Happy Easter to you all! Easter to me represents one of the most important holidays. I can't stress enough to those around me why it's so important. OUR KING HAS RISEN! What more could anyone ask for? NOTHING!

Normally when I blog, I blog about the fun stuff I do.. the things I've made.. what the kids have been up to. I normally don't talk about the disappointment I some times feel when it comes to family. But today I do want to share something that lies heavy on my heart. I don't want to come off sounding like a BRAT either...

When I was growing up we did NOT have Christ in our home. PERIOD. However our family got together on the holidays and got a long for the most part. I remembered the Easter Baskets... the cupcakes my gram would make.. spending time with my cousins and searching for Easter Eggs... Seemed my cousins were always the lucky ones to get the ones with MONEY.. LOL LOL..and I'll never forget the year my older sister ATE my WHITE BUNNY!!! she snuck it and ATE IT!!! CREEP!! LOL LOL!!

Now that I'm older and I have found Christ... Easter means something more.. and something different... He died on that Cross to give me.. and who ever else wants it.. eternal life! There is NO greater gift in this world!

Here's where my human feelings come in to play.. Eight years ago.. we bought our home and I was SUPER excited to invite the family to my house for Easter! We finally worked hard to buy our home. Hubby and I BOTH worked hard. We never had to live with our parents as his siblings did... we saved and worked on becoming debt free while still living on our own. I was so proud of hubby and his accomplishments for us... I decided that first Easter I wanted EVERYONE to come to our home and have a great dinner with us and an Easter egg hunt.

I invited family.. and the words that came out of my MIL mouth brought me to almost tears "Why would you want to do a dinner.. we never do dinners on Easter that is our nap day"...My heart sank... my dear fellow blog readers.. she WHINED about this dinner for almost two weeks every time I talked to her. Telling me it wasn't her tradition.. they never did this.... etc.. She really broke my heart.. and made me feel that my home wasn't good enough.. and I shouldn't have not even bothered to ask. More heartbreaking is they are suppose to be the example of Christian Love for their family. In the years that have passed I have come to realize that my in-laws church family is more near and dear to them then her children's family. ( at least this son's)...

When they "stop by" .. because they never visit... I ALWAYS hear my mil say.. "oh we got to go.. we have to hurry..." but it's always under her breath a couple times before she comes out and says it... Does she not think I don't hear it?? Does she not realize that the last two times she stopped she's been this way? The ONLY time they stay for any length is on Christmas.... and to me that feels like an "obligation" to them.

It's sad when they will drive 9 hours one way to visit two grandkids and a brother for three days... and not stop and spend an hour with grand kids that live 15 minutes away. In truth they spend more time with grandkids in three states away then they do with grandkids 15 minutes away. They just don't know my kids.. PERIOD! and don't try!

Sooo this Easter.. it's dinner alone with my sole family. I have given up inviting family to my home because in truth... to them it's not good enough. I don't sit in a million dollar home and because my hubby is a blue collar worker... well... to them.. he'll never make it anywhere in life... Little do they know if they opened their eyes... they would actually see how far he has come! But instead their focus is on their church family... because let's face it... because if you sit on a church pew every week.. that makes you a Christian... RIGHT??? Forget the outreach and living by example... RIGHT?...

So this Easter... spend time with your family.. LOVE them.. and TELL them... our lives are GIFTS... When the day comes when my children have families.. and loved ones.. they will always know that our doors will be open ANYTIME... and we will always come together if possible!! My heart aches for those who can't see what they have right in front of their faces! I believe each of us is God's gift to one another!