Egg Hunt

Since we live in an apartment we do our egg hunt indoors.  The boys don't think the Easter Bunny leaves the eggs, nor do they even know who the Easter Bunny is!  They just think it's a fun game we play on Easter.

 

A Beautiful Spring Day

 

I'd venture to say that last Saturday was 

probably the first warm day we've had

in a long time.  So, we headed outside

to enjoy the sunshine.

 

Cute couple.  It's a rare sight to see couples this age together.

 

This is outside the Russian Orthodox church.

 

Some teens taking in some skateboarding.

 

It was also "subbotneek".  Once a year on a Saturday the whole

country cleans up their city.  

Cute lady.

Another cute couple. 

Blessing of the Easter Bread

This past weekend our family spent a morning hanging out at the local "square".  I really enjoy going there because it is a big open space and everything is usually very clean.  There is also a Russian Orthodox church that sits on a hill overlooking the river.  While we were there, I noticed a group of people standing at one of the entrances.  There was also a table with Easter breads on it and more Easter breads on the ledges.  I remembered that my friend Heather had mentioned that the priest blesses these cakes so I stood around waiting to watch and snap some pictures. 

 

People gathering around the entrance.

 

People bringing more Easter bread.

 

The priest comes out at 12 noon to say a prayer and bless the food.

 

Here the priest is sprinkling the "holy water" on all the breads.

As I watched I felt very sad for these people.  I don't quite understand why the bread needs a blessing from a priest.  Yesterday, I Googled why this happens and what the meaning is.  Basically, the breads 

get blessed and then are eaten the following day on Easter Sunday.  I also found the following prayer that the priest recites before he "blesses" the breads:

"Bless, O Lord, this creation that it may be a means of salvation to the human race, And grant that, by the invocation of Thy Holy Name, it may promote health of body, and salvation of soul in those who partake of it, through Christ our Lord."

After reading that prayer it made me even more sad to think that these followers are being led astrayed by thinking that their good works and blessings from a priest will get them to heaven.  I made an observation to my husband that usually when women are standing outside the Russian Orthodox church they do not wear their head coverings but that this time all the women had their head coverings on.  He commented that they did this because the priest represents holiness and since he would be stepping out of the church the women needed to have their heads covered.  Recently we had a man who is in the preacher's help program where Jon teaches at over for dinner.  He was telling us how Russian Orthodox believers think that God dwells in the Russian Orthodox church which then gives them the liberty to live their lives freely outside of the "church". All this makes me so grateful for God's saving grace on my life and so thankful for the work of Christ on the cross!!!

Easter Baskets

I've yet to find Easter baskets here so we made our own this year.  The boys aren't crazy about glue so in the end, Jon and I had to finish them off.  Once again, I got the idea from another blogger.

Jojo was more concerned with getting the glue off his fingers while Naynay was more concerned with making sure there was always enough glue on the plate. 

The balloons hanging to dry.  The idea was to basically dip fabric pieces into glue onto the balloon.  I also coated the outside with Mod Podge to make sure that there was enough glue coverage.

                         And here's the finished product after our indoor Easter egg hunt! 

Celebrating Passion Week II

Throughout the week Jon continued to share with the boys about each day's events.  Then on Saturday morning I let them watch a Jesus cartoon DVD that my friend let me borrow.  

 

I think the DVD helped the boys understand further.  Jojo is such 

a visual learner that things started clicking in his head.  Later in the

day I overheard him playing with his Clone Trooper Legos and the

conversation went like this:  Clone Trooper A :"I will die for

your sins"  Clone Trooper B : "Yes, you must die".

Last night after dinner Nathan slapped his face and then said, "They 

hit Jesus like this."  One can't help but giggle a little.  Our most 

earnest prayer as parents is that the Lord will save both of our boys,

we're thankful for the opportunities that the Lord gives us to teach

them His truth!

Celebrating Passion Week

Since the boys are getting older, I thought it would be a good idea to take them through the chronological order of the events that happened leading up to the crucifixion and then resurrection of Christ.  On Monday we learned about the Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem.  I had the boys make some "palm leaves" after I told them the story.

 

 

On Tuesday Jon gave a narration of Christ cleansing the temple.  It's amazing how much Josiah remembers throughout his few years about these stories.  It's fun to see it all "click" in his little

head as he recalls certain events that we've talked about in the past.  At one point when Jon said

something, Josiah replied "No way Hosanna"...............like as in "No way Jose".  It was kinda hard not to giggle.  

One thing I learned this week was that Palm Sunday could probably more accurately be called Palm Monday according to accurate dating.  It's fun to learn alongside the boys and I'm thankful for my husband who can clear up many things for us and teach us new things also.

Just Kickin' Back

 

This is what I saw when I came into the living room the other

day!  He was just enjoying a little snack and a video.

Salt Dough Bead Crosses

This past week I made a big batch of salt dough.  I'm so thankful for this website where I've been getting so many craft ideas.  I thought I'd help out the boy's Sunday school teacher with a little craft today.  The kids really enjoyed making these and it really kept them quiet and busy for about 20 minutes.  As they were doing the craft I realized what a great fine motor skill it is and with younger children you could just use bigger beads to make it easier for them. 

 

This cutie was too little to join in but she loved watching the

kids place the beads on the crosses.

SPRING!

It's finally happening!  Spring is slowly springing up everywhere.  The big meltdown is almost over...........only a few patches of snow are left.  There's still a lot of mud and litter around but we're happy to overlook those things as long as the sun shines an hour or two while we're out playing.

 

Time for blowing bubbles again!  The other day I tossed let the

boys out on the balcony to blow bubbles and they have been 

so eager to actually get out in the open to blow them.

 

Time to get the scooters out!  Jojo is getting a little more daring

on the scooter.  He asked if he could wear his bike helmet when

he rides his scooter from now on!

 

Time for flowers to bud!

 

Time to hang out outside without freezing!

Quiet Time

When Jojo was born I read so many books on parenting, getting your baby on a schedule, etc.!  One idea that kept popping everywhere was giving your children a time during the day for them to have a "quiet time".  It's always been in the back of my mind and just last week I finally started doing it.  So, now every day, the boys get to pick books, take them to their bed, and read them.  I then set the timer for 30 minutes.  The first couple of days the boys fought me on this but once they got used to it, they actually enjoyed it.  The last 3 days they've been asking me to do "quiet time".  Thankfully it's a time that benefits all...............including me!

Pizza Dinner

Last night we had some men from the part time preacher's help program over for dinner.  It was a fun evening and a great time for Jon to get to know these men on a more personal level.  They are a great group of mature men.  One even travels from the country of Moldova to attend and two others come from Kazakhstan!  Pretty amazing how hungry these men are for God's word!

Rainy Day

Today was a rainy day and I had the grand idea of going to one of the local squares with the family so that the boys could ride their scooters, after all weather.com said it was just a "light rain".  I should know better than to trust a weather forecast! 

 

One of my goals today was to get a picture

of this stuffed animal in Samara.  He was sent

to us by a middle school in the States and we 

are supposed to take a picture of "Lucas"

hanging out in Samara and then send a postcard,

letter, and picture back to the middle school .  

I've been meaning to do this little project for

over a month now!  OOPS!!!

 

So the boys rode their scooters for like 5 minutes until they were

soaking wet.  We then decided to head to McDonalds for lunch.

 

 

My boys enjoying their lunch!