Easter Eggcitement!

Totally cheesy title but I had do it. :)

I'm getting excited about Easter. I know it's a couple of weeks away. It's filled with the usual egg hunts, baskets, egg dying, chocolate, fancy dinners, dresses and such. All of those things are wonderful, I've had a lot of fun experiencing those things in past years. This year I really want to focus on why we have this holiday and the meaning behind it. I mean, Jesus DIED. For US. It's something that I cannot fully wrap my thoughts around but the best part is He rose again! It's awesome, amazing, wonderful, exciting and every word possible I can think of.

I've always done these fun things with my preschool kids but this year I'm going to do them at home too! I thought I would share them with you as well.

Resurrection Rolls - they are SO DARN YUMMY!!

1 can crescent rolls

1 bag large marshmallows

melted butter

cinnamon

sugar

• Give each child one triangle shaped section of crescent roll. This represents the tomb.
• Each child takes one marshmallow which represents the body of Christ.
• Dip the marshmallow in the butter and roll in cinnamon and sugar mixture. This represents the oils and spices the body was anointed with upon burial.
• Lay the marshmallow on the dough and carefully wrap it around the marshmallow.
• Make sure all seams are pinched together well. (Otherwise the marshmallow will "ooze" out of the seams and become a sticky mess!)
• Bake according to package directions.
• Cool.
• Break open the tomb and the body of Christ is no longer there!!
• Celebrate God's love!

Another fun one is the jelly bean prayer. I've always bought those foam crosses from Hobby Lobby or Michael's and had the kids glue on the different colored jelly beans with the poem. Of course we got to eat some as well. For my kids this year, I'm putting the jelly beans in a mason jar (Dollar Tree) and attaching the poem with some ribbon as a gift.

Here is the poem:

Red is for the blood He gave

Green is for the grass He made

Yellow is for the sun so bright

Orange is for the edge of night

Black is for the sins we made

White is for the grace He gave

Purple is for His hour of sorrow

Pink is for our new tomorrow

A jar full of jelly beans, colorful and sweet..

a prayer, a promise, a loved one's treat!

Happy Resurrection Day!

Of course we'll celebrate that day with some kind of meal. Maybe a brunch or some sort we're going to the early service at church so it'll be a brunch kind of day.

Hopefully all of you will have a blessed day with your family and/or friends. :)

"After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb. There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men.

The angel said to the women, "Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples: 'He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.' Now I have told you."

So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples. Suddenly Jesus met them. "Greetings," he said. They came to him, clasped his feet and worshiped him. Then Jesus said to them, "Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me." Matthew 28:1-10

So I've been a little distracted...

Actually, a LOT distracted...by this book series. Lucky for me, it's been Spring Break so I've had lots and lots of time to read. SO FLIPPIN' EXCITED for the movie next week! I'm a crazy super fan as in I HAVE to see the movie opening night, wearing a t-shirt. Pretty much feel like 12 not 36, but it's fun! Been a long time since I've read something I've really enjoyed other than christian self-help stuff. Which is all great, but nothing like getting lost in a really good book...

Not done a whole bunch in the cooking arena, just a couple dinners here and there..nothing new sadly. Bubble pizza, greek yogurt cake...I did try the creamy chicken pot pie from Eating Well. It was good. The one kiddo I had try it did not like it, not surprised since it wasn't the yummy pie crust they are used to. The recipe used phyllo dough instead.

Tomorrow I think I will put Corned beef and cabbage in the crockpot for St. Patty's. I would make Colcannon if someone other than me would eat it. There's something comforting about Irish food.

Still thinking about the Rainbow fruit kabobs I saw on Skinnytaste or to make the green velvet cupcakes I saw on pinterest, if there's a way to "skinny" them. I'm having my friends over for a movie so something we can all snack on would be good as well. I also like the zucchini roll-ups with feta. Green and fairly healthy.

I will be back to post next week's menu. Now it's off to clean and maybe head to the gym.

No matter how busy I get, life gets hectic for all of us.. kids, sports, cooking, etc...but I have to keep this verse in the back of my head..Psalms 46:10 "Be still and know that I am God". I make sure to have my time with my devotional every morning, write in my prayer journal and spend some time with Him before my day really gets going. It has made such a difference in my mood and gets me started in the right direction. I'm truly thankful for that time.

Apology.

Apology to my 3 blog readers, I've neglected you. :)

Life has been full of sports, church and work activities. All good stuff.

Which means not a lot of cooking or baking. I've done things like hot dogs and breakfast. There was one night I made Salisbury steak from Skinnytaste (which was amazing) and tonight I'm making my favorite chicken recipe from Cooking Light - Cilantro Lime Chicken with Avocado salsa. Also baking a chocolate cake using a cake mix and greek yogurt - found it on pinterest but it's a Hungry Girl recipe. I've made a few of her other desserts and they are all fantastic.

I'm hoping to get into it more here soon. Now that the weather is getting better it's time to start grilling.

And I need to get to the gym, but that's a another story. (Can you say LAZY???)

I got a new magazine called Eating Well. What a great find! Lots of good tips and healthy, yummy food in there. There's a couple of recipes that are in this month's issue - Creamy chicken pot pies and Chicken Chile Rellenos, that I will be making next week.

I don't have a bible verse today. I posted Isaiah 41:10 on my facebook wall this morning. It's a good one. As much as I didn't want to write "personal" stuff on here and have it only be about cooking/baking...I'm just not feeling that inspired right now. I feel tired and worn down. I'm hoping church tonight does the trick. It always does and it's usually during worship time. I'm reminded about how awesome God is and how much He loves me. That's enough for now....for today...

For those asking, I do attend Celebrate Recovery at my church every Thursday. It's the best thing that ever happened to me. If you would like to know more or need help or have a loved one who needs help with a hurt, habit or hang-up - e-mail me and I'll be happy to tell you more about it. It saved my life. :)