Overwhelmed

I was overwhelmed this Easter weekend by the love of my Savior. What a great feeling. To know He chose to die for me (and you!) so that we could have eternal life? And not only that, He left us with everything we need so that we can live our lives here in complete freedom from the sin that so easily entangles. It amazes me that He wanted to do this for me. He didn't have to, but He chose to endure it anyway. What love!

My entire weekend was nearly perfect. Easter Sunday really could not have been more perfect. It was the kind of day I wanted to place in a box, tie with a bow, and place on my shelf to pull out again another day.

Good Friday is always such a great day. We get out of work at 1:00...that extra half-day makes the weekend feel like an eternity! It was gorgeous outside, and I had a lot of errands to run. I spent time on the Upper West Side visiting many grocery stores and markets and other shops. It was the perfect afternoon to be out and about. Then, I went home to cook and clean and get ready for a little party Saturday morning. Having that extra half-day to prepare for it was so wonderful! Friday evening, I went to my church's Good Friday service. It was great, as always, and I saw so many friends there. I love my church family and love that I have somewhere I really belong.

Afterwards, Hillery and I went to a fun restaurant near the church that she had told me about...Dogmatic! It was so fun! It's a sausage place...really good sausages. They come in all different meats and are seasoned really well and they bake them right in the middle of a baguette. Then, you get to choose a sauce for the sausage, a side, and a homemade soda...yes homemade! I chose the turkey sausage with truffle Gruyere sauce, asparagus for my side, and a Grape soda. It was soooo good. I can't wait to hit this place up again!

On Saturday, I held a brunch/jewelry party. I wish I had remembered to pull out my camera! A girl I went to high school with recently started her own jewelry line, so I decided I could host a party for her and introduce her to a whole new group of NYC clients. It wasn't the greatest weekend to hold a party since many people were out of town or had family in town, but we decided to go for it anyway. It turned out fine and Shana did sell some of her jewelry. I made some finger foods for brunch that turned out really good. I made a fruit salad, sausage balls, mini quiches and butter horns. I hadn't made butter horns in years and had forgotten how amazing these are! If you need a new pastry recipe, you should definitely try these out! The ingredients may seem a bit strange, but they turn out oh, so good!

Butter Horns

Rolls:
2 sticks of margarine (I used butter)
12 oz cottage cheese
2 cups flour Dash of Salt

Cream butter & cottage cheese. Add flour & salt. Refrigerate 4 hours or overnight. Divide dough into 3 parts. Roll each into a circle on floured surface. Cut into 12 wedges. Roll 12 wedges into crescent roll shapes. Bake 30-40 minutes at 350 degrees.

Icing:
1 cup powdered sugar
1 T milk
1 t vanilla extract
Mix until smooth - spread over horns.

On Saturday evening I babysat. I love babysitting these kids. They are SO sweet. I did see the 3-year-old throw a temper tantrum for the first time and all I could do was laugh. He is normally so mild mannered that I couldn't believe he was freaking out on me. It's more shocking that I had never seen him behave like this than the fact that he had a fit. He's 3, it's understandable. I love their parents, too. They just seem to have it so together and they seem to have a great relationship with their kids and each other. I like watching them and being a part of it occasionally. It's also nice going over there and having a little time with the kids and then some major quiet time after they go to bed. Sitting and reading a book on their comfy sofa on a Saturday night is delightful.

Sunday = Resurrection Day! You know you've had a good day in NYC when you come home and your feet are aching terribly. I met my community group for church and I invited my friend Angela to come with us. Angela is Lucy's co-worker who I met in January and went to the Olympics with us. Whenever I'm around her, we're always with church people...Lucy or Jen and Kim. Naturally, church comes up and sometimes she seems intrigued by the idea of our church and that all these young people are actually going to church in NYC together. So, I gathered that maybe on Easter she'd be open to coming (our pastor always encourages us to bring friends, but especially on the Holidays because many people who are not normally open to going to church will go on a Holiday). Angela was really excited about it and she seemed to really like it. I don't know that she'll come again before next Easter, but we'll see. It was a great service with a very basic sermon on the Gospel and baptism and great songs.

Oddly, my church is picking up more and more Missourians. There have always been plenty of Baylor and Texas people and that won't change. Suddenly, we have people from my hometown there, too though. It's weird because I never thought of my hometown as very Christian. Yesterday in church, a guy I went to high school with was sitting on the row behind me and also behind me was a girl who grew up in Jeff City (30 minutes away) and went to school in Columbia (Mizzou!). I knew both of them, but they didn't know each other so I introduced them and we all stood there in awe that we come from the same places. There is also a girl who has been coming to my community group for a few months who is from Columbia...she is so great and I'm so glad she's become a part of our group!

After church, we walked all the way down the Upper East Side and on 5th Avenue along the park to mid-town. It was such a pleasant walk. The trees on the UES are blooming and so pretty. The weather was just perfect. When we got to mid-town, we hit the Easter Hat Parade. Not as exciting as the first time around, but still quite fun to see all the crazy hats. I especially like the old timey pretty hats....I wish I had an occasion to wear one of those to!  I took pictures of the fun hats, but forgot to take one of my friends...so sad!

I think that next year I need to have a hat making party the day before Easter so we can join in the fun on 5th Ave.

For Brunch, we went to Bar Americain. This is one of Bobby Flay's restaurants. It wasn't our first pick, but we waited so long to make reservations, that we didn't have many options. We had a lot of fun - we were there for 2.5 hours and the last people from the brunch crowd to leave! So, it definitely was not a bad experience. We weren't super impressed with the food though. The bread basket they bring to every table was amazing. It came with all kinds of sweet and savory breads and they were all so good. It was definitely the best part of our meal. Our entrees were just okay...nothing spectacular. Hillery, Kim and I split a chocolate dessert that was very good. It was also huge. I felt like we all ate so much of it and there was still some left. We had a great time. Afterwards, we hopped in a couple of stores nearby and then all headed our separate ways.

It was so nice out that I decided to go for a long walk through the park and then around the UWS. The park is looking so springy! A perfect Easter day walk.

I can't believe I had never seen this Garden in the park before. It's so close to my apartment! It is right by the Delacorte theatre, which is where they hold Shakespeare in the Park during the summer.

There are places in the middle of the park where you can not see any buildings or hear the cars and hustle and bustle of the city. It's a nice feeling to almost get away from the city in those places. But, I also appreciate the spots where you can see the buildings. It's good to remember that all this beauty exists right in the middle of the greatest city in the world!

Three shades of purple flowers! 

(this one's for you, Brooke :) )

I finally saw one of my big celebrity neighbors!!!! I've heard for a long time that Kevin Bacon and Kyra Sedgwick live on 89th Street (I am on 88th) and that they are staples around the UWS. Supposedly they really claim the UWS as theirs and they are out and about a lot and people see them all the time. Except me. I finally saw Kyra while I was on my walk. She was walking with a friend on Columbus Ave and they passed right by me. I had just left home, so I did a 180 and followed them. Horrible, I know. But, I wanted to see exactly where she lived (my mom will appreciate me knowing when she comes to visit in May). I only knew they were on 89th, but didn't know if that meant they owned one of the Brownstones or that they were in one of the fancy high rises that faces the park. They are in the high rise. It is SO close to my apartment and I pass it all the time whenever I go to run or walk in the park. I will have to be a little more aware of who is coming in and out of that building from now on.

After my walk, I came home to dye Easter Eggs. I haven't done this in years and really wanted to this year. It was fun, but I found out that this is a craft I am not so great at. The spackled ones and the ones I painted flowers on are my favorites. I wish I could have been better with the Wax Crayon, but that just wasn't working for me at all.

So, that was my Easter 2010. Very wonderful.