Easter 2011

HE IS RISEN! HE IS RISEN INDEED!!! 

Glorious words to hear.  Jesus Christ, Our Lord, overcame death and on the third day He rose again. What an awesome feeling to know what was done for us so that we may have eternal salvation.  God is great!

Our 2011 Easter started the way it has for a few years now. Nick woke up early and attended the 6am Sunrise Service. I stayed home and got the boys up, dressed and fed so we could be out the door by 7:45 to attend the 8:30 service.  Once Dominick is awake he heads straight for the Easter basket, he is very familiar with the routine. Simon needed a little more coaxing but he caught on pretty quick.  Once he saw the eggs "hidden" everywhere he knew exactly what to do.

Dominick and his basket

Simon and his basket

By the time Easter Sunday arrived we had already attended two friends/family Easter gatherings, one Easter breakfast and the boys had been on three Easter egg hunts.  There was no shortage of plastic eggs, jelly beans and marshmallow bunnies in our house.  Simon was flying high on sugar and Dominick had dyed his fair share of eggs. 



Easter Eggstravaganza Breakfast at Elk Grove Park



My side of the family's annual Easter BBQ at Lotus Park



Dominick and Simon decorating eggs at Andy & Emily's



Noah decorating eggs




On the hunt at Noah's

The little ones enjoyed another Easter egg hunt at church. Both boys were so handsome in their suits. At the request of my mother in law, Simon wore Nick's Easter suit from 27 years ago.  Simon was quite the talk of the town in that suite.

Simon and his friend Bella

After church it was off to Grandma's. Another Easter egg hunt occurred and then we headed over to future brother in law Miles' grandparents house for yet another Easter egg hunt. Simon and his cousin Brooklyn visited the pigs and met the Easter bunny.

Feeding their bunny friend carrots

Brooklyn and Simon enjoying their loot

Easter pigs

Our Easter was fantastic!  What an incredibly great reason to celebrate. While it seems, at times, that chocolate bunnies, baked hams and jelly beans get in the way of the significance of the day, the praise and glory to our Lord is ever present.  As undeserving as we are of His love and grace He continues to provide for us. HE IS RISEN! HE IS RISEN INDEED!

Take Us Out To The Ballgame!

The crack of the bat and the roar of a cheering crowd. Nope! Not the Giants’ World Series Championship game, even better, Opening Day of the Elk Grove Cal Ripken AAA Little League ORIOLES!  In bright orange shirts adorned with last names, grey pants and black cleats and caps the group of thirteen 9-11 year olds huddled on the baseball diamond and in unity shouted “1,2,3 – Let’s go Orioles!”  At age 10 Dominick decided (somewhat coerced by Nick) that he wanted to play baseball.  Nick had spent the past two springs and summers conditioning Dominick for his entrance into Little League AAA ball and when January arrived Dominick headed to try-outs.  For one month we eagerly awaited new from the coaches, not worrying too much about whether Dom made the team but rather which professional team he would represent.  Fingers crossed that it wasn’t the Dodgers!  March 4^th was practice #1 and boy was it tiring.  Who would have thought baseball involved so much running and catching?  Dominick did great and he eventually became used to all that practice entails.  We are currently about ½ way through the season.  Our win/lose record could use some improvement but the development I have seen in Dominick is incredible.  He actively participates in banter, cheers on his teammates, takes it hard when  something doesn’t go right and beams with pride when he makes contact with the bat, lands on base and makes a catch.  To date my All-Star has 1 stolen base, knocked a ball into the outfield, been walked several times, been hit a few times and backed up first base more than once.  I am so proud of him! I am not sure how the season will end as far as our record is concerned but Dominick is batting a thousand in my opinion and will walk away a winner no matter what.

730 Days Old

"They grow up so fast" - The clichest of parenthood cliches, but sadly, also the truest. 

Who will he look like?
Will he have my eyes, Nick's hair?
Will he be an easy baby or drive us crazy?

These unanswerable questions I asked during pregnancy seem so far away.  For nine months we wonder, guess, speculate and pray about and for our baby.  It is nine months of worry, excitement, anxiety, joy and exhaustion.  We are entrusted by our Creator to nurture and care for this being growing inside of us, all the while never truly grasping the incredible significance and honor of what we are doing.  The first time we hold our baby in our arms is a moment that surpasses the understanding and comprehension of anybody but mamma and baby. Our baby is a blessing bestowed upon us by The Most Holy.  Our baby is a reward from God, an inheritance from Him.  We are overwhelmed as we discover our tiny helpless baby depends 100% on us for survival.  The blessing of motherhood is, at times, hidden by sleepless nights, endless crying, constant feedings and utter exhaustion. But as days, weeks, months and, eventually years, pass we recognize and appreciate the ability of God to create such a precious being.  We, hopefully, make a promise to oursevles and God to raise our children according to His desires and teachings.

As I celebrated birthday #2 with Simon and we enter our 3rd year together, I started to examine the choices and decisions I have made as they relate to Simon's upbringing.  Foolish is the parent who believes he or she is perfect or is raising a perfect child.  I struggle constantly in parenting decision making!  Borrowing the words of another overused but true cliche, parenting is the hardest job in the world!  BUT, with Christ as my constant companion and advisor I know my efforts are not in vain.  My children know I love them, and to me that is the number one comfort as a parent.  Many challenges await us, of that I am positive, but I am not afraid or nervous.  I call on God in good times and bad and He has never failed me.  My children see that God leads our lives and sets our paths, it is our job to follow!

Birthday #2 was a joyous occasion that was shared by friends and family.  My baby sure has changed a lot in the past 365 days. Energy, vocabulary, personality, stubborness and cuteness have all increased exponentially.  Can't wait to see what the next year brings and who Simon is at 1,095 days old.  More health, joy and love - Praise be to God!

Let The Caged Animals Roam Free...

...and that is what we did.  On a spring-like February morning we packed some snacks, strapped the kids in the car and made the short drive to Lodi.  Many people seemed surprise to hear that there is a zoo in Lodi, frankly so was I initially. Micke Grove park and zoo has been a preference of ours over Sacramento Zoo for a while now.  Micke Grove is generally less crowded, parking is a lot better, it's cheaper and there is a huge picnic area.  Because of the size and layout of the zoo we allow Simon to leave the stroller behind and tag along Dominick's side.  It doesn't take long to make the zoo loop and we appreciate that, more time to spend out in the grass running around.  Dominick and Simon enjoy looking at all the animals. Dominick always reads the information displays and is sure to share all important animal facts with Nick and I. It's usually a short family outing, when we travel to Micke Grove but it is a nice break and the boys like it, which is all that matters.  Sometimes though, the thought of luring my boys into one of the enclosures, just for a while, does cross my mind.

19th Century....That's How We Roll

4th grade has offered many challenges for both Dominick and myself.  Whether we are struggling through math homework, labeling folders and dividers or buying endless amounts of school supplies, we are definitely kept busy.  A couple months in to the school year the teacher informed parents and students that we would be able to experience life as early California settlers, and what better way to do this than an overnight trip to Sutter's Fort!  The lead up to the actual field trip was long, involved and educational.  As a volunteer, I was obligated to attend various meetings including a several hour long training day at Sutter's Fort in the beginning of January. Dominick had to complete an era appropriate journal detailing the life and times of John Sutter, since Dominick volunteered to play the part of the famous Captain.  When the day of our trip arrived we showed up early at school in our pioneer woman (me) and military (Dom) garb. Parents loaded up all the supplies needed for the all day and overnight trip while the students stayed behind and listened to all the rules just one more time.  The class finally arrived at Sutter's Fort via horse and wagon, it was a great sight.

Once everything and everyone was unloaded the students began their station rotations. Each parent manned a station, mine was the wagon station, I know it sounds super exciting.

As the day progressed I addressed eight different groups of kids and told them all the wonderful and fascinating facts about the covered wagon.  It was an awesome experience.  I loved watching my son from afar as he interacted with other kids, participated in activities from 150 years ago and expanded his knowledge of the California Gold Rush.  As John Sutter, Dominick had the task of giving a speech in front of the whole group. For any other kid this may have seemed a little intimidating, not for Dominick!

The day was a success. I could not bring myself to endure the early February chill and stay the night but Dominick was more than happy to.  So I left him around 5:00 with sleeping bag in hand and wished him the best.  The morning report was a good one.  Despite little sleep, a bout of vomiting and smelling real bad, I think he had a great time.  I doubt that I would have fared so well.



A Shewmaker Christmas

There is no other time of the year that ignites my childlike wonder more than Christmas.  As a child, Christmas was always about presents, goodies and Santa Claus. The countdown to December 25th was tortuous and waking up Christmas morning was glorious.  As an adult my joy during the Christmas season has exponentially increased for many reasons. 1) I cherish the time spent with family and loved ones 2) I LOVE all Christmas related services and events hosted by our church 3) Christmas dinner is yummy 4) I recognize the awesome event that happened two thousand years ago and what the birth of our Savior truly means 5) I get to share the happiness of Christmas with my children, they love the presents but are learning to appreciate the true meaning of why we celebrate Christmas.

The kick off of the Christmas season, in our family, is not the day after Thanksgiving or the first day of December.  Our celebrating begins the night we attend St. Peters' carol singing and tree trimming service.  During the first week of December we take the boys and our niece Aryanna to church for an evening of traditional Christmal carol singing while the kids help decorate the church's giant Christmas tree.  The turnout is always great.  30 or so kids, ranging from crawlers to teenagers swarm the Christmas tree hanging Christian symbol ornaments. It's a wonderful sight to behold.  You see dads lifting little ones up to reach the taller spaces, clusters of ornaments in one spot while the next spot on the tree is completely bare and the most precarious sight is the 12 foot ladder and the man on top (my husband this year) reaching over to place the tree topper.  After an hour the magnificent tree is decorated, over a dozen carols have been sung and cookies and hot cocoa shared.  Let the holiday begin.

Clam chowder defines Christmas Eve for me.  After Christmas Eve service and our rotation in the nursery we always head over to grandma's and have clam chowder, I have come to expect over the past seven years.  2010 offered a surprise though, bbq'd Korean short ribs, of course that sounds like Christmas! After my short adjustment period I put the craving for clam chowder aside and enjoyed the rather delicious ribs.  We spent some time lounging around grandma's, enjoying the company of our family.  As the night was progressing I could see the kids getting tired and impatient because they wanted to open the traditional Christmas Eve present, we finally gave in.  The boys opened their presents and we headed home for a good night's rest.

Christmas morning had finally arrived.  Just like last year, Dominick was up with his stocking in hand bright and early.  Simon had no desire to wake up but since we had presents to open at home and a house full of people waiting for us at grandma's we had to get the show on the road.  Dominick enjoyed opening presents, why wouldn't he?  Nick and I enjoyed watching him.  Simon had minimal interest and seemed a little confused about the whole spectacle.

Cinnamon rolls, family and presents awaited us at grandma's.

After presents and breakfast we headed off to church and then back to grandma's for a lovely Christmas dinner.  It was a wonderful day as we celebrated the birth of our Savior Jesus Chris.