Easter 2013

So many thoughts going through my head on this beautiful Easter.  Every holiday that passes reminds me that it would have been Zachary's first.  I miss being able to celebrate all of these special holidays with him.

As I was thinking today about Christ and His Atonement for us, it made me remember back to the day that our sweet Zachary passed away.  It was truly a miracle that day that Scott was able to get his heart started after it had been stopped.  I know that was our Savior's way of allowing our family the time we needed to say goodbye.  It allowed us time to process what was going to happen, it allowed us time to grieve and spend a few more hours with him.  If he had just been gone right then, it would have been so much harder to really come to terms with what happened. 

I feel like our Heavenly Father was planning on taking him home regardless at that time, but he allowed us the opportunity to spend just a little more time with him.  He knew we would need that.

There is not a day that goes by that his name is not mentioned in our home.  And sometimes it's just a prayer in my heart that I send up to Heaven, but he is loved and thought about always.

I had the opportunity to teach the 4 year old class today at church.  Their teacher was gone and they needed a substitute.  Because it was a spur of the moment request, I didn't have the lesson manual but I figured talking about Christ and the whole Easter message was the best idea!

I decided to use my very quiet, whisper voice because it really helped the children quiet down and listen....intently!  :) When I got to the part in the story where I was telling about Mary, going and looking in the tomb, I was explaining to them that she was very surprised when she got there and I asked the children, "What do you think she saw when she looked inside?"  Without skipping a beat, a little boy that had been listening very intently and was on the edge of his seat, yelled out, "The Easter Bunny!!!" 

That totally surprised me!!!!  I had to hold a giggle inside as I burst his little bubble and told them the rest of the story.

That reminds me of our Family night discussion last week. We were talking about the real meaning of Easter and at one point Scott asked the kids, "Where did Christ go to pray the night before he was crucified?"  Vanessa was just sure she knew the answer and her hand shot up!!  "He went to the Olive Garden!!"  Haha.....close, but it was actually the Garden of Gethsemane.  She was kind of embarrassed that she got that little bit of trivia mixed up but we thought it was super cute!

How thankful I am for Jesus Christ and His sacrifice for me.  I am grateful for Easter and the reminders of rebirth and starting over.  Happy Spring!