Love So Amazing

We love Easter.  Actually, the whole Lenten Season, too.  We go to Tampa Covenant Church and they are crazy good at setting the mood for the Season... whether it's the sermons or just the change in the atmosphere within the sanctuary itself, it's all good.  This morning, the cross was "covered" with these flower/butterfly things, and it just looked so cool.  Certainly church is not about "looking cool" but I really love the symbolism...

So, weird year.  I was supposed to work this weekend, but my good friend, ASHLIE, agreed to cover for me if the hospital census allowed.  We had Plan A, and Plan B for our Easter Celebration.  SO VERY HAPPY that we got to go with Plan B, which gave me Saturday night off work!  Thank you so much, Ashlie. 

Well, we wouldn't be McGregor's if we didn't do things WEIRD.  So Plan A AND Plan B involved this:

Dinner Saturday Night at Ti'Juana Flats.  Of course.  Who else goes out for Mexican the day BEFORE EASTER for their Easter Dinner?  Ok, they were going to be closed on Sunday... Uncle Steve was kind enough to join us for the fun.  Which we all loved.  And Mom is in Israel, so no ham or macaroni and cheese.  Rats.  Might could have made it myself, but work, right?  I mean, I had to actually WORK, not that it was too much work.  Well, that too.  We miss my parents!

Next, Ryan threw in Plan C, which was "how about we have Breakfast Casserole tomorrow.... since you are home and all..."  So off to the store Carly and I went, then had some fun Mother/Daughter Bonding. 

HA!  Not a fan of cooking, and I certainly do NOT bake.  And Carly loves it.  She needs to go live with her Aunt Rochel until she's about 18.  But here are my feable attempts at teaching Carly a few things in the kitchen.  Most of my "cooking" is in the craft realm.  Much more comfortable....

See?  Plaster frames.  This is what we were doing when Ryan came up with Plan C.  Craft kits.  So much MORE fun than casseroles.  And really more my speed.

But I tried.  You know, for Carly's sake. 

Then, HER idea (and this is where I know she's my daughter for real.  Because I never even saw her until she was 3 hours old, so I've always kind of wondered.  Traumatic emergency C-section.  Click HERE for the story.  Ha!  Kidding!)  She decided it would be most fun to get the table "organized" (ahhh, love it when she speaks my language!) and made cards for everyone! 

And we put out the chocolate.  Which we've been planning for 6 weeks to eat for breakfast.  The whole family chose to give up desserts for Lent.  It's been HORRIFYING for all of us (well, Ben not so much) so we are REALLY happy that sacrifice is over:)  Note the broken cookie on Carly's plate... they made those in school on Thursday, and she carried it around in her backpack, saving it until TODAY!  Also, beside her plate are the churros Uncle Steve gave them last night.  She did share with her brother:)  And after Carly went to bed, I made a card for HER. 

After a great service at church... recycled an Easter outfit from last year since I didn't feel like wearing scrubs. 

And this photo was taken meer minutes after Ben handed Eli an egg and Eli said, "BALL!" and threw it at the man sitting in front of us.  You know, during communion.  Anyways, there's ELI and buddy Olivia.  She was born on our anniversary.  Complete doll.  Both of them... look at those arms.  

"Hey, since he's crawling away, do you think you could crop him OUT of my picture?"

Anything for you, Sweet Cheeks!  Olivia reminds me SO MUCH of Torrey, so it's pretty fun to get to see our 14 year old girl little again!  And tell me that picture doesn't make you smile! 

The Cousins.  Should have had Rochel's belly in there, too! 

And finally.  I leave you with this....

When I survey the wondrous cross
on which the Prince of Glory died;

my richest gain I count but loss,

and pour contempt on all my pride.

 

Forbid it, Lord, that I should boast,

save in the death of Christ, my God;

all the vain things that charm me most,

I sacrifice them to his blood.

See, from his head, his hands, his feet,

sorrow and love flow mingled down.

Did e'er such love and sorrow meet,

or thorns compose so rich a crown.

Were the whole realm of nature mine,

that were an offering far too small;

love so amazing, so divine,

demands my soul, my life, my all.

Easter Header

We've been "enjoying" the Easter Season around here... we are currently "celebrating" Lent with our kids as we try to impress on them the magnitude of Christ's incredible sacrifice for us.  Such an odd way to put it, CELEBRATING LENT.  Not really a time of celebration, more of a time of melancholy reflection and a time of forcing ourselves to sacrifice.  So insignificant in light of what HE did for us, but a small glimmer, I guess.  Very small.  I need these reminders of how unworthy I am, and who I am in Him.  He has redeemed me.  It has been so cool watching our kids "get it" more and more each year, the older they get.  Love that.

I guess everyone is well aware by now that my parents live in Israel for about half the year.  The scene above is what they see each morning as they walk out of their apartment door.  An empty tomb.  Christ's empty tomb.  Incredible.  They give tours there, and serve communion to hundreds of people each day.  Right.  Outside.  This.  Empty.  Tomb. 

Aside from the obvious part of why this verse is so cool (Duh, "He is Risen"), I just LOVE the last 3 words.  "As He said".  I love the God who keeps His promises.  I love that He keeps His promises to ME.  Unworthy me. 

The Struggle

No pictures.  If you are a parent, you will be forgiving by the time I get to the end of this. 

So, true story:

My Princess (We'll call her Princess A) spent some time with a friend (who we will call Princess B).  With me?  All was going well, until Princess B decided it would be REALLY cool to be super mean to Princess A, seeing how Princess B was holding court with Princesses C, D, E, F, G, and H.  Of course, Princess A, tenderhearted lass that she is, was heart broken.  She tried everything she could think of to get Princess B to be nice.  Princess C did as well.  Princess E even said, "Why can't we ALL just be friends?!?!?!".  Finally, the Queen (um, that would be ME.  My blog.) noticed it was time to head for greener pastures (um, our house).  Upon travelling to the homeland, the Queen noticed tears in her rear-view mirror.  The sad story spilled out.  Seeing this as a Teachable Moment, the Queen graciously directed her daughter towards kind thoughts, forgiveness, and love.  Yet inside, the Queen's heart was slowly rotating down a deep, dark tunnel of Unforgiveness. 

I hate that story.  I mean, Carly watched the Chipmunk Movie and was over it.  Not so, for her mother.  As a parent, you want to protect your child from Mean Girls.  You want them to NEVER be the Mean Girl, and if you are a McGregor?  Then you kindly share the consequences with them if you ever find out that THEY are the Mean Girl.  So, by 10pm, Ryan and I had looked at real estate in Oregon and our house is on the market.  Ok, kidding.  Ryan told me I was being irrational.  Plus, he had just installed a new garbage disposal for me and figured we have AT LEAST 3 years on that, so "can't we stay here until then???". 

There's a small amount of history with Princess B.  This isn't the first time we've seen this behavior.  And to say that we are tired of it, tired of exposing OUR Princess to such meanness, is an understatement.  So we prayed about it.  You know, asked God for direction.  A clear understanding of how we should handle what has become a perpetual problem.  How to protect Carly's innocence (Princess B is WAY more "mature" than any 8 year old I've even seen). Even asked him to make us completely aware if Carly is ever The One being mean.  I feel asleep last night dreaming of the Oregon Coast.

And was promptly awakened by a horrible nightmare.  So horrible, I can't even say it.  But you know what I did hear?  God saying, "I love Princess B just as much as I love Carly". 

I hate this story.

Then I started arguing:
"Um, no you don't"
"Yes, I do"
"Nope.  You don't"
"Yes, I do"
"Can't possibly.  Carly loves you.  B doesn't even KNOW you"
"I know her.  I love them both."
"You can't"
"Yes, I can"
"No, you can't."
"Yes, I can."
(I will promise you, this went on for a good 1/2 hour... then came...)
"This morning when Carly headed down the aisle to take communion and you whispered in her ear, "He did this for you"?  You SHOULD have said, "He did this for you AND Princess B". 

I guess there wasn't anything else to say after that. 

I was up a little longer asking for forgiveness.  I hate doing that, especially when it involves a bratty, selfish girl.  I hate it when I'M the bratty, selfish girl.  Thankfully, He is forgiving.  Thankfully, when He says "Yes I can", He means it. 

So, this morning?  First "Prayer Request" out of Carly's mouth during devotions?  "Princess B".  With a little sheepish grin. 

Gasparilla Half

Ryan completed the Gasparilla Half Marathon this morning, and got his BEST time ever!  He finished in 2:33:59!  The kids and I got up at 4am and headed to downtown Tampa with him!  Trust me, my tired kids were even MORE tired of being part of the Over-Achieving-McGregor-Clan after their big weekend of early starts and races!  HA!  It was fun to watch him, and he did SO GREAT... we are VERY proud of him!

Arriving at the Convention Center... 2 VERY Sleepy-Peeps! 

Early morning shot of Tampa General Hospital... Great reflection in the water!

A benefit for being up so early.... Great sunrise!  This is after the race started, and while we were waiting to see Ryan at mile 6.7... the kids had eaten breakfast, so they are smiling!

Here he comes, with his arms up!  Half way done!

There was a full marathon going on at the same time, and this guy was the winner... he finised BEFORE Ryan finished the HALF!  Take a guess where he's from... Here's a clue, he finished FIRST!  At the Expo, they sell running shirts that say, "In my mind, I am a Kenyan".  No kidding.  Ok, he's from Kenya.  But before you think he did ALL GREAT, he finished about 5 minutes slower than his LAST marathon.  Last week. 

And OUR man of the hour, crossing over the finish!  (Keep in mind that Ryan crossed the START line 1 minute and 40 seconds into the race, so his actual time is FASTER than the clock time here).  So proud of him!

You can see the Finish line over Ryan's right shoulder! 

Congrats, RYAN!!!

Championship Swim Meet

Courage.  That's what we saw today in Ben, at the Seniors Championship Meet in Orlando.  We were so proud of him, and so overwhelmed watching him walk around the GIANT pool area surrounded by HUGE 15-16 year olds!  HUGE.  He looked so little.  And so unafraid!  He held his own, and afterwards said to us (with a little trembling in his voice!), "I'm pretty sure I was the littlest one there today!"... I asked him if he was scared, and he didn't say anything... then he finally said, "Umm, a little bit, when I was first on the block".  Wow.  Ryan and I were definately shaking in our boots for him! You can click HERE for pictures...  Rochel took pictures for me, and so did my brother, but we haven't seen his yet.  I was making a video:) 

Ben got his 2nd best time for his portion of the 400free Relay they did... 1:17 (not sure of the hundreth seconds!)

Just another glimpse of the impressive pool with the high dives over the 17 foot deep pool.  Ben was warming up in the lane closest to the diving boards.

Looking incredibly SMALL prior to the start of the relay!!  Can you see "Little Ben" surrounded by his 3 LARGE teammates?!!! They are wearing white caps... Ben also got a blue cap prior to going that has our swim team logo and says "Championship Team".  He can wear that cap at all the swim meets now!  The coach gave them plain white ones to wear for their relay, and they decorated them with Sharpie markers and got some of the Olympic swimmers that were competing also, to autograph them! 

Heading for lunch after the big race!  I turn around in the car and see Carly has decorated herself.  With her bagel wrapper from breakfast, and calmly sipping on her iced coffee! Mmmmmmm.

Our OWN Champion wasn't up for anymore pictures at lunch, so we took some of this cutie!  We were hoping for some funny Lemon Pictures, but he didn't make any!  He was happy to be fed by Uncle Ryan, though!  Eli was SO good at the meet!  No small feat, considering there were tons of people, not much room for his stroller, crazy steamy around the pool, and it was right before lunch time!  He liked watching the swimmers go back and forth and splash!

(photo from my cell phone...) This is the shirt Ryan bought for Ben.  They were heat pressing them on the pool deck!  They put a star by Ben's name:)

So PROUD of you Ben!

Determination Pays Off

Carly was THRILLED to get a turn ringing the bell at church last Sunday to call everyone to worship... I was THRILLED to have my camera in my purse:)  She's been pretty DETERMINED to ring it ever since she SAW it, and certainly since her BROTHER got to be the First Official Bell Ringer.  Here she is going to town with the help of our friend and one of the Elders, John Dubois.  They had to tie the bell rope up and use this pole to pull it... somehow a rope hanging down with a great big bell on the end of it would be WAY too tempting for the kids! 

good thing she had help!  Ummm, notice the "noose" on the end of the rope.... as we were heading back into church, one of the ushers said, "We take church disciple very seriously here..."

And in completely unrelated news...

Ben was asked to be on the Championship Team with the Senior boys on the swim team.  Big honor.  He's going to swim in a freestyle relay with them next weekend in Orlando.  He will do a 100 Free for his portion of the relay.  Remember his GREAT time a couple of weekends ago?  Looks like all that hard work and determination paid off:) He got his shirt today, and the team had a party for all the kids going to Junior Olympics (it's tomorrow) and the Senior Championship meet.  We are excited for him, especially since he was feeling bummed not to get to compete at JO.  So, Ryan would like to know if his mother will be coming down next weekend????  You DID say you would come down to see your Oldest Grandson compete at the Junior Olympics, and this might be an UPGRADE.  So, feel free to email us your flight info...  Ok... kidding.  We try not to make people go to swim meets with us because they are somewhat tedious:)  So, that's what the McGregor Duo has been up to this week...

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This header was inspired by Ben and the Wednesday night class at church.  That I haven't been able to attend because of work.  But I've been reading the book.  And getting alot out of it.

Anyways, chapter 6 is about Humility.  And there's a section about how we accomplish things because of the grace of God.  Which I could rattle off to you verbatim since I was a little kid, but did I really GET that, or just SAY it?  I spent some time thinking about it.  Yup, I need to work on that.  Rats.  Anyways, this verse really SHOUTED to me:

"But  by the Grace of God, I am what I am,

and His Grace to me was not without effect.

No, I worked harder than all of them

~ yet not I, but the Grace of God that was with me."

I Corinthians 15:10

So it occurs to me, I really need to be focussing on the "yet not I" part of that, and forget the "I worked harder than all of them" part.  I tend to ONLY remember that part, and NOT how "I" accomplished whatever it is...  

"... all that we have accomplished YOU have done for us"

Isaiah 26:12

It is definately easier for me to try and impress it on my kids (ie, at a swim meet!) than it is for me to actually practice in my own life.  Hmmm, always thankful for the gentle reminders of my deficiencies!  Ha! 

Anyways, you get why I picked the verse... and the picture is from last week's swim meet and it is just an example of an accomplishment... seriously, I could have put the finish line of the marathon, by beautiful children, my job, my marriage, or any number of accomplishments I think "I" did... with the reminder that it wasn't ME, it was HIM.   I'm happy to have a reminder, because I NEED reminders.  Lots of reminders.