It was spring but it was summer I wanted; the warm days and the great outdoors.

It was summer but it was fall I wanted; the colorful leaves and the cool dry air.

It was fall but it was winter I wanted; the beautiful snow and the joy of the holiday season.

It was winter but it was spring I wanted; the warmth and the blossoming of nature.

I was a child but it was adulthood I wanted; the freedom and the respect.

I was twenty but it was thirty I wanted; to be mature and sophisticated.

I was middle-aged but it was twenty I wanted; the youth and the free spirit.

I was retired but it was middle-age that I wanted; the presence of mind without limitations.

My life was over but I never got what I wanted. -

author unknown

Some things I'm learning about living in the present:

1.  Dream about the future, but work hard today. Dream big. Set goals and plans for the future. But working hard today is always the first step towards realizing your dreams tomorrow.

2.  Stop worrying. You can’t fully appreciate today if you worry too much about tomorrow.

3.  Fully appreciate the moments of today. Soak in as much of today as you possibly can – the sights, the sounds, the smells, the emotions, the triumph, and even the sorrow.

"You must live in the present, launch yourself on every wave, find your eternity in each moment."  - Henry David Thoreau

This Friday at LHC, we are having a community glow-in-the-dark Easter Egg Hunt. 

From the moment we first came across the idea of having a glow-in-the-dark egg hunt, I loved it!  I loved the idea of those eggs glowing from within and shining into the darkness.  Isn't that what Jesus did?  Isn't that what we're called to do? To shine the light into the darkness! 

Hope you'll join us! It's not too late to register! 

 "Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven."  Matthew 15:16

We love having family traditions.  As we add children to our family and those children grow, we find more and more traditions that work for us.  It's time for our Easter tradition - Resurrection Eggs. We start the 12 days before Easter (this Wednesday) and do one egg each day. 

You can buy a preassembled kit at Christian Book Stores or online. 

We're cheap frugal.  So, we saved an egg carton, decorated it, bought some plastic eggs, and filled them on our own.  A basket with the eggs numbered would work just as well. 

We did a search on the internet and was surprised to find how many different versions are available.  We read through them and chose the items we liked best and the elements of the story that we most wanted to discuss.  Here are links to the sites we used:

Holy Easter Resurrection Eggs

Celebrate Easter:  Resurrection Eggs (Easy Fun School)

Resurrection Eggs Easter Story Day 12 Cullen's Abc's (Video)

After Easter, I store our carton away with the easter baskets.  We've been using the same eggs for several years. 

The littles are wide eyed with anticipation and the bigs are thrilled by the familiarity of the story they've learned by heart.

All Christians base their faith upon the Rock – Jesus Christ, the Cornerstone of faith.  It doesn't matter the color of our skin, the depth of our spirituality, the length of our infusing (my parents started me in church at 2 weeks old, that's a lot of infusing), or the degree of understanding.  What does matter is that we are part of the Rock – the everlasting eternal Rock.

"My flesh and my heart faileth: but God is the strength of my heart, and my portion for ever."  (Psalm 73:26)

"Trust is the Lord forever, for the Lord, the Lord, is the Rock Eternal."  (Isaiah 26:4)

"There is none Holy like The Lord, there is none besides Thee; there is no Rock like our God." (1 Samuel 2:2) 

"My God, my Rock, in Whom I take refuge, my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold and my refuge, my Savior; Thou savest me from violence." (2 Samuel 22:3) 

"To Thee, O Lord, I call; my Rock" (Psalm 28:1) 

"Thou art my Father, my God, and the Rock of my salvation." (Psalm 89:26) 

"O come, let us sing to The Lord; let us make a joyful noise to the Rock of our salvation! " (Psalm 95:1)

I've been trying to update my blog theme all week and for whatever reason it won't process.  So frustrating.  Xanga users, have you had issues too?  I've tried the forums and other Help resources.

The Trents have had a happy week in the Lowcountry.  The Lowcountry has been our home for three years now.  Either I've acclimated to the temps or this has been a cold(er) winter than the norm?  Long time residents, what's your opinion?

My mom and stepdad visited over the weekend.  We enjoyed a trip to the zoo, did a little shopping, and watched a movie.  (Not all on the same day, of course.)

Our basketball players won their games!  Which means both teams are in the Championship for their age division.  They play this Tuesday.  So exciting!

I love Jesus most of all but y'all I love my church.  I really do.  My girls and I have been doing a lot of extra work for our children and student ministries.  I love serving with my girls.  It's awesome to do ministry as a family.  Sometimes my to do list makes me want to hyperventilate.  When I take a moment to breathe, I feel so much love and joy.  I may be busy but I LOVE every minute of what I'm doing.  I hope you love your church.  I hope you are serving in your church and community.  Seriously.  Your church, community, and the kingdom needs your talent/creativity.  It doesn't need a half-hearted effort, though.  It needs your total love and devotion to what you are doing in Jesus' name.  It's for His glory, after all! 

Happy Friday!  May your weekend be abundantly blessed! 

I have a goal to read 52 books this year.  Each month I update my reading list and track my progress. 

My February Fiction reads were all free.  I love the free ebook posts over at Frugal Girls.

My faves from February:

Interrupted by Jen Hatmaker - What happens when Jesus interrupts the average life? Interrupted encourages believers to ask if their lives bring integrity to the gospel. Follow the faith journey of author and fellow disciplemaker Jen Hatmaker and rediscover Jesus among the least of us.

Let. It. Go. by Karen Ehman - Many women are wired to control. You're the ones who make sure the house is clean, the meals are prepared, the beds are made, the children are dressed, and everyone gets to work, school, and other activities on time.  But trying to control everything can be exhausting, and it can also cause friction with your friends and family.  This humorous, yet thought-provoking book guides you as you discover for yourself the freedom and reward of living a life 'out of control,' in which you allow God to be seated in the rightful place in your life. Armed with relevant biblical and current examples (both to emulate and to avoid), doable ideas, new thought patterns, and practical tools to implement, Let It Go will gently lead you out of the land of over-control and into a place of quiet trust.

Goals for 2013 and my January reads.  My year to date total is 19 books.   

When I saw this "ONE" collage on pinterest  I just knew I had to recreate it for my little guy.  It was hilarious chasing him all over and getting him to hold the different letters.  They ended up in the dirt many times.  A fun day and a really fun collage. 

This is the last week of basketball season for the Trent's.  We still have championship games but the end is def in sight.  It's been consuming three of my nights every week since October.  It's fun.  My girls love it.  (Brother will love it too, when he is old enough.)  Both bball players learned lots, gained new skills, ran tons, burned lots of energy, stayed fit, and had loads of fun.  So, don't tell them that I'm done.  There's a reason things come in seasons. ha!

I started out juggling three evenings a week by getting supper prepped early and in the crock pot.  I had a plan.  I did good.  Then I dropped the ball. (Pun intended.  )  Which is why we had McDonalds tonight.  So gross. 

I've got to get back in the "mom game" cause softball season is next and ain't no way I'm having McDonalds for supper again.  Seriously, it was gross. 

Help save Trent Tribe suppers!  Send me links to your crockpot recipes? 

The couples in our church took the Date Night Challenge  (Three dates in three weeks plus one date each month for the rest of the year).  Sounds fun, right?  But for some of us just getting a date night is the challenge.  Especially, when we have small children. 

For the Chief and I, the challenge has at different times been breastfeeding, bedtimes, no babysitter, no extra funds... You get the idea.  But when faced with a challenge, we get creative and we overcome! 

When we had several littles and no bigs, we'd date-in.  Some of our date-ins have been:

1.  Popcorn and a movie.

2.  Card games.

3.  Ben and Jerry's (Chief's fave ice-cream, we'd find new flavors and enjoy together).

4.  Backyard star gazing.

5.  Front porch swinging. 

Between the hours of 9 and 11 PM, at least once a month (but probably more like once a week) the Chief or I planned/plan something we could/can do at home together.  So even with littles and the inability to go out, we still had/have dates.  I use the past and present tense because even though we no longer are a family of littles only we still plan these special evenings. 

Cold, bleak, rainy... some nights, you just can’t be bothered leaving the house -- even for a date.  Date-ins are perfect for lazy or cozy nights.  Stay-home dates are a wonderful, comfortable way to spend time together and reconnect. 

Do you have date nights at home?  What do you do?

My Friday love?  Recipes with simple ingredients already found in my pantry. 

On this Lowcountry rainy day, I am making these:

For them.  A sweet treat to celebrate the end of the week. 

The Chief and I are sneaking in a lunch date at the coffee shop.  Did you take the date night challenge?  Having a hard time fitting date night in?  Too busy?  Schedule conflicts?  Small children?  No sitter?  I'll be posting next week with tips on making date night work.  I hope those of you who made it through the season of only littles in the house can chime in with your advice.