One + One = FOUR: Happy Easter

We have had a fantastic weekend! After a sort of yucky week last week, the past three days have been so good. I'm not sure what was up with Syd last week, but I'm pretty sure she's teething, and not at all happy about it. From Monday until Thursday, she was exceptionally fussy compared to her normal, cheerful self. It was hard on me, especially when she was unconsolable (which she was, several times). And on top of that, Rob had to go out of town for two days so Sydney & I were on our own to get through it. By Thursday, I was beat. I had really wanted to have some good times with the Lord during Holy Week, but to be honest, I hardly thought about Easter at all.
Friday was a new day though. The weather here was beautiful (I was excited that I finally got to wear a tank top, skirt & flip flops! Yay summer!). Friday night we met some friends at Centennial park for a picnic dinner, and I got even more excited about summer. Saturday we took Sydney to our neighborhood Easter Egg Hunt and Rob & I got to have a date night. Date night is a lot different now that we're parents, but we had a blast hitting softballs at the batting cages after dinner, and capped off our evening out grocery shopping at Walmart... exciting, huh? Seriously, it was a lot of fun!
And today was Easter! Easter has never really been a "favorite" holiday of mine, but I think it might be now. Everything looks different through the "mom lens", and I don't think I've ever considered Easter the way I have these past few days.
Friday morning, I put Sydney down for a nap and she started fussing about five minutes in. Before I could even be frustrated, I started praying (selfishly, I should add) that God would take away whatever had been making her cry because I couldn't take it anymore. As I prayed, it hit me that God watched his Son suffer far greater as he carried the cross up to Golgotha. In that moment, I was struck by the heaviness of what Good Friday represents, but also overwhelmed by God's love for me. I literally ran to Sydney's room in tears and scooped her up to soothe her crying, realizing that God loves us both so much more than I had ever experienced. I understood just a sliver what is like for a parent when their child is hurting- it's PAINFUL! I can't fathom watching Sydney suffer anything, and definitely not as the consequence for someone else's actions. It's hard to explain all that was going through my mind and heart Friday morning, but it stuck with me the rest of the weekend and I've been feeling true joy over the resurrection of Christ and my salvation ever since. The sunshine and daffodils were just an added bonus.