Family Pics

We took advantage of the Budapest Cherry Blossom Festival to take some spontaneous family pics. Turns out, there was only one cherry blossom tree, but whatever. Still some nice scenery and good place for pictures!

Classic Logan...what will happen if I step in the stream of water?

We tried to hide Chelsea's cast, but now it looks like she only has one arm in all of the pictures. Lol. 

Love my fam!

Como: The Rest

 After the cooking class, we still had 24 hrs+ of kid free time in Como. Varenna is beautiful and we enjoyed leisurely walks along the lake, taking in all the beauty along the way.

Saturday, we took a ferry ride across the lake to Bellagio. Bellagio is beautiful as well, full of cobblestone, store lined, narrow staircases leading from the shore up into the hills. 

In the wee hours of Sunday morning, we drove back to Milan to catch our flight home, refreshed and recharged. Perfect weekend getaway!

Cooking in Como

A few weeks ago, Larry and I had the great privilege to get away for a weekend. It is hard for me to leave the kids, but oh so worth it for time alone with my man! It took a team to pull it off - my sweet housekeeper came over at 3:45 am Friday morning because we had a 6 am flight. Paul and Erin relieved her on Friday afternoon and kept the troops until Sunday morning. Such a blessing!

I have to stop here and reflect on how we met Paul and Erin in the first place. Several years ago, we were asked to host summer interns for Second Baptist Church in Houston. We had 2 interns over 2 different summers. Our second intern, Michelle, lived with us when we found out that we were moving to Budapest. A year after we arrived, she emailed us saying that a college friend of hers was moving to Budapest. That was sweet Natalie, who poured herself into our kids for the year she was in Hungary. Natalie introduced us to Paul and Erin.  I love looking back and seeing how God paved the road way back before we would've ever dreamed of moving to Hungary!

Back to the trip - so, we left super early on a Friday morning and flew to Milan. There, we rented a car and drove to Varenna, a little town on Lake Como. Our first stop was an Italian cooking class in a tiny village of 81 people in the hills above Varenna. 

Ristorante Il Caminetto

We were the only students in the class -what a treat! Chef Moreno was the kindest, most hospitable man and we had the best time. We learned to make fresh pasta, risotto, sauces, lamb chops and more. Moreno fed us until we thought we would never eat again. 

Larry working on fresh pasta under the watchful eye of Chef Moreno

Thank you, Moreno, for a wonderful start to our weekend!

A Hunting We Will Go

As usual, I am so behind. I still haven't finished Paris blogging, or Israel for that matter. We've also been to Italy and Sweden since then...what a crazy blessed life this is. Someone told me yesterday that they can't believe how much we travel. I can't either...lately is it pack, unpack, repack. :) We know our time here is limited, and it is certainly cheaper and easier to see Europe while living here than to try to fly over from the US. So, we go. We take it in. We make memories as a family. 

For now, I will continue the Easter theme....we had a last minute Easter egg hunt last week before we left for Stockholm. It happened to be the afternoon following Sports Day at school. When it was time to hunt, Cade was still dressed, Chelsea had changed her shirt but not her shorts, and Logan was halfway in pajamas. Such is life with 3. :)

Cade is really into soccer shirts...this one is from Turkey. 

We assigned each child a color for their hunt....best idea ever. Thank you, Pinterest. 

He was skeptical at first, but quickly got in on the action.

I better taste this just in case it is candy.

Aha...here is the candy!!

He is Risen!

Burial of Jesus - the Garden Tomb

Care of the Body of Jesus

31 Then the Jews, because it was the day of preparation, so that the bodies would not remain on the cross on the Sabbath ([g]for that Sabbath was a high day), asked Pilate that their legs might be broken, and that they might be taken away. 32 So the soldiers came, and broke the legs of the first man and of the other who was crucified with Him; 33 but coming to Jesus, when they saw that He was already dead, they did not break His legs. 34 But one of the soldiers pierced His side with a spear, and immediately blood and water came out.35 And he who has seen has testified, and his testimony is true; and he knows that he is telling the truth, so that you also may believe. 36 For these things came to pass to fulfill the Scripture, “Not a bone of Him shall be [h]broken.” 37 And again another Scripture says, “They shall look on Him whom they pierced.”

Cade and Chelsea examining a sword from the time period.  This was in a hands on village set up in the town of Nazareth - highly recommended for Christians to visit.

 38 After these things Joseph of Arimathea, being a disciple of Jesus, but a secret one for fear of the Jews, asked Pilate that he might take away the body of Jesus; and Pilate granted permission. So he came and took away His body. 39 Nicodemus, who had first come to Him by night, also came, bringing a [i]mixture of myrrh and aloes, about a hundred [j]poundsweight. 40 So they took the body of Jesus and bound it in linen wrappings with the spices, as is the burial custom of the Jews. 

Some believe this is the actual stone that Jesus' body was prepared for burial.  People rub various items on it, I suspect, in an effort to be close to Jesus.

Carey and Chelsea touched it while Logan looked on.

41 Now in the place where He was crucified there was a garden, and in the garden a new tomb in which no one had yet been laid. 42 Therefore because of the Jewish day of preparation, since the tomb was nearby, they laid Jesus there.

As with the crucifixion site, there are at least 2 sites where it is believed He may have been buried.  The one below is called the Garden Tomb was only recently opened to tourism as a possible location (and in fact refers to why this area could actually be Golgotha also -- the place of the crucifixion).  For more details as to why this "may be" the site, visit this link.

Skull Hill - though there has been some erosion, you can see a skull in the rock.  Some of the older pictures show this more clearly.

You can click on the picture to see what this tomb looks like.  This is not a mock up -- it is an actual tomb.  It is unknown if this is the tomb that Jesus was actually buried in.

You can see the groove that the stone would be rolled in to cover the opening.

Here is a stone similar to what was used to cover this tomb's entry.

The Garden Tomb

Good Friday - what's good about it?

Following his arrest, Jesus was put on trial and ultimately was sentenced to death, though Pilate found no fault worthy of death.  

John 19:16-42

New American Standard Bible (NASB)

The Crucifixion

16 So he then handed Him over to them to be crucified.
17 They took Jesus, therefore, and He went out, [a]bearing His own cross, to the place called the Place of a Skull, which is called in [b]Hebrew, Golgotha. 18 There they crucified Him, and with Him two other men, one on either side, and Jesus in between. 19 Pilate also wrote an inscription and put it on the cross. It was written, “JESUS THE NAZARENE, THE KING OF THE JEWS.” 20 Therefore many of the Jews read this inscription, for the place where Jesus was crucified was near the city; and it was written in [c]Hebrew, Latin and in Greek. 21 So the chief priests of the Jews were saying to Pilate, “Do not write, ‘The King of the Jews’; but that He said, ‘I am King of the Jews.’” 22 Pilate answered, “What I have written I have written.”

As with many things in Israel, there is not a consensus exactly where the crucifixion of Christ happened.  And, of course, now even the locations where they believe it may have occurred look nothing at all like what it would have looked like 2000 years ago.  

In this location, multiple religions "share" the site and each goes by cleansing the area after the other religious leaders have been by cleansing it themselves.

Rock formation where it is known that crosses were placed for crucifixion - a relatively common death penalty during the time.  This is the same area that the lady in the picture above is kneeling and praying.

23 Then the soldiers, when they had crucified Jesus, took His outer garments and made four parts, a part to every soldier and also the [d]tunic; now the tunic was seamless, woven [e]in one piece. 24 So they said to one another, “Let us not tear it, but cast lots for it, to decide whose it shall be”; this was to fulfill the Scripture: “They divided My outer garments among them, and for My clothing they cast [f]lots.” 25 Therefore the soldiers did these things.

But standing by the cross of Jesus were His mother, and His mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. 26 When Jesus then saw His mother, and the disciple whom He loved standing nearby, He *said to His mother, “Woman, behold, your son!” 27 Then He *said to the disciple, “Behold, your mother!” From that hour the disciple took her into his own household.

28 After this, Jesus, knowing that all things had already been accomplished, to fulfill the Scripture, *said, “I am thirsty.” 29 A jar full of sour wine was standing there; so they put a sponge full of the sour wine upon a branch of hyssop and brought it up to His mouth.30 Therefore when Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, “It is finished!” And He bowed His head and gave up His spirit.

So why do Christians call this "Good Friday"?  After all, the man we call Savior wasn't able to save Himself -- He was killed.  The Bible is clear -- Jesus, in an act of submission to His Father, allowed Himself to be killed -- as part of God's plan for our salvation.

John 19:11

New American Standard Bible (NASB)

11 Jesus answered, “You would have no authority [a]over Me, unless it had been given you from above; 

Oh and one more thing...the story's not over yet.  Sunday's a coming!