Passover, Good Friday, Easter...and Good Deeds

First things first:

91. Bonfires
92. Singing songs around said fire
93. Worshiping with 20,000 other people!
94. Prayer time
95. Knowing there are less than 6 weeks until summer!
96. Sitting in the rocking chair on the front porch on a sunny spring day
97. Watching buds turn into flowers, then turn into fruit
98. Homegrown eggs
99. My niece, Jelena, going home from the hospital!
100. Reflecting on Easter and the significance it bears in my life
101. Enjoying chocolate after a looooooonnnngg time away from it!

We had grand plans for Easter break. We had a mental list of things to get done around the property by the time Superman went back to work today. It didn't quite work out the way we planned, as so often is the case. We imagined each day, accomplishing tasks and neatly checking them off our lists. Instead, weather, laziness, and sheer enjoyment of down time took over. We pretty much got nothing done. Well, nothing we had planned. But we did do some other things:

Tina had her first haircut (with us): 

Her previous owner gave me a halter lesson so I can take her on walks. Now I can force her to love me! 

On Palm Sunday, my sister did a little activity with the kids, laying palm branches down and having them walk over them as Jesus did: 

On Passover, we read the Passover story and had the kids paint ketchup on our door frame to symbolize what the Israelites did: 

On Good Friday, we had a bonfire with the kids and read the passage of Jesus' death. We sang songs around the campfire, roasted hot dogs, and just had an all-around good time: 

Superman likes to say he doesn't know how to play the guitar, but he does. And now, I have evidence: 

N wanted to pray with daddy after hearing the Bible passage about Jesus' death: 

And then, of course, Miss G wanted to follow! 

And for Easter, we joined 20,000 other people in worship to raise funds and awareness for 3 very worthy causes. It was an incredible time of worship, and I'm so excited to hear what kind of funds we raised! Here we are lighting up the arena: 

30 days of Service wraps up this Friday! Can't believe it's already been almost a month. Here's what we did over the last few weeks: 

*Mailed packages to family for Easter

*Wrote notes to teachers for Teacher Appreciation Week

*Weeded at Granny's house

*Let someone go in front of us at the store and bought their child (with mommy's approval) a pack of gum

*Cleaned the office of our favorite adoption agency: 

*After getting my new iPhone (WOO HOO!!!), I wrote a letter to the supervisor of the sales gal, saying what an excellent job she did

*Washed dinner dishes for Granny and Grandpa after eating dinner at their house

*Took cookies to Superman's grandparents

*Had a day where each kid picked something kind to do for someone else that day

*Loaded groceries into the car for an older couple at Costco

*Put flowers on graves at the local cemetery with cousins:

*Picked up trash for Earth Day:

*Took Easter eggs and a note to friends thanking them for their friendship

*Paid for parking for the person behind us going in for Easter services at Arco Arena

We only have 5 more days left! This week we'll be mailing off a package to our "adopted" soldier! 

So, we didn't get anything on our list accomplished. But, we did get a lot of life accomplished, and it was worth slacking off so we could experience that life with the kids!

I'll be writing up a summary of my Lent experience this week. I need to reflect a bit before I put it into writing!

30 Days of Service Update and Multitude Mondays

So, how are your 30 Days of Service going? We've had a blast thinking of things to do for people each day. Most of our "acts of kindness" have been small, but deliberate. So far, we have: 

*Given a big tip to a waitress and invited her to the Easter service at our church

*Taken a friend's kids cocoa on a cool, overcast morning

*Given a thank you note w/a See's gift card to a doctor that worked on a Sunday in order to help Mr. C w/his ear infection

*Sent special letters to the kids we sponsor through Compassion International

*Given a Jamba Juice gift card/thank you to a dad who volunteers every week to play soccer with a group of kids

*Helped a neighbor haul brush

*Paid for the person behind me in the drive-thru at Starbucks and left a note wishing them a happy day and inviting them to church

*Made fudge babies for a friend as a thank you

*Sang a special song to my {93-year-old} grandma that her mom used to sing to her, she used to sing to my mom, my mom used to sing to me, and now I sing to my girls:

*Donated clothes and diapers to a mom in need

So, you see, most of our acts haven't been difficult, but they've required a bit of thought. It really has been a blessing so far...can't wait for the next few weeks to see what else we get to do! 

68. The dentist and the ability to have our teeth cleaned

69. Having my grandma chime in and sing with the girls and I

70. Looking  up in the dark and seeing a sky filled with bright stars

71. Doctors that work on Sundays!

72. Watching our kids ride on our pigs

73. Making it through a week of no coffee and feeling better for it!

74. Spring cleaning, a.k.a. purging! 

75. Eating a ripe, cold, sweet mango

76. Seeing my sister

77. Being so close to a hummingbird, I can hear its wings buzzing

78. Clean sheets! 

30 Days of Service Ideas

Ok, 30 Days of Service is only 8 days away! We've been working on our end coming up with ideas on how we can serve our community, our neighbors, our friends, and our family. Here's what we've come up with so far: 

Help at the SPCA

Bring treats in to the teachers at Superman's school

Give a grocery gift card to someone in need

Visit a retirement home and bring something homemade

Pick up trash in our nearby town

Volunteer at a homeless shelter

Send letters to military

Donate clothes

Pay for the person behind us in Starbucks, leaving a note inviting them to church

Bring cookies to fire station

Bring cookies to police station

Donate a goat or a share of a goat through Heifer International

Bring toys to the children's hospital

Make backpacks with supplies for foster kids

Bring cookies to an elderly neighbor

Visiting one of the neighboring farms and ask what we can do to help

Let someone go in front of us at the grocery store and offer to unload their cart for them

For the kids: Do someone else's chores for the day

Call up a random friend and ask what I could do for them that day

Bring coffee/cocoa to a sick friend

Help do small tasks at our local Christian adoption agency

Send extra gifts to the kids we sponsor through World Vision and Compassion International

What other ideas do you have? Please share! We only have about a week left to come up with at least 30 of them! 

A Challenge to Challenge Me {and others}

We've been watching the show "Secret Millionaire." Have you seen it? If you haven't, you should. It's inspiring. It makes me dream of having millions of dollars that I could excitedly give away to deserving people serving others. But alas, I have not millions of dollars. I do, however, have my health and five young kids who are forced lucky enough to be dragged around with me everywhere I go. So it got me thinking--what could I do for others? Well, I could think of a lot of things. I thought, wouldn't it be cool if I could do 30 acts of service in 30 days? Yes, I know. It seems a bit crazy. But hey, that's my cup o' tea. Craziness is my middle name. 

Superman says I should give myself two months to complete such a task. Maybe he's right. I know life can get in the way of big dreams, but 30 acts of service in 30 days sounds a lot more catchy. I'll give myself some grace. We may have a day that we don't get out of the house because of sick kiddos or uncontrollable farm duties, but I'm aiming for 30 days. April 1-30th to be exact. So, here's the challenge:

Complete one act of service every day in April. It can be something as small as letting someone go in front of you in the grocery line to paying for the person behind you at Starbucks to serving in a homeless shelter to donating money to a worthy cause to visiting a convalescent home. You decide! I will be listing my ideas over the next few weeks, and I would love it if you add to mine. We can all help each other out. I highly recommend making your list ahead of time, and roughly calendaring each day, so you won't forget or get caught up in daily activities and let the day slip by. 

I have a special prize for each person/family that completes this challenge and provides me with a brief written account of their acts of service.  

Want to share this challenge on your blog? Please do! Feel free to copy my logo and/or link back to this post, but please let me know if you've posted it on your blog so I can keep up with you! Share it on Facebook, Twitter it, whatever. Let's spread some love for 30 days and change our world!  

Questions? Ask away!