Happy Easter! He is RISEN!

I recently created a blog for the Osan chapter of PWOC (if you want to see it, click the link to the right that says "Osan PWOC"). Anyways, I posted a special devotional today for Easter, and I liked it so much, I decided to share it on my personal blog as well:

"Victory is on the Other Side of Failure"

by Glynnis Whitwer

"The angel said to the women, ‘Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; he has risen, just as he said.’" Matthew 28:5-6a (NIV)

Told by a teacher he was too stupid to learn: Thomas Edison

Fired from his job at a newspaper because he didn’t have good ideas: Walt Disney

A music teacher told him he had no hope as a composer: Beethoven

Falsely accused, arrested, killed: Jesus Christ

The disciples of Jesus must have been shattered that Friday. For three years they followed the man from Nazareth. They watched Him heal the sick, restore sight to the blind, and even raise people from the dead. When Jesus said, "I have come as Light into the world, so that everyone who believes in Me will not remain in darkness" (John 12:46, NAS), they got it. Darkness enveloped the hearts of their countrymen. They needed a "Light."

Twelve ordinary men abandoned everything to follow Jesus: jobs, family, and homes. Not with regret, but with hope. Hope for the promise Jesus offered. Look where it got them that Friday. Good Friday, we call it now. But it was anything but good to them. Jesus was dead – they’d witnessed the crucifixion. Only 11 now, they must have gathered that night after scattering throughout the city. Other followers joined them to mourn the death of the man they loved, and the death of the hope He offered.

On Saturday, they still gathered. No one left - though they could have. They could have packed up their things and put this failed adventure behind them. Back to fishing, back to family, back to normal. But no one left. In spite of what appeared to be complete failure of this new kingdom, everyone stayed. Faithful.

Saturday inched forward to noon, dusk, and then evening. The beauty of the night sky didn’t ease their pain. Perhaps they reminisced some. In hindsight, Jesus wasn’t really what they were expecting. When the prophets of old foretold a king would come to rescue them, they figured it would be someone imposing, with power, maybe with chariots to whip their enemies into submission. Some took longer than others to readjust their expectations. But when God opened their eyes to the beauty of His plan, they bought into it with their lives.

I’m sure troubled thoughts stole their sleep that Saturday night. Finally, in complete exhaustion their tired bodies overtook their worried minds. Sunday morning dawned. I imagine some woke up hoping it was all a bad dream. Then reality settled in, like heavy summer storm clouds. Jesus was still dead.

Two women got ready first and went to the tomb. Expecting to find the body of their beloved Savior, God treated them instead to a display of His power. With a violent earthquake shaking the ground, an angel of the Lord came from heaven, rolled back the stone covering the tomb and sat down on the rock. Hello!

The angel looked at the women, and spoke words that transformed them from hopeless to hope-filled: "Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples: He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee" (Matthew 28:5-7a, NIV).

Can you even imagine the celebration? It had only looked like failure. Instead, it was glorious victory! Hope wasn’t dead. Jesus was alive! The disciples learned a lesson they would never forget: When God is involved, things aren’t always what they seem.

Today we see problems and failures with the same eyes as the disciples. Even knowing that God is able to do things beyond what we can imagine, when we look at a "failure," we often only see an ending. God, however, sees an opportunity for a new beginning. As we celebrate Easter, may that truth nestle itself into our heart. With God all things are possible. He is risen!

Dear Lord, my heart is filled with thanksgiving and praise for You. How can I begin to thank You for sending Jesus, and for His sacrifice for me? Thank You also for the lesson that nothing is too big for You. Help me remember that truth when I’m facing what looks like failure. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

**Taken from the website "Proverbs 31 Ministries"

Oskar vs. The Balloons

Finally got around to posting this; the morning after Shawna's shower, all the balloons we had around the house had begun to fall to the ground. And, well, Oskar got a kick out of it to say the least. Enjoy :)

Come on, Spring--and Shawna's Shower

I need a vacation. A real vacation. I've got spring fever, and Korea keeps throwing snow my way. On top of that, Jonathan is working non-stop so when he IS home, he is exhausted. I miss him. :( But there is no vacation in sight. So if any of you reading this talk to my husband, telling him his wife needs a vacation STAT. Seriously.

In other news, I can now finally share the secret project I've been working on. A few weekends ago, some friends and I hosted a baby shower for our good friend Shawna. And, for that shower, my wonderful friend Nicole suggested the idea of a diaper cake. In all my stupidity, I asked, "Well can't the commissary make one?" Dear, sweet Nicole was gracious enough to show me that a diaper is cake is not, as I believed, a REAL cake. And me, being the way I am, boldly proclaimed: "Well, I can make one of those." Yikes.

Here's a step-by-step look at how I did it:

I started out with a large baby bottle, some diapers, and some rubber bands. I rolled the diapers individually, and then rubber-banded (is that a word) them around the bottle like so:

I continued sticking rolled diapers under the rubber band until I had four rows of diapers (I did four rows because I wanted to have a four-tiered cake.) The finished bottom layer looked like this (and yes, that one rubber band stretched THAT far):

I did the same thing for the next layer, forming it around the top of the same large baby bottle. But, of course, this time, I did only three rows of diapers:

Repeat the same thing for the next layer, only wrap this layer around a second baby bottle. There will be a disconnect between the top two layers and the bottom two layers, but as long as you don't move the cake around too much, it's not a problem:

Here is the fully constructed four-tiered cake (diapers used: 134):

Here is the finished diaper cake, complete with ribbons and pacifiers. I have to give Nicole credit for most of the decorating. She is much more artistically gifted than I am. I pretty much just helped her cut ribbon, glue it, and say "Yeah, that looks good right there."

Here is the food spread for Shawna's shower, complete with the hand-made banner (another Nicole Manning creation):

Another close-up of the food. It all looked so pretty, I didn't want to eat it. But I did anyway because, well, fat kid's gotta eat ;)

The diaper cake sat at the center of the gift table.

All in all, the shower was a success, and I think Shawna really enjoyed it (which is the important thing). I even won the "guess how big Shawna's belly is" game. :)

Look What I Woke Up To This Morning. . .

That's right. . . snow. Stupid, stupid snow.

Beautiful, yes. But Mother Nature does know it's March, right? ;)

Vote for OKB!

I've entered Oskar in the "Most Valuable Pet" Photo Contest--and I think you all should vote for him. These are the prizes:

GRAND PRIZE

• Your pet's photo on a BISSELL box
• $10,000 donation to the pet charity of your choice
• BISSELL pet vacuum or deep cleaner
• $500 "Perfect for you and your pet" shopping spree

SECOND PLACE PRIZE

• Your pet's photo on a BISSELL box
• $5,000 donation to the pet charity of your choice
• BISSELL pet vacuum or deep cleaner
• $250 "Perfect for you and your pet" shopping spree
  

THIRD - FIFTH PLACE PRIZES

• Your pet's photo on a BISSELL box
• $1,000 donation to the pet charity of your choice
• BISSELL pet vacuum or deep cleaner
• $50 "Perfect for you and your pet" shopping spree

If he wins, my "pet charity" of choice is the Midwest Dachshund Rescue, which helps abandoned dachshunds in Wisconsin, Illinois, and Indiana (and other midwestern states, as needed). Here's a link to their site:

MidWest Dachshund Rescue, Inc.

To vote for Oskar, go here:

VOTE FOR OSKAR VON KIDNEY BEAN!

Come on. . . you know you want to :) Thank you to all who participate!!

Killing time. . .

With Jonathan gone, I have way too much time on my hands. But, the good news is, I've finally been able to start playing around with one of my Christmas presents: Adobe Photoshop! It's been two years since I've messed with the program so its like starting from scratch. But I did make two cute pictures the other day:

I just love these girls. This was Stephanie's last "Pilsung!"

And of course, I can't do anything without involving OKB. Jonathan thinks this picture is too girly, but its one of my absolute favorites:

Now, I'm off to work on some other projects: sewing, scrap-booking, and a top-secret project with one Nicole Manning that I'm super excited about. I didn't even know what this project WAS until she explained it to me, and now I can't wait to try it. I'll show you pictures when I can. :)

Good-bye, U.G.

Hello everyone! Since I'm sure it's mainly family who reads this, I'm sure you are all aware of the sad passing of Jonathan's grandfather, U.G., this past weekend. He is currently in the States for the funeral but, because of the outrageous price of the ticket, I couldn't go with him. :( But, we just praise the Lord that at least Jonathan was able to get home to be with his family and say good-bye to his grandfather. U.G., you will be missed. Rest in sweet peace.