This Easter was very different from those in the past. First of all, this was me and Richard's first Easter as a married couple, it was really great to spend it together! It was fun putting up the few Easter decorations I have, thanks to my Grandma Annie : )
Second, this was our first Easter in Washington. Needless to say, the weather was very different from what we are used to in Arizona. Usually on Easter we can wear shorts and dresses and spend the majority of the day outside. This year, it was all pants and jackets for us! and it rained the entire day. At one point, I wanted to get a picture of me and Richard, so we ran outside for a few seconds in the rain : ) You can't tell, but the rain was dropping down on us in this picture.
A great part of our Easter was that we were able to go to church together in the morning to celebrate everything that Jesus has done for us. Then we got to have a great lunch at Richard's Aunt Terri's house with Don and Lori and a few other family members. To make it feel more like home, I made a regular dish at my family gatherings and brought it to Aunt Terri's, a fruit pizza!
Like always during holidays or special times, it was hard being away from my family this past weekend. I was able to talk to a lot of them on Sunday and my dad even sent us a video text with everyone saying hi. I was a little jealous that we missed their Easter Badminton Tournament in my parents backyard and the beautiful, rain-free weather they had, but Richard and I were very thankful for the family that we do have up here and spent time with.
Hope you had a Happy Easter!
The weather the past two days has been absolutely beautiful! Sunny and in the low 70's. For those of you that have heard me talk about the weather here in Washington, you know it has been rainy, gray and COLD, and me being and Arizona native, you can imagine how excited I was about the latest weather. It's only supposed to last for a couple more days, so I have been soaking it up; taking walks, sitting out in the sun, keeping the windows open...
Right now the cherry blossom trees are blooming everywhere. The flowers have light pink petals and they look so pretty against the blue skies, so I took my camera on a walk with me this afternoon.
We have a park right across the street from our apartments complete with baseball fields, swing sets, a big walking trail and woods surrounding half of it. It's pretty cool and I'm looking forward to the summer time when we can spend more time outdoors.
Since Richard and I have moved up here to Washington, I have been experimenting with cooking. I really enjoy cooking and baking and I always like to find new recipes to try. Well my latest experiment was to try and replicate the 'Sesame Chicken' from the Chinese restaurant, Golden Wok, in Scottsdale, AZ (one of me and Richard's favorites... we go back every time we visit). It wasn't exactly the same, but I think I did a pretty good job.
If you ever watch the Food Network, one of my favorite cooking shows is Barefoot Contessa. I'm a really picky eater and she just seems to make the kind of food I like. The other day she made a Sour Cream Coffee Cake. I thought it looked so good and I had to try it (you can find the recipe on her website). It turned out great and we had it for dessert with our Sesame Chicken : ) The good (and bad) thing is that since it's just me and Richard, we always have food left over!
So I have been having a difficult time transitioning back into life here in Washington after our long trip to AZ. I thought it would get easier being away from friends and family as time went by, but it seems to be getting harder. When Richard and I were in Arizona last, it hit us that there are so many people that care about us there, and we really miss those relationships here in Washington. To me, it seems like we have lived here for so long, but in reality, it's only been 7 months and we have no idea how long it will be until our time is up here. We feel that God has brought us here for a reason and maybe we won't know exactly what that is until years go by and we look back to this time in our lives.
I was writing in my journal the other night and on each page of my journal there is a little quote from the Bible. I wrote on four pages of my journal and then went back to read the Bible quotes and was amazed to see how much they related to what Richard and I are going through right now.
"In his heart a man plans his course, but the Lord determines his steps." Proverbs 16:9
"Don't worry about anything; instead, pray about everything; tell God your needs and don't forget to thank Him for His answers." Philippians 4:6
"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." Jeremiah 29:11
"The Lord will guard you as you come and go, both now and forever." Psalm 121:8
They seemed to help me and maybe they might help whoever reads this and needs a little inspiration from God : )
If you've been reading my past few posts, you know that Richard and I went to Arizona and were in my cousin Alexandra, and Richard's long time friend Danny's wedding. (So if you think about it, technically Alex is Richard's sister-in-law since his brother is married to her sister, so does that make Danny our brother-in-law or cousin?)... They got married on Friday the 13th! Despite the unlucky date, it was a very beautiful and special wedding : )
Richard and I were so thankful to be a part of this whole event. We had such an amazing time and we feel so blessed to have so many wonderful people in our lives. Like I said, Alex and Danny's wedding was beautiful. It didn't seem like either one of them were nervous, just excited to be marrying the love of their life. I took SO many pictures of this day but I could only fit 5 on this post, so if you want to see them, click on the AZ Trip, March 2009 link to the right.
It's the wedding day! She was so happy!
Her dress was beautiful. She picked it because it reminded her of our Grandma Annie's wedding dress.
All of the bridesmaids with Alex (I'm on the left).
The happy couple, Danny and Alexandra Sluyk!
Me and Richard dancing the night away : )
Second, this was our first Easter in Washington. Needless to say, the weather was very different from what we are used to in Arizona. Usually on Easter we can wear shorts and dresses and spend the majority of the day outside. This year, it was all pants and jackets for us! and it rained the entire day. At one point, I wanted to get a picture of me and Richard, so we ran outside for a few seconds in the rain : ) You can't tell, but the rain was dropping down on us in this picture. 
A great part of our Easter was that we were able to go to church together in the morning to celebrate everything that Jesus has done for us. Then we got to have a great lunch at Richard's Aunt Terri's house with Don and Lori and a few other family members. To make it feel more like home, I made a regular dish at my family gatherings and brought it to Aunt Terri's, a fruit pizza!
Like always during holidays or special times, it was hard being away from my family this past weekend. I was able to talk to a lot of them on Sunday and my dad even sent us a video text with everyone saying hi. I was a little jealous that we missed their Easter Badminton Tournament in my parents backyard and the beautiful, rain-free weather they had, but Richard and I were very thankful for the family that we do have up here and spent time with.
Hope you had a Happy Easter!
