From Easter egg hunts with firetrucks to egg dying and fancy dresses, it’s safe to say that it was an eventful Easter weekend. Our time was filled with family and friends and more than our fair share of chocolate.

Holidays have always been special but there is something priceless about seeing them through the eyes of a child. Experiencing firsts with Quinn is just the best. She is at such a a fun stage. Then again, each stage brings new joys (along with its fair share of new challenges as well!).

Having a toddler is helping (read: forcing) me to be OK with messes. Believe it or not, some days I have even begun to embrace them. I have to remind myself that I won’t remember how clean my house was, but I will remember the memories that we made within its walls.

As we died Easter eggs with Quinn for the first time, I tried to focus more on the memory making and less on the mess-making. But boy is that hard sometimes. As Quinn’s belly laughs echoed throughout the house, I was reminded of how fleeting such moments can be. So for now, I’ll soak up the giggles, the tears, the chaos and the mess.

This year both of our families joined us at our church for Easter service, which was something new and really special! Since Sunday’s sermon, I have been reflecting on the promise that Easter brings. Sometimes the weight of our world can seem heavy and hope seems distant.  But the reality is that hope is not circumstantial. Hope was and is found in an empty tomb and a resurrected Jesus. Not just because he did what he said he would do (though that is pretty powerful and epic) but because of why he did it. He did it for me. For you. That we might have hope. Hope that doesn’t ebb and flow with the seasons, but a hope that is lasting, that is eternal and rooted not in circumstances but in truth.

I hope that you had an amazing Easter and that the hope that it brought doesn’t disappear with the last of your Easter candy, but that it fills your heart and your home throughout the year.