Easter Sunday

We attend a fairly large church - we average about 1400 or so in worship each week and we do not have enough parking for the large number of folks who come to worship on Easter . . so we offer a shuttle service. We offered parking and shuttle service from a local city park so that is where I parked and rode to church on one of the buses. My wonderful driver was Jim. He is such a nice man!! I think it is so neat that our van drivers are church members . . .Jim has a very important job by day - saving lives . . .but is willing to drive a van on Easter Sunday.
Our church is always beautiful (to me) but on Easter Sunday it is spectacular. We have some incredibly talented folks in our congregation. The altar flowers were beautiful!!! You can't see it in this picture but that is a cross (maybe wrought iron) and those are white flowers all around and behind. I heard that the church member who was the lead flower person for Easter Sunday had been working on this idea for months. The flower committee's motto is Flowers for the glory of God.

The early service starts at 8:45 . . I took this picture at 8:30 just so you could see how crowded it was already. Look at our pew - makes me smile . . .Laura and Dona and Gary and Glenn and Lauren and her mother, Ann. I was sitting in the chair in the aisle. That is Mark in the front right corner. He was sitting on the row in front of us. We were surrounded by family and friends on Easter Sunday morning. That is such a good feeling.

The cross was draped in white. He is risen - He is risen indeed!! On Friday night during the Good Friday service of darkness, the cross is draped in black. I love walking in on Easter Sunday to a sanctuary filled with light.

We went to Mark's momma's after church and Sunday School. She had her table and dining room decorated for Easter.

There was candy in little candy dishes amongst all the decorations. The eggs right behind that candy are "blown" eggs that Mark and George (and their momma!!) made when they were little boys. Every year I am amazed that those eggs have survived another year.

She acquired these cute rabbits from a store in Nashville where our friend, Jan works.

We didn't take any pictures at the flower cross this year but I was able to snap a few before lunch. Here is a good one of Glenn and Laura and Lauren.

I think I caught Mark in mid-sentence in this one.

Let's see . . pound cake and bunny cookies and deviled eggs (I didn't make the cute chicken deviled eggs this year . . .just regular). I see black and green olives which kept disappearing way before lunch and chocolate coconut nests with jelly bean eggs.

I waited so long to post that I've forgotten what is in all these bowls. I bought a honey baked ham and Mark's mother had turkey. She made a sweet and sour green bean and artichoke dish. I did mac and cheese and oriental slaw. Of course, we had an Easter feast.

We invited Lauren's mom and brother to eat with us which was really nice because George and Alice and Grace were in Clopton so we would have had a small group otherwise. I love that we make a "big deal" on holidays. I don't always love it in the planning and cooking stage but I love that we have made many memories!!