Good Friday

I was fortunate to have my coworker's daughter come over and babysit on Good Friday afternoon so I could attend my church service from 12-1pm. I haven't been since I was pregnant with Jackson due to babysitting issues. Thanks Kelly, Rachel, and Lauren! The boys LOVE visitors and had a blast...especially b/c they were girls.
My old roomie and BFF from Orange County is now living in RB, so I recruited her to come with me. We are old Calvary Chapel Costa Mesa church buddies, so it was fun to reunite at my little Escondido Calvary.
While pondering, studying, and downloading bible studies on the death and resurrection of Jesus this week, I came across this website called Isaiah 53. Check it out.

13 Behold, My servant will prosper, He will be high and lifted up and greatly exalted.

14 Just as many were astonished at you, My people, So His appearance was marred more than any man And His form more than the sons of men.

15 Thus He will sprinkle many nations, Kings will shut their mouths on account of Him; For what had not been told them they will see, And what they had not heard they will understand.

1 Who has believed our message? And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?

2 For He grew up before Him like a tender shoot, And like a root out of parched ground; He has no stately form or majesty That we should look upon Him, Nor appearance that we should be attracted to Him.

3 He was despised and forsaken of men, A man of sorrows and acquainted with grief; And like one from whom men hide their face He was despised, and we did not esteem Him.

4 Surely our griefs He Himself bore, And our sorrows He carried; Yet we ourselves esteemed Him stricken, Smitten of God, and afflicted.

5 But He was pierced through for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; The chastening for our well-being fell upon Him, And by His scourging we are healed.

6 All of us like sheep have gone astray, Each of us has turned to his own way; But the LORD has caused the iniquity of us all To fall on Him.

7 He was oppressed and He was afflicted, Yet He did not open His mouth; Like a lamb that is led to slaughter, And like a sheep that is silent before its shearers, So He did not open His mouth.

8 By oppression and judgment He was taken away; And as for His generation, who considered That He was cut off out of the land of the living For the transgression of my people, to whom the stroke was due?

9 His grave was assigned with wicked men, Yet He was with a rich man in His death, Because He had done no violence, Nor was there any deceit in His mouth.

10 But the LORD was pleased To crush Him, putting Him to grief; If He would render Himself as a guilt offering, He will see His offspring, He will prolong His days, And the good pleasure of the LORD will prosper in His hand.

11 As a result of the anguish of His soul, He will see it and be satisfied; By His knowledge the Righteous One, My Servant, will justify the many, As He will bear their iniquities.

12 Therefore, I will allot Him a portion with the great, And He will divide the booty with the strong; Because He poured out Himself to death, And was numbered with the transgressors; Yet He Himself bore the sin of many, And interceded for the transgressors.

One of Jackson's favorite stories in his Bible.

He says, "mommy, let's read the cross story again. Jesus loves us!"

Coloring with my boys and teaching them why the death of Jesus was so good, hence the term "Good Friday." We are so thankful He died for us.

Want to know more about Jesus? Check out this website.

Seder meal

Traditionally the Seder meal is prepared on the first day of Passover, and in some traditions the second. I couldn't get it together in time, but better late than never. We had our Seder meal tonight, on Good Friday. I bought our lamb at Henry's and prepared the crock pot before taking off to Church. Owen helped me =)

Mike got us unleavened bread from Jerusalem, and very yummy kosher Kedem grape juice (instead of wine) from the Jewish section of Vons. Yeah Vons!

Here is my Seder meal: Lamb stew, matzo, and kosher grape juice. Mmmmmm
I told the kids it was special lamb meat and flat bread just like Jesus ate.

Owen was curious about this new tasting meat...

....and decided, "it's good mommy!"
Jackson devoured his so fast I didn't even get a picture.

What is the Seder meal?
(answer from www.christianseder.com)
Seder is the traditional Passover Week Dinner celebrated by the Hebrews since the Exodus. It is the Hebrew Thanksgiving, giving thanks to God for deliverance and redemption.

Seder is also called the Passover Dinner, commemorating the protection of God as the Angel of Death passed over every family protected by the Blood of the Paschal Lamb.

Seder is Bible Study. It is in this family setting that Jewish children were first introduced to the Book of Exodus as the adults gained further insight. We refer to this kind of instruction as multimedia, as all five senses are involved to make this study an unforgettable event.

Seder is that famous Dinner called The Last Supper, hosted by Jesus for His disciples. It is probable, based on The Gospels, to assume that Jesus celebrated every Seder of His life in Jerusalem. Seder, as the setting for Jesus' Last Supper, was the event Jesus choose to announce The New Covenant. And it was at this Seder that Jesus asked all of us to do this in remembrance of Him. Many of us have done part of the Seder at our various Communion Services, but the entire ceremony will bring us a profound sense of meaning.

Seder is the Feast of Unleavened Bread mentioned twice in Luke's Acts of the Apostles (12:3 and 20:6). The days of Unleavened Bread were mentioned in connection with Peter in Jerusalem and Paul in Greece, and both citations are followed by great miracles. I think that it is safe to say that both Peter and Paul celebrated Seder and encouraged others, both Jews and Gentiles, to do this also.

Seder was the basis of the early Church's Lord's Day worship service. It was referred to as the Agape Feast and Eucharist. Agape is the Greek word for Christian Love, that Love we have for one another. Eucharist is a transliteration of the Greek word which means to give thanks to God, implying that Thanksgiving is an obligation for the works of God. Our early Church experienced miracles and miraculous movements of the Holy Spirit. Our Christian ancestors were united in One Love, One Christ, and One Mind as they grew from obscurity to a Worldwide Church.

The Seder dinner is as Christian as it is Jewish. It is the focal point where we bring together our common heritage. We, as Christians, are heirs of Abraham through Faith and children of God through Christ.

Passover

Passsover 2009 is from April 8th (sundown) to April 16th (sundown)

The Passover Feast: A prophetic picture of the atoning death of Christ
(article from this website)
The coming of the Messiah is the central theme of the Old Testament. From the very beginning, right after the serpent deceived Eve in the Garden of Eden, God speaks of the One who is coming that will bruise the serpents’ head (Genesis 3:15). In the book of Psalms we read where King David prophesies about the death of Christ saying, “They pierced my hands and my feet… And for my clothing they cast lots” (Psalm 22:16-18). The prophet Isaiah foretells the atoning death of the Messiah and compares Him to “a lamb that is led to slaughter” (Isaiah 53:5-7). And John the Baptist, the last of the Old Testaments prophets, when he saw Jesus coming toward him declared, “Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29).
The record of the Old Testament makes it clear that the Messiah was born to die. The
Father sent Him from heaven for this purpose. It wasn’t plan B. It wasn’t because something went terribly wrong. At exactly the right time in history, Jesus Christ, the Son of God, was born, became a man and in obedience to His heavenly Father’s will; died on a cross to take away the sin of the world (Galatians 4:4-5). Jesus said, "Do not think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish but to fulfill” (Matthew 5:17). Shortly after His resurrection, Jesus appeared to two of His disciples as they were traveling on the road to Emmaus and “beginning with Moses and with all the prophets, He explained to them the things concerning Himself in all the Scriptures” (Luke 24:27). Jesus did indeed fulfill all that was written and prophesied about Him in the Old Testament.
The Passover Feast is one of these amazing prophetic pictures that Christ has fulfilled.
The apostle Paul calls these Old Testament events “shadows of things to come.” And goes on to explain that “the reality, the substance, the solid fact of what is foreshadowed, the body of it, belongs to Christ” (Colossians 2:17 Amplified Bible).
Messiah means Christ or the anointed one
Just as the Passover was the first feast that the people of Israel were commanded to
observe; so is Christ‘s atoning death on the cross the first truth we must believe if we are
to be free from slavery to sin, saved from the judgment it deserves and recipients of eternal life (John 3:16-19, Romans 6:23, 10:9-10). It is not enough to just know and understand that Christ has fulfilled all these things; we must believe in our hearts that Christ is truly our Passover Lamb.
Your Lamb Shall Be Unblemished
Speak to all the congregation of Israel, saying, 'On the tenth of this month they are each one to take a lamb for themselves, according to their fathers' households, a lamb for each household. Now if the household is too small for a lamb, then he and his neighbor nearest to his house are to take one according to the number of persons in them; according to what each man should eat, you are to divide the lamb. Your lamb shall be an unblemished male a year old; you may take it from the sheep or from the goats. (Exodus 12:3-5)
At the beginning of Passover week, on the tenth of the month, Jesus entered Jerusalem to
the sound of the multitudes shouting, “Hosanna to the Son of David” (Matthew 21:1-11, Mark 11:1-10, Luke 19:29-40). Jesus then entered the temple and with authority drove out those who were buying and selling! “My house shall be called a house of prayer,” he proclaimed. These events correspond with taking the Passover lamb into the house on the tenth of the month (Exodus 12:3). The Israelites were to take a year old, male lamb into their households until the fourteenth day of the month in order to inspect it for flaws. It had to be a lamb without blemish (Exodus 12:5). Jesus, the Lamb of God, had come into the house and over the next few days the chief priests, the scribes, the elders, the Pharisees and the Sadducees would all confront and question Him, but they would find no flaw (Luke 20:1-8, 19-26; Matthew 15:22-40, 21:23-27). Even after they arrested Jesus and brought him into the house of the high priest, they could only bring false witnesses against Him (Mark 14:53-59). And finally, when they brought Jesus before Pontius Pilate to have Him condemned to death, Pilate could only state the truth saying,
“I find no guilt in Him” (John 18:38). The Lamb was indeed unblemished (Hebrews 4:15). Atoning or atone means to appease, reconcile or propitiate (1 John 2:2, 4:9-10)
Also during this time, while in the house of Simon the Leper, a woman came to Jesus and
anointed Him with a very costly perfume. This beautiful and extravagant act of worship reveals many truths about Jesus. In the context of this study, it shows us that the Christ, the anointed one, was being prepared for His burial after becoming the sacrificial Lamb (Matthew 26:6-13; Mark 14:3-9).
A New Covenant
Moreover, they shall take some of the blood and put it on the two doorposts and on the lintel of the houses in which they eat it. They shall eat the flesh that same night, roasted with fire, and they shall eat it with unleavened bread and bitter herbs. Do not eat any of it raw or boiled at all with water, but rather roasted with fire, both its head and its legs along with its entrails. And you shall not leave any of it over until morning, but whatever is left of it until morning, you shall burn with fire. (Exodus 12:7-10)
Not long before Jesus and His disciples were gathered for the last meal they would have
together before His death, Judas Iscariot had already plotted to betray Him (Matthew 26:14-16; Mark 14:10-11; Luke 22:1-6). Knowing that He could not be able partake of the actual Passover meal with His disciples, Jesus shared a meal with them that explained that He was about to become the Passover meal. The New Covenant was about to be instituted and Jesus was expressing this through what we call the Lord's Supper (Matthew 26:26-30; Mark 14:12-26; Luke 22:1-20). Just as the Passover lamb’s blood was shed and put on the doorpost and lintel to save the Israelites from the last plague, so Jesus’ blood was about to be shed and His body broken for the salvation of the whole world.
Kill it at Twilight
You shall keep it until the fourteenth day of the same month, then the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel is to kill it at twilight. (Exodus 12:6) At the very time that the Passover lambs were being killed, Jesus was being crucified (Matthew 27:46-50; Mark 15:34-37; Luke 23:44). While all of Jerusalem was busy preparing the Passover meal with the lambs that were being sacrificed, Jesus was uttering His last words, “It is finished” (John 19:30). What was finished was God’s plan for the salvation of all people through the death of His Son. All that the Passover represents had been fulfilled in Christ (1 Corinthians 5:7).

The Blood of the Lamb For I will go through the land of Egypt on that night, and will strike down all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgments—I am the LORD. The blood shall be a sign for you on the houses where you live; and when I see the blood I will pass over you, and no plague will befall you to destroy you when I strike the land of Egypt. (Exodus 12:12-13)

Just as the blood of the Passover lamb saved the Israelites from the judgments of God and
redeemed them from slavery, so does the blood of Christ save all who believe from the judgment of God and redeem them from slavery to sin (1 Peter 1:18-20). The blood of the Lamb cleanses us, gives us a brand new start and frees us from a guilty conscience (Hebrews 10:22).
Feast of Unleavened Bread
In the first month you are to eat bread made without yeast, from the evening of the fourteenth day until the evening of the twenty-first day. For seven days no yeast is to be found in your houses. And whoever eats anything with yeast in it must be cut off from the community of Israel, whether he is an alien or native-born. Eat nothing made with yeast. Wherever you live, you must eat unleavened bread. (Exodus 12:18-20)
The Feast of Unleavened Bread began the night of the Passover meal. Leaven represents
sin. During Passover week the Israelites would search their houses to make sure there was no leaven anywhere in their homes. They would then make bread for the feast without any leaven. The unleavened bread represents how Christ has made us free of sin and how he wants us to continue to live and celebrate our new life, “with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth” (1 Corinthians 5:7-8).Feast of the Firstfruits
Celebrate the Feast of Harvest with the firstfruits of the crops you sow in your field. (Exodus 23:16) The day that Jesus was resurrected was actually the day that the Feast of the Firstfruits was celebrated (Exodus 23:16). The Israelites would bring the first fruits of their harvest to the temple as an offering. Jesus fulfills this on that very day by being the first of those to be resurrected from the dead (1Corinthians 15:20-23). Jesus also keeps His own words when he said, “For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the whale’s belly; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth” (Matthew 12:40). We can follow the sequence of events described in the New Testament that lead us through these three days. The day after Christ was crucified was the High Sabbath or the Passover Sabbath (Mark 15:42). Being a Sabbath day, the Israelites were commanded to cease from all labor. They would have prepared all the unleavened bread before this day. The following day, being a normal workday, we are told that some of the women who followed Jesus bought spices to take to His tomb to anoint Him (Mark 16:1). The next day they rested on the regular weekly Sabbath, the last day of the week (Luke 23:56). Then the following day, the first day of the week, they came to the tomb and found the stone rolled away from the entrance and when they went in they saw a young man dressed in a white robe who said, “You are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who was crucified. He has risen!” (Matthew 28:16; Mark 16:2-6; Luke 24:1-2; John 20:12).
Christ indeed had risen from the dead having fulfilled the true meaning of the Passover Feast, the Feast of Unleavened Bread and the Feast of the Firstfruits!

Silly boys havin' a good time reading their Bible stories

Bissell, my new best friend

The Bissell Proheat Upright Deep Cleaner has become my new best friend.

Puke is the enemy we are battling!

First it was Jackson. 2 days after we bought the new mom-mobile, he decided it was time to christen it. Not Mike's idea of a good time on his birthday (March 29th). While I was scouring the carseat and steam cleaning the car, Jackson proceeded to vomit every 1/2 hour for 4 hours until he finally fell asleep with Mike in our bed. Luckily we taught him how to RUN to the bathroom and there wasn't much to clean up.
Towel and bucket, just in case.

4 days later, on Owen's birthday, he threw up all over Mike on the couch in his room... at 5:30am right after drinking a full glass of milk. Yeah. Steam cleaning at 6am, not my idea of a good time. He seemed like he was getting better every day and had no other symptoms for 3 days. Suddenly last night he didn't want to eat dinner and prompty threw up all over Mike (again!) in the rocking chair. They rushed to the bathroom and puke made it everywhere except the toilet. Steam cleaning Owen's carpet and rocking chair at 8pm...not my idea of a good time. I had to take a break before I tackled the ridiculous bathroom - and could only breathe through my mouth b/c it was so disgusting. Mike and Owen fell asleep in his room - again w/a towel and bucket, just in case.
Nothing else happend with Owen... but Jackson woke up crying and crying that his tummy hurt. Also his ear. OMG, are you kidding me? It was 11pm and I hadn't even gotten in bed yet. So Mike went with Jackson to lay in the bunk...another blanket and bucket by the bed just in case. No picture of that b/c then I started not feeling well. Frequent trips to the bathroom were causing my uterus to contract - contstantly. For two hours straight. I thought I might have to go to the hospital. I was in and out of sleep every 30 minutes and feeling hot and cold over and over. Thermometer said no fever. I felt and still do feel very nauseous, but no more contractions.

The kids are acting fine this morning (except Jackson isn't hungry) and we're off to see the pediatrician at Kaiser for Owen's 2 year "well visit" in a few moments. If there is no ear infection (I made an apt. for Jack too) I will ask for food allergy testing. I just can't understand puke, fine, puke, fine, puke, fine. They've thrown up more in the last 2 weeks than I have in my entire 32 years..... and I'm getting really tired of it. Praise the Lord for the steam cleaner =)

This will be what my car looks like until the puke is llllooooonnnnnggggg gone
Luckily the only thing in that bucket so far is trash =)

UPDATE: Home from Kaiser now.
Jackson has an infection in his left ear and an Rx for 10 days of Amoxicillin. He weighs 36 pounds and was enthralled with the height measurement tool on the wall. He measured himself about 5 times. He was excited to show Owen how brave he was in getting a vaccine (this month we did PCV) and went first. "See Owen, I'm brave. Now don't cry brother."

Owen had his 2 year "well visit" and impressed the doctor with his language skills and even drawing shapes on the chalkboard. He counted to 5 and laid very still on the table. He continues to be in the 50% and little above for height. He weighs 28 pounds and is 35 inches tall - so he might turn out taller than his daddy. No ear infection (yeah!) so the doctor thinks they got a mild case of the bad bug going around. He said we shouldn't worry about food allergies unless the puke thing is constant after a specific food (ex: milk) for a few months. Since Owen has been potty training a little (he pees on potty a few times a day) we noticed his urine stream is very narrow and points up (messy!) so we asked the doctor to check it. He gave us a referral to the uroligist as he thinks it will need surgery to widen the opening. Owen got his very first vaccine today (dTap) and much to his brother's delight, did not cry at all. They relished in their bravery after the shots and picked out some stickers before we went to the pharmacy. The rest of the day went well and they loved my Matzo Ball Soup and homemade breadsticks =). No puke so far - yeah!

Butter vs. Margarine

Beware of Hydrogenated Fats
by Jordan Rubin

Be careful about what you spread on your toast this morning. Many hydrogenated fats (liquid fats injected with hydrogen gas at high temperatures under high pressure to make them solid at room temperature) are heavily promoted as health foods, but scientific findings say otherwise. Common hydrogenated fats include margarine and shortening. The production process converts them into indigestible trans-fatty acids. According to a 1995 study by Dr. Mary G. Ennig, hydrogenated fats have been associated with cancer, atherosclerosis, diabetes, obesity, immune system dysfunction, sterility, birth defects, low birth weight, lactation difficulties, decreased visual acuity, and problems with bones and tendons.

Rather than promote unhealthy dairy "imposters," the Maker's Diet focuses on the balanced intake of natural fats occurring in ocean-caught fish, cod liver oil, omega-3 eggs, and grass-fed, organic, and free-range meats. It also includes animal products such as butter, cheeses, and full-fat lacto-fermented dairy products such as yogurt and kefir.

Jordan's Tip of the Day From the author of The Maker's Diet

Better, More Edible Spreads
Always choose butter over margarine or other low-fat spreads. For the healthiest spreads, choose butters that are made out of raw goat's or cow's milk.

Old Cooking Flour

What should I do with this old flour we don't use?I found this recipe on Creative Kids at Home.com

Cooked Playdough

3 cups flour
1.5 cups salt
6 tsp cream of tarter
3 tbsp oil
3 cups water

1. Dissolve salt in the water.
2. Pour all ingredients into a large pot.
3. Stir constantly over medium heat until a ball forms by pulling away from the sides.
4. Knead the dough mixture until the texture matches playdough (1-2 minutes).

Store in plastic container. Should last for at least 3 months.

Ingredients I didn't have = $7

It looked really strange b/c it was whole wheat flour... figures =)

Since no one is eating it, I decided to make it interesting and add food coloring.

The red one kind of looks like meat - ew.

That is a TON of playdough for $7.
They immediately dug in and got out their playdough tools
Very happy boys!
When Jackson saw the dough on the counter he said,
"AH, Mom, you made that? That's totally awesome Mom. Awesome dude!"

It's nice to be appreciated so openly once in awhile. After all, it did take me about 1 1/2 hours from start to finish including cleaning up.....

2 Years Ago Today....

....Owen Michael was born at 2:26 am after 9 hours of labor.

He weighed 7 pounds 9 ounces and measured 21 inches long

We all thought he was a little version of his big brother Jackson - except with blonde hair.

Jackson wasn't so sure at first... but after a few short moments he fell in love.

Who could resist a sweet baby bundled in a blue fuzzy blanket?

Proud mama of 2 boys

then
and
now

Happy 2nd Birthday Owen! We are so thankful for you. My wish is that you always know how much you are loved... by Jesus and your family.

Even though you weren't feeling good today, you put on a smile and had a good time with your brother. You love each other so much!
He's still teaching you how to drive though

I rocked you to sleep tonight because it won't be long before you're the big brother and I can no longer hold you in my arms in that rocking chair you love so much.
Just like Grandma Ruth always told me, "you'll always be my baby!"