Veggie Tales and Quilting

I'm so glad that Spring is here! It has been so nice having the sun out longer, the snow is gone, flowers are planted, and we are enjoying our time together! Chad and I are taking Friday off and having a date day! I'm so looking forward to it. We are traveling to Cedarburg and enjoying the shops and dining! So far I've found a quilting shop, scrapbook shop, pottery place, crepe restaurant, and a winery I went to in the fall. That's what started my fascination with this town. My girlfriend and I toured 13 wineries one weekend and went to the one in Cedarburg...it's the cutest town but we only had time to visit the winery and pottery shop. I've been dying to go back and explore more and Chad has been asking for us to do something fun so there we go! :) I'm definately looking forward to our talks...we always have great ones when we drive. We talk about memories as a child and so many random things..it's great! Saturday we are going with our dear friends to Chicago to show them around the city. They are heading back to Texas next month and have wanted to go and explore. So a few fun filled days ahead and Sunday we will be relaxing with our little men after church and just enjoy being together.
Speaking of my little men...last week I came across a veggie tales devotion for kids that I bought two years ago...At the time the boys weren't old enough to understand the stories but they are at the perfect age right now. I started reading them a story every night before bed followed but the questions they have in the devo. They love it and I've so enjoyed having this special time with them. I can't believe how big they are getting! We had Noah's kindergarden orientation last week and I'm on the verge of tears just thinking about him being in school all day!
In my spare time...which has been limited I have been quilting and loving every minute of it! I just finished my third quilt and will be posting pics soon! I have two more quilts going, one I just started and one i'm finishing up. There just aren't enough hours in the day but this has been something i've always wanted to learn how to do and I'm so thankful for the opportunity that dropped in my lap. At class tonight i dropped of my quilt i've been working on for my friend Dawn who just got married. It should be done next week and then I just have to do the binding.
Well that's the beginning of my week in a nutshell:)

Friday!

I can't even begin to tell you just how happy I am that it is Friday! It has been a week~!! I knew last Thursday that this week was going to be a bear with work and it was but it was also great in that I worked out 4 times already with one of them being 5:15 this morning! Yeah! I'm feeling so refreshed and just motivated which has been such a blessing. Today i'm working from home and I just love it. Being able to sit on my love seat in my yoga pants with my cup of coffee and work makes my week. It's nice not to have the contstant interuptions and I am able to crank through so much email! This weekend is a busy but fun one. Tonight my mom and girlfriend J are coming over for Bible Study. My friend J was in Japan for three weeks so we haven't met in three weeks and I'm just so excited to have fellowship with them tonight and get in the word. I'm making weight watchers pita pizzas with hummus, low fat cheese, peppers, and mushrooms for dinner. I'm hoping the weather stays nice so we can enjoy Bible study on my deck. In the years past I haven't had any problems with my allergies but this spring I've been sneezing up a storm!! I think it has something to do with the pollen levels being so high....but i'm ready for the sneezing to stop! :) Tomorrow i'm going to Chicago with my sister to look for her wedding shoes and our bridesmaid shoes which should be fun. I'm trying to think of something fun to do with the boys in the afternoon and then Sunday we have church and hopefully relaxing as a family. I'm planning on getting a longer workout in tonight after the boys go to bed and hopefully squeeze in some quilting. Chad and I took the boys hiking yesterday and had a blast. We hiked to a little creek and found a lot of frogs and the boys were fascinated. Between throwing rocks, finding "dinosaur fossils" and frogs it was a memorable evening! Well that's me in a nut shull for today. I have a ton of notes from church last week and can't wait to share but will need a bit more time to relay the awesome sermon we heard last week. Happy Friday!

From East to West- And my 100th post!

What a whirlwind of a week. Monday morning I left early for South Carolina. I was flying on a small jet....and I'm not a good flier. Don't get me wrong...I fly alot more in the past year, than I have in a long time. But I don't like. I don't like not have "control"...for those of you who read my blog regulary i'm sure you know that. :) Flying is no exception....I don't like not being on the ground, and I don't like turbulence... but I've been working on my fear and praying about it alot! Monday's flight went well...landed just find and headed to my families place in Senecca. My business meetings were about 45 minutes from where they live but all of my meetings were moved to Tuesday so I had the afternoon/evening to spend time with them and I loved every minute of it. I hadn't seen my aunt in years and it was great to see my Grams. She normally comes out here once a year and it was such a treat to be able to see their home. My grandma loves to quilt and since I'm fairly new to quilting we have enjoyed comparing notes, mostly me asking a lot of questions:) We had chicken salad for lunch which was amazing! My aunt made it from scratch and it was delicious. I had to work for a bit but afterwards they drove me around their town and took me to this cute resteraunt on a dock and we had appetizers and a couple glasses of wine and just talked. I loved it! Afterwards we went back to their place and I headed for my hotel. My meetings were the next day and I would fly back home shortly thereafter. I was rather dissapointed because my cousin Rebecca, her husband, and three kids live three blocks from my aunt, uncle, and Grams but they were in Charleston for Easter/spring break and weren't going to be back until Tuesday. I haven't seen Rebecca in 15 years but we have always been so close. Tuesday I spent much of the late afternoon at the airport working waiting for my plane...another small jet. As soon as we took off I knew something was wrong....we took off but didn't get up as high as we should have...this I knew because we were still below the clouds minutes after take off..and the plane felt like it was gliding...then the pilot called the flight attendent and I watched her eyes get big...and my heart sank. Two of my biggest fears is dying in a plane or drowning. She got on the phone and told us the plane was having mechanical problems, the pilot was on the phone with ATC, and they were going to TRY to get back to the airport. That is when I lost it. I looked at the man in front of me with his head in his hand...the lady next to me looked like a ghost and I just cried...thankful I had told my boys just how much I love them...thankful I told Chad I loved him...and then I started talking to God....asking for forgiveness for all of the wrong I have done and how sorry I was for not doing everything I should have this side of eternity. I couldn't see out the window so I kept asking the lady next to me if she could see the airport or landing strip and she told me she wasn't sure what she saw...the plane was still low and I was afraid he was going to try and land on the highway...but then he turned the plane and we made it to the runway....and I wept....They deplaned us and took all of the luggage off and I was shaking.....and couldn't stop. So thankful to be on the ground and just wanted to hear Chad's voice. I think I called him every 10 minutes that first hour...poor guy. The airport staff was trying to rebook everyone on connecting flights but I knew I couldn't get on a plane right then...I just couldn't. I called my boss, got a rental car and headed back to my aunt and uncles. I decided that I would drive home...crazy I know...but that's what I needed to do for me. I wasn't emotionally ready to get back on a plane...rationally I know that thousands of planes fly a day and the chances of my next flight having mechanical problems were slim to none but I just couldn't get all of the pictures out of my head of my time in the air...and need some time. I spent the next day in Senecca and it was a blessing. When I drove back Tuesday evening I went to my cousins and had dinner with everyone and it was great! I got to meet my cousins three kids who are precious and just enjoyed being with family. I worked all day Wed and then Wed night had dinner with everyone again and just talked. Thurs morning I got up at 4am and started the 14 hour drive home...and it went well. I still can't believe I drove from SC to Chicago to WI in one day but I did and it was great. I had a lot of time to think, talk to God, pray, enjoy talking to friends/family and thinking alot! I rolled in last night around 8 and crashed!!! I gave the boys and Chad big hugs and was just to thankful to be home safely. I worked from home today and we took the boys to see "How to train a dragon" and loved it! I'm not much for cartoon movies but I just loved it and will definately be buying it when it comes out on DVD. Now Chad is going to grill turkey burgers, then it's bedtime for the boys and I'm hoping to muster some energy to quilt, but I don't know...i'm still pretty tired. So there is my week in a nutshell and today is my 100th post!!! It's hard to believe I've posted that many times. As look back at different posts I'm thankful for this blog for so many reasons! It's become a place for me to put my thoughts down, write special memories, reflect on life and all that is happening. I've also made some new friends, and at the end of the day just want to be used for His plan. I have many inperfections but am enjoying being molded by the Potter!

He is Risen!

What an amazing couple of days! As Easter approached this year I have been reflecting on all that Jesus did for us...and have been humbled to tears! I was thinking about him on that cross.....hanging there with thorns on his head...nails in his feet and hands and just cry. He did that for me.....and for all of us. He took all of my sins...past, present, and future and died for them! I've been thinking alot about Mary today and how hard it must have been for her to see her "son" on the cross. I can't even begin to imagine what must have been going through her head...was she at peace, was she screaming...how did she feel when she went to his tomb the next day....and then again when she saw him again? There aren't many times in history that I wish I was alive during but that time would have been one of them. To touch his hands, be at his feet, hear his voice. Im in awe and oh so thankful for the sacrifice He made for us. I'm thankful that I can live my life with hope that I will see Him one day. Today has been wonderful! The boys and I planted some flowers today...and i'm so excited to watch them bloom! Tulips, lilies, and more lilies! I can't wait. We then went to my in laws where the boys did an easter egg hunt, had lunch, read the Easter story, and all came home for a much needed nap! I'm getting ready to head to SC for business tomorrow and would honestly rather just be home. I'm not even motivated to pack! I'm only going to be gone two days and I'm glad it's a short trip because i'm missing my family already!. Here are a few of my favorite pics from our day today! Enjoy.