Barefoot in the Kitchen and I Stepped on a Grape

Sunday night we got a call from Micah's sister-in-law, Heather to come quickly to Austin- his mom didn't have much time left on this earth.  An hour later she was in the arms of Jesus. 

There are so many emotions and feelings that take place when you lose a loved one.  On one hand you are so relieved that she is with the Lord and completely healed.  On the other hand, the pain inside from a loved one no longer being on this earth to be in relationship with is very difficult.

We have had so much prayer and support from many people.  I can feel the prayers others are sending and the peace that is being brought to us from the Lord.

It's been difficult to communicate to Katie what has happened to her Nana.  She knows that Nana doesn't live at her house any more but in Jesus' house with Him.  She says it's a castle and now Nana is a princess and has a crown.  How true those words are.

Today I heard Katie "talking on the phone" to Nana.  The conversation went something like this:
"Nana!?"
"Hi!"
"Oh?  You're at Jesus' house?"
"I like Jesus' house!"

Then she called her Aunt Amazing.

How do you tell a three year old that she won't see her Nana here on this earth again?  Her Nana was one of her best friends.  I will do my best in honor of Cindy and for Katie's to remind Katie of the fun and special things they were able to do together. 

-Feed the ducks
-Go on picnics
-Go to the zoo and aquarium on one of the Tulsa trips to the cancer center
-Decorate cookies together
-Dig in Nana's purse for lipstick that only Nana would let her wear
-Nana would sneak her m&m's when Micah and I weren't looking

There's part of me that feels sad for Katie, Lillie, and especially this new baby- there will be very limited, if any memories of their Nana for them.

But, I am glad for the time we all had with her.  She was a blessing to me and I could not have asked for a more special mother-in-law.  Cindy always included me and respected me as Micah's wife and the mother of her granddaughters. 

Sleep has become a rare thing around here.   There is so much to do to prepare for the funeral on Saturday. 

We have written an obituary, cleaned the house, set up meals to come, gone through hundreds of pictures, scanned hundreds of pictures, picked out a burial site, chosen a special outfit for Cindy to wear, and the list goes on and on.  But, it has all been done in love and in honor of the woman that God so graciously allowed me to know for these past six years. 

May the Lord hold Cindy in His arms and grant her peace and love.  We miss her dearly but know that we will see her again!

This past weekend was a celebration of God's greatest gift to us, His Son, Jesus.  He gave up His only Son as a sacrifice for our sins.  Wow.  He loves us that much.  Could I love people enough to give up one of my children's lives for their souls?  Fortunately our God, who loves us more than enough, did.  He did it so we wouldn't have to.  He sent His Son so that we could live forever with Him in heaven.  In fellowship with our Creator.  Can we even imagine the true extent of that sacrifice? 

We drove to Austin on Saturday for Micah's twin nephew's third birthday party.  It was a blast!  Katherine and Lillie had so much fun playing with all their little cousins.  The weather was perfect and the fellowship of family was wonderful. 
Easter Sunday we woke up and has a yummy pancake breakfast.  We got to spend some special time with Micah's mom and all enjoyed watching Katie, Lillie, and the twins search for eggs in the backyard easter egg hunt.  Lillie was a little hesitant in searching for eggs.  She liked the idea of carrying her "purse" around while Katie just wanted to get one egg at a time and eat the yummy treat inside before she went on to the next treasure. 

It was a wonderful weekend filled with laughter, celebration and memories made.  Thank you Father for forgiveness of sins and the sacrifice of your Son.