Joy in All Things: This and that and everything in between...

What we've been up to:

A little opening day fun with Morgan...GO CUBS!

Will's basketball medal from the COBRAS! He really had a good time, but can I admit that Mommy's glad it's over? Lots of running back and forth when it's two days a week. I'm glad that soccer (which has already started!) is only one night a week. With several trips to Des Moines in the last month, we've been on the go constantly. I'm glad for a few weeks at home to relax.

I feel like a lot of my days recently have been happy and sad. Happy...my kids are doing well. I have special people in my life. My job is going well. I have been praying that God would help me to be more thankful, more grateful for all that He's given me....and He is being faithful. I am so very grateful.

Sad...on Sunday & Monday we celebrated the life of a wonderful man. Bill was my dad's best friend and continued to be a cherished and loved friend to Mom, Laura and me after Daddy was gone. As Will told me one day last week, "Mom, now Mr. Bill & Papa John can be best friends again". Praise God for that. As I listened to people reminisce about his life and memories of him, they were all so similar. He was devoted to his family, he was devoted to God, he was devoted to his work. I keep trying to come up with the right words to describle what he meant to me...meant to my family. It's hard. He was just someone who was always there. Someone I could always count on. For me more than anyone, other than my mom, Bill was a remembrance of my dad. They knew each other so well and were so similar in so many ways. Maybe that's why it's so hard to know that he's gone. I don't know...God does and I put my faith in that.

In addition to the celebration of Bill's life this past weekend, we did have a chance to celebrate Easter with my Mom and sister and her family. Two egg hunts and an Easter party were great fun for the kids.