

Mom and I went over to Mommom's house for the second half of the game because Blake wouldn't stop screaming and Mom and Chelsea couldn't stop fighting, so it was just easier this way.  So after I packed the car and before we left, I got one last picture with my sweet boy.  :)

Then we got the heck out of there before he fully comprehended that I was going back to school, because the poor kid goes into full-on meltdown mode when he knows I'm leaving.  He likes me just a little bit. ;)

Duke's second half went horribly, so Mom and I ended up leaving before it was over.  I got back to school about 9:45.  Unpacking, yada yada yada, and now I'm just sitting here listening to worship music reflecting on what this day means.

I've said several times to people recently, "Jesus died so that I could have hope.  Giving up is not an option." And it's true.  He died to give me a promise of a brighter future, an eternity without pain.  That's what I hold on to.  People think I'm strong...I'm not.  He is pulling me through every day one day at a time because I could never handle this on my own.  Never.

I am so blessed to live the life that I do, dysfunction and all, to have the love that I do, in all its forms.  This Holy weekend really hits it home for me just how undeserving I am of all the blessings He has given me and the sacrifice Jesus made on the cross.  I can't earn this, I could never, and to me, that's the most beautiful part about it.

This is another song that I've posted here before.  It's been in my head a lot this weekend because I truly just can't imagine the depth of God's love that is exemplified in this Holy weekend.



This is a song that a blogger I follow posted today, and its lyrics just spoke right to my heart (as cheesy as that sounds).



This is my song right now:

Because He lives, I can face tomorrow
Because He lives, all fear is gone
Because I know He holds the future
And life is worth the living just because HE LIVES.

I hope you all had a beautiful day celebrating our Savior!  Joy to the world, He is RISEN!

And for my Orthodox friend, hope you had a good Sunday. ;)