Traveling Light

What hope and life because of His sacrifice! 

Justin & I had such a wonderful time celebrating our Savior’s victory over sin on Sunday; it was a blessing to attend both the Good Friday and Sunday morning services at church.  We sang many great hymns of the faith as we reflected on Christ’s death, burial, and resurrection.  Later in the day, Justin also played our keyboard at home and let me pick some of my favorite Easter hymns to sing.  It was a sweet time spent together. 

The weather was lovely and we cherished the opportunity to enjoy the afternoon with family. 

Growing up, my family always had a weekly tradition of “family night” on Friday nights.  Each of us (both kids & parents) would take a turn planning what we wanted to do when our special Friday came around once every six weeks.  The possibilities were endless.  We would do anything from walking to a nearby ice cream shop to watching movies or playing croquet.  It was definitely a highlight of my childhood, and I’m thankful that my parents made it a priority. 

It’s a tradition that has now become a part of the Brown family.  Justin and I have set aside Thursday nights to have family night/date night.  We use the terms somewhat interchangeably.  The meaning is the same.  It’s a night where work, seminary, house cleaning, etc. are set aside and we cherish each moment of the evening– just the two of us. 

Together we recently started reading  a portion of The Diary and Journal of David Brainerd (edited by Jonathan Edwards) each week during family night.  It’s so good; makes us even more excited about missions with each page we read.  We were both nearly in tears last week as he recounted with such obvious earnestness his pursuit of saving faith by works.  For years he made this his utmost pursuit, knowing all the while that it was hopeless.  What joy to hear how Mr. Brainerd finally came to realize that salvation is a free gift and not something he could ever effect in his own life.  I’m so looking forward to reading more.

Emily and I enjoyed a weekend away in San Luis Obispo.  It was fun to be together, and spend time– just the two of us.  We enjoyed the beach, window shopping, sleeping in, and many moments of laughter and sharing memories.  It was also great fun to visit good friends and eat ‘lots of yummy food!  Unfortunately, Emily got sick toward the last part of the trip, but we still managed to make the most of our time. 

I’m so thankful for sisters :)

Here are some of the photos we took on our vacation last month. It was wonderful being able to spend time with Rebecca making memories together. I’m always surprised at how much there is to see in just this one state. I’ve definitely missed the mountains and the forests of northern California since I moved south. Rebecca and I traveled to Yosemite and Sequoia and then across the central valley to the coast. Now I’m not one of those people who feels that norCal and soCal should be separate states, but the difference between them is pretty striking (geographically anyway). If anyone living in (or visiting) California has yet to see Yosemite, you really need to go; it is one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever been.

for ice cream :)

We enjoyed a quick weekend of fun with the fam. So thankful for them!

vanilla bean ice cream with lots of toppings– yum!

kate’s creation