He is Risen!

"He is not here; he has risen! Remember how he told you, while he was still with you in Galilee:  'The Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, be crucified and on the third day be raised again.'"Luke 24:6-7

There are no words to express my gratitude for what Jesus did to set me free.  "Thank you, Jesus," feels like it falls short, but I know He knows my heart.  I surrender my life to Him and do my very best to serve Him.  That is what I attempt to do each day.  The best part is that He forgives me when I mess it up...every time!  It is humbling and amazing.

This year to celebrate Christ's resurrection, my mom came down.  My dad had planned on coming too, but had to make up work because of being sick the previous week.  We missed him tremendously, but were thankful to have Wynna here!

I couldn't resist a few of my girly girl in her precious outfit and sweet little shoes.  She isn't walking yet, so crawling was a challenge, but this is her standing in the mother's room at church!

My mentor, Sheeba, and her husband, Cherian, with us at church.  They are such blessings to our lives!

Of course, when we got home, Wynna created and egg hunt for Zeke.  He had so much fun and we have continued to hide and find eggs since then!

Lastly, a few of the baskets that morning.  As you know, I struggle with how to go about handling the secular side of holidays.  We have been doing a few little gifts in the baskets (no candy), and it hasn't been an issue.  Zeke got the movie Frozen, which we all thoroughly enjoyed, in addition to some books, a bunny, and a little car.  

What a blessed time together celebrating our precious Savior!

In the Hall family we...

My Christmas gift from Gregg was a sign that I had been thinking about and planning in my head for a long time.  We got together and came up with the attributes that we felt made us the Gregg Hall family.  We gave these things to an artist on Etsy (crafters website) and asked her to create our sign.

Things certainly didn't go as planned (after all it is April and it is finally finished), but the end result is a sign I cherish and enjoy looking at every day.  Here are the attributes:

1. Are sinners saved by God's grace
2. Love Jesus
3. Trust and hope in the Lord
4. Are led by the Spirit
5. Tithe
6. Give, save, then spend
7. Praise God for our blessings
8. Listen
9. Are diligent
10. Expect God's miracles
11. Seek wise counsel
12. Forgive
13. Study God's Word
14. Read
15. Pray fervently
16. Laugh often
17. Choose joy
18. Cherish one another
19. Love our neighbors
20. Enjoy the outdoors
21. Hunt and fish
22. Eat real food
23. Ferment
24. Enjoy Chocolate
25. Stay physically fit
26. Live naturally
27. Dance
28. 'Heart' Christmas



On another note, we celebrated my Baptism last weekend!  I felt led to be immersed since I was sprinkled as a baby and a teenager.  I wanted the full immersion experience like Jesus!  After all, the word baptize is from the Greek verb baptidzo," which means "to immerse."

I was saved by Christ in the sixth grade, but this was an outward sign and testimony of an inward change that occurred in me as I was saved and Baptized in the Holy Spirit.

"Peter replied, 'Each of you must repent of your sins and turn to God, and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. Then you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. This promise is to you, and to your children, and even to the Gentiles—all who have been called by the Lord our God.'"

Acts 2:38-39

"Or have you forgotten that when we were joined with Christ Jesus in baptism, we joined him in his death? For we died and were buried with Christ by baptism. And just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glorious power of the Father, now we also may live new lives."

(Romans 6:3-4)

I had the privilege of talking to Zeke about Baptism and honor of him being there to witness mine.  The following morning, he came and got into bed with me (Gregg was working).  This is what he said:

Zeke: Mommy, are you all new?  You used to be old, but now you're new?
Me: Yes, why?
Zeke: Because you got Baptized

Praise God!  This day was extra special because my mom was here (my dad wasn't because he had been sick and had to work) since it was Easter weekend.  The Baptism occurred in our backyard pool too!  Our dear friends, Cherian and Sheeba, and their two children, Josh and Nikita, came, in addition to our next door neighbors, the Law family.  We had refreshments afterwards and enjoyed fellowshipping together.

I thank God for going ahead of us and preparing a church for us to continue to serve Him and grow.  We are truly blessed!

"But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ."

 Corinthians 15:57

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Adalynn ~ 1 year professional photos

I realized I never posted Adalynn's photos done by our wonderful photographer, Summer Adams.  I am sad because Summer moved to Florida, so this was our last shoot with her.  We were so pleased with how they turned out, though.  Enjoy!

Spring has sprung

It has been a while since I posted last.  We have had several visitors and have thoroughly been enjoying this beautiful weather. 

We were thrilled to have Pat and Jeff Lilley (my mom's cousin and her husband) come visit all the way from California!  They were on the East coast for a couple of weeks and my mom was kind enough to bring them here to Americus!

Zeke, of course, warmed right up to them, but our timid girl took a little longer.  By the time they left, she and Pat had become buddies!  Gregg took us to President Carter's boyhood home for a tour, which was fun and educational.  We got to see an old general store, chicken plucker, windmill that pumped water, milking barn, and much more.

We went to dinner at Pat's Place to celebrate my mom's birthday, and of course, so Pat could have her picture in front of the sign!  We surprised my mom with candles in her pizza, which was a fun twist. 

Pat and Jeff (Geegee Pat and Papa Jeff) even came to story time at the library.  The Humane Society was there that day with puppies!

It was a great trip, and we were were sad to see them go.

We were THRILLED to have my mom come visit for 4 days last week.  I don't have many pictures from that visit because we were working so hard cleaning and organizing!

Great Nancy sent an adorable outfit for Adalynn's 1st birthday.  I was able to get some shots of her in it on one of our beautiful days.

Today, we had fun at an Easter egg hunt at our church.  I will be sure to post those pictures soon.  We look forward to celebrating our risen Savior next Sunday on Easter with my mom and Dad.