Happy Easter!!

The fam and I are exhausted today after what was a very fun Easter!! I just recently started playing keyboards for church services again. I wasn't able to go to rehearsal the day before so I was pretty nervous Easter morning. I know it's silly, but I am just NOT a performer. I love music, but I prefer to keep it to myself. It really takes a lot for me to perform for others. I just don't have a lot of confidence. HOWEVER; I do feel really good about being a faithful servant to the Lord in surrendering my own pride to help out. It hasn't been easy, but it has been surprisingly fun although scary!! Autumn tagged along with me for the early morning service because she did not want her dad to be in charge of doing her hair. :) So she opted to sit through the adult service and wait for her dad and brother to show for second service before going to Sunday School. lol. Heaven forbid her dad do her hair... :) Although we did make it look extra cute for Easter.
After church we went to my mom and dads house for Easter lunch and a Easter egg hunt for the grand kids. Props to my mom and dad for ALWAYS going out of their way to make each holiday a special time for my kids. They have always treated Autumn and Takoda the same as their "real" grand kids. I know that Autumn and Takoda always feel at home with them. My mom had put together cute little baskets for the kids, and then my dad hid Easter eggs full of CASH throughout the house!!! All the eggs had a dollar bill inside. There were a few gold eggs that were hid a bit harder then the others that were "jackpots." My sisters son Nick found the hardest hid egg, it had a $20 inside!! The other Gold eggs had either a $10 or a $5 in them. The kids are getting older now and appreciate the cash! (GameStop here we come!!)
It was so much fun watching the kids tear through the house in hopes of fortune. lol. As you can see from the above picture, our kids made out like bandits! Thanks Nana and Papa for all the thoughtfulness and love you put into each egg! My mom also made an adorable Easter cake for my older sister Amber (Easter fell on her birthday this year) Happy Birthday Amber!!

Weren't the kids so cute!! Forgive the candidness of these pics there was a lot of movement going on and it was hard to get them to stay still!!

The night before we colored 36 Easter eggs. It was a lot of work, but really fun!!

Just to wrap things up....I love Easter. It is really the foundation of our faith. That our God is so powerful, and so amazing. The resurrection of Christ was the sealing of the deal. He really was God! Not just a teacher, prophet, or friend. He said He would and He did. He is risen!! It is so assuring knowing that we have such an amazing God! But it's not just that, there is something about winter being over, and it being the start of spring. I just love the NW this time of year... Anyways to all my friends and family, Happy Easter from the Fitzgeralds!!!

Newport with my hubby.

So this last weekend Kevin and I went to the Oregon Coast for some romantic time together. We very seldom have a weekend off without the kids (they were both with their moms). Normally we would have headed to Seaside or Cannon beach, but this time we headed a little more south to Newport. We had a such a great time. We really needed some alone time together to de-stress, and Newport was so peaceful! I am so thankful I have him to share all these moments with. We have grown so accustomed to having each other by our side. God really knew what he was doing when he offered us a partnership in marriage. What would life be without someone to share your ups and downs? Good plan God. I concur! :) I also have to add a big thank you to God for letting us have an absolutely beautiful day full of sunshine at the coast. (All you NW people now what the Oregon coast can be like.)

Ahhhh! Aren't we cute! lol. This was our first night there. We had just eaten a yummy dinner and then walked down onto the beach to catch this beautiful sunset! You know it is not easy taking pictures of yourself on a windy beach! lol. It was nice to catch such a special moment. We don't have many pictures of us because I am usually like "No, I'm too fat." Or, "Don't take my picture!!!!" lol. I finally gave in this trip because I was realizing that our children were eventually going to end up not having any pictures of the two of us together when we were still sort of young and attractive. :) Here are some pic's of the sunset that night and the view from our hotel room.

It was a beautiful night!!!

These Sea Lions were just kickin it beneath the dock down on the historic bayfront. Too cool! We were really excited to see wild marine life everywhere. I highly recommend a Newport trip for those of you that have children. It was really cool. I can't wait to bring our kids here.

The next morning provided lots of sunshine!!! Yea Newport!! We were so excited!! We were ready for a big day. First stop was The Oregon Coast Aquarium. Here are the highlights:

After the Aquarium we went to the Yaquina Head Lighthouse and Tide Pools. Here are the highlights from that.

The Lighthouse was so Awesome! Kevin was a little freaked at first, but he made it all the way to the top. I am not afraid of heights at all but the spirally stairs made my legs feel like jello. It was crazy. We were dizzy when we were done but it was so cool.

I think our favorite part of Newport was all the tide pools. We spent a lot of time exploring around in all of them. This was definitely the biggest area of tide pools I had ever been too. It was just brimming with life.

Kevin and I had a ball discovering all the sea life. Isn't he cute? I think I'll keep him! :)

We really had a blast on our romantic get-a-way. We definitely did NOT want to come home. :) I am just so thankful that the Lord has given us enough provisions to not only take care of our family, but to provide for some wonderful memories as well. I can't wait until our next road trip.