March actually dragged a bit. Maybe because it was 80 degrees in Florida in the beginning of the month, and 80 degrees in Chicago in the middle of the month. Maybe because spring arrived with so much force that it seemed like May and the calendar wasn't budging. Maybe it was because Matilda's new favorite way of expressing her displeasure is throwing herself on the ground and bashing her forehead to the earth? I don't know, that sure makes the days seem long.
So to find ourselves suddenly on the eve of Easter was a surprise. Easter was the first major holiday that we celebrated for the second time with Matilda (I've discovered in writing this post that I really have no love for St. Patrick and St. Valentine?) and the way that our sleepy almost-three month old has grown into a chattering, independent fourteen month old is amazing.
I just love how the transformation in our wardrobe is almost as dramatic as the change in Matilda's appearance...obviously, having a child who sleeps 12 hours a night is how you get yourself to church early dressed like you are a walking Gap ad.
And here she is this year, spilling candy on the grass, infinitely more excited to snap the eggs open and closed than even look at what was inside them. She has absolutely no idea what candy is and her hierarchy of eggs was based entirely on what made the best noise when used as a maraca. (It's jelly beans!)
It surprises me to see the changes in pictures and yet in someways I am grateful that this is how I thought it would be, that watching a child grow up entwines the most normal and the most miraculous moments I've ever experienced.
Matilda is still too young to understand the significance of Easter as a holy holiday but we are excited for her to discover more than just the plastic eggs full of candy and baskets full of silly, sweet gifts. We sang In Christ Alone during the twenty minutes of the service that we actually attended (the rest was spent chasing Matilda around the lobby with the rest of the restless children), and I'm so thankful we did because those lyrics are lovely and clear about the hope of Christ. It made my Easter complete, even without the sermon that I missed while passing out Cheerios and distracting Matilda from tripping on all the tulle I forced her into and falling down the stairs.
We are so thankful for wonderful family and friends who celebrated Easter with us, a great church community, and the Easter promise of new life.
...there in the ground, His body lay
light of the world by darkness slain.
then bursting forth in glorious day,
out of the grave he rose again...
