I spy with my little eye…

Something that is pink!

and green!

and yellow!

and spotted!

and blue and purple and orange and fuschia and speckled and marbleized and…!

Well, that’s pretty much how our yard looked this weekend.  As Matt said, we held our annual Sloan Creek Easter Egg Hunt on Saturday.  I really felt like God blessed the whole day, from start to finish:

1)  After torrential rain and storms on Friday night, with multi-inch rainfall totals around the area, we awoke to a bright and sunny sky and a yard that was “mostly dry.”

2)  Trey’s soccer game, however, was cancelled, giving us much-needed time to pull all those last-minute details together.

3)  Skip graciously allowed us to borrow all the tables and chairs we needed, despite us not following the newly-established building usage protocol (which is now understood and will be duly followed in the future, cap’n).  Amazingly, 5 large round tables, 2 large rectangular tables and 47 chairs managed to fit in the bed of Matt’s truck and my SUV.  The kids, however, we had to strap on the hood of the car…

4)  Actual set-up time from the time we returned home was less than 2 hours.  Total clean-up time from the time the last person left to lowering the garage door for the final time was just about 2 hours.   We even had time to put our feet up and take pre-bedtime naps during the NCAA semifinal games.

5)  Our kids…what can I say about our kids.  They would have loved nothing more than to have a Saturday with mom and dad all to themselves, but they pitched in stuffing eggs, helping “hide” them, setting up decorations, setting out the food and drinks, entertaining other kids who came, and helping clean up the yard afterwards.  They were amazing, and I am constantly humbled by how delightful they are despite my parenting.

6)  We had the largest turnout yet, and everyone seemed to have a really good time.  People sat and visited, new connections between neighbors were established, and we even had neighbors come who don’t have small children.  People came with relatives who don’t live in Sloan Creek, and we saw lots of families spending time together, parents visiting with one another, kids playing all over the yard (and a dog who was reveling in all the attention!)…just one of those “postcard” moments when you know everyone is enjoying themselves, relaxing, and having fun.  The food was great, the weather was terrific, and the company was fantastic.

I don’t know where the year ahead will take us, and how our neighborhood will change over the course of the next 365 days, but I do know this: God has placed us here for a reason.  And I am so grateful for the united passion God has given both Matt and I to be ministers to our little corner of Fairview.  I felt something special on Saturday as together we prepared for this outreach – a sense of unity and togetherness in a common mission – that binds us together even stronger as a couple, and hopefully as a family.  I hope and pray that Trey and Crisana can see in our example our desire to reach out to others, to be good stewards of what God has given us, to enjoy serving and ministry, and to show God’s love to others.

The day ended with us tired, but satisfied.  We spent some family time before it was off to be for the kiddos, and I was struck by how complete and perfect my life really is.  Yes, it’s busy and hectic, and there are days I just want to call it quits…but I couldn’t ask for more.  And I wouldn’t change a thing.