CHRIST IS RISEN FROM THE DEAD!

...and so has my blog. Not quite the same, though..
We had a wonderful Pascha! Never has the glory of Christ's resurrection been so real to me until participating in Orthodox Holy Week and Pascha. This year was unique in that we got to share it and see it through the eyes of our one year old. He loved participating in all the Holy Week services and had so much fun at the late night Pascha service. He stayed awake the entire time! Wide awake, talking, pointing, imitating the Priest. The drive home at 4:30 a.m. put him to sleep but he was still up by 7:30. Needless to say, we were pretty sleepy during the church potluck on Sunday. But it didn't slow Johnny down. We were fortunate to have Johnny's godparents and their daughter in town for the weekend so he got to spend time with his Uncle Nate and Aunt Annie. The only thing missing from our celebrations was our dear friends and precious goddaughters. They moved this past March way too far away and we miss them sorely.
Here are some pictures from our Pascha..
..as you can see I made Pascha bread and cheese for the first time this year. They were delicious. I got the recipe from a fellow blogger. (thanks, Elizabeth!)

..here's Johnny asleep on the way home (still holding his candle) and on Sunday, jumping in the bounce house they had at Church. So fun!

Since it has been some time since I last posted, I thought I'd give a little update on our comings and goings. There's been a lot of them. As I mentioned, our good friends, Greg and Julie, moved. They had been housesitting for friends living overseas until March, when Greg got a job out of state which required them to move. To make a long story short, we moved into the house they were watching. We figured it would provide us an opportunity to save up some money, pay off some debt and enjoy the beautiful city of Carlsbad. We will only be here a few more months but we are enjoying it. Johnny loves having a nice, kid friendly yard and best of all, a DOG! Here he is with his new best friend..

March was a very busy and fun month for us. Evan and I celebrated our seventh anniversary and we set out on our first real roatrip/vacation since having Johnny. Our main destination was Sacramento where we would meet up with my family to see my little brother graduate from the California Highway Patrol Academy. We proudly watched Joe get his badge and enjoyed being with family. If you ever get pulled over while driving in East L.A and out steps a 6'9" giant of a cop, be thankful because you are about to meet a very kind and genuine man (he still might write you a ticket, though). We visited other family and friends all the along the way. On the way home, we spent a night in Monterey and attended Liturgy at a church in Salinas where our first Priest now serves. It was wonderful to see him and to visit a Greek Orthodox Church again. (He is one of the reasons we named our son John.)
Here are pictures from our little trip, I'll let them speak for themselves..








As far as everyday life goes, we feel very blessed. I had my ultra sound and a healthy baby is growing and thriving. We aren't finding out who's in there this time but I was thankful to see that beautiful heart beating and adorable profile. Johnny is changing and growing so much, too! Everyday he cracks me up and surprises me with how much he is learning. We can actually have conversations now and I love hearing his take on things. I can't believe how much life I've experienced with Evan by my side and I am full of excitement and hope for what's to come.