Devoted Hearts
Last weekend, I was a first-time attendee of the Devoted Hearts conference in Rochester. It was a fabulous conference! The speakers, musicians, and drama actors were truly incredible! I was mostly intrigued to attend the conference because of Karen Kingsbury. I've been reading her books for years, ever since Brent read one of her books in college and recommended it. I was extra excited to learn that she is not only a gifted author, but also a talented speaker! I didn't know much about Margaret Feinberg, the other speaker, but I was certainly blessed by her messages. I also recognized the name Mark Schultz, but couldn't remember a song name to associate with him. He lead great worship and shared several of his original songs and I really enjoyed his voice. And, last but not least, a drama duo from Theater for the Thirsty shared two Bible stories in drama/musical form and it was amazing! They write their own dramas, songs, and act/sing themselves. I was very impressed by the Life of David and Story of Esther they shared. The conference experience was heightened by the company. I was able to attend with my friend, Bethany, and several ladies from her church. I came away from the conference with an arsenal of information and am still thinking about how to implement pieces into my life. I will certainly be watching for future Devoted Hearts conferences (every spring)! Community of Wellness Celebration Banquet
As part of Brent's role at work, we get to attend area events hosted by business partners of Think Bank. This past weekend, we attended a Community of Wellness Celebration Banquet. We had a wonderful (plant-based) meal and got to hear two great speakers:
- Tony Buettner, who spoke about Blue Zones, areas of the world where people live longer and healthier lives
- Dr. Hans Diehl, the founder of Complete Health Improvement Program (CHIP) who spoke about the benefits of a plant-based diet.
We were also blessed with the opportunity to sit with a lovely couple from Iowa who have been doing the CHIP program for a few months. It was a very nice night chatting, eating, and learning. I'm not planning to change my entire lifestyle to align with CHIP, but I certainly learned some very good information and tips:)
Belated Easter
On Sunday, we celebrated a belated Easter with my family. It was a beautiful day, so we spent the afternoon lounging on the deck, grilling, and egg hunting with the kids. We were also pleasantly surprised when one our childhood neighbors drove by, pulled over, and greeted us all with big hugs! We all have fond memories of when Bill and Maureen lived next door. Their black lab, Chelsea, would come to our door for summer sausage treats, which was a treat for Bridget and I since we didn't have a dog at the time:)
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| Egg hunting |
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| Easter basket loot! |
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| I LOVE this pic! Such a sweet girl who makes life beautiful! |
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| Sweet, sweet Parker and his momma |
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| Peek-a-boo with Uncle Brent... Not sure Parker is impressed;) |
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| A few days later in a few of her Easter gifts:) |
Spring
It's coming, even if it may not feel like it today.
Snuggles
This spring we've had a pattern of rainy weeks and sunny weekends. One rainy afternoon, Nora fell asleep on the ride home from Rochester. I decided to snuggle by her to read (which resulted in a nap too;)). I just love her precious, sleeping face.
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| Yep, still battling the thumb... |
