Whole Family Home for Easter!

Easter Sunday was such a happy day for us with Crystal home!

I wanted a family photo for Easter, but the boys quickly disappeared when we got to the park for a picnic, so I had to be content with just my girls!

Hannah absolutely loves her big sister!

 

Crystal had been asked to play the piano for Sunday School singing, and she also played a beautiful arrangement of "O Sacred Head Now Wounded" for prelude, and "Christ the Lord is Risen Today" for the children's march offering.
I can't believe my daughter can play like that! She has been taking piano lessons at Penn View, and has certainly made good progress.

At our pastor's wife's request, Rose and Carrie played a handbell offertory duet called "Beneath the Cross of Jesus" with bells that belong to a lady at church. 

 The day after Crystal arrived home, she, Rose, and Carrie started practicing together for the offertory for the Easter service. 

Here's a "behind-the-scenes" picture.

An extra table set up by the kitchen table so the bells can spread out.

and Crystal had been practicing the piano accompaniment back in PA.

Now they could actually practice together!

Easter Sunday morning, Jonathan's right hand was all bandaged up from the dog bite Friday, so we had to pitch in to help button, zip, buckle, and pull on socks! 

I'm sure he felt very, very manly!

 Here's a photo of him at the Urgent Care 24-hr. ER after his wounds had all been cleaned and were getting ready to be bandaged.

The children were all gathered around the first morning we had to dress his hand ourselves. Danny wanted to take pictures!

So here he is!

But enough of the gore. I just spent a while helping Jonathan research natural ways to pull infection out of a wound. He has a doctor friend he has remodeled for, who permitted him to come in this morning for a check up. The doc gave him a shot of high-powered antibiotic, as his hand was swollen and red. (Would appreciate any prayers on his behalf as the doctor said if we can't get the infection under control, he'll have to send Jonathan to a hand surgeon to cut his hand open again and clean out the wound!)

Rose made him a poultice, we put on frankincense oil, and I have water boiled for comfrey leaves for his hand to soak in later.

We also read other grandmothers' remedies such as soaking an infected site in salt/epsom salt water to draw out infection. 

He's not sure he could stand the stinging that would happen with that one!

Below, just after church Sunday, Jonathan took us to the Broadmoor area of town where there are banks of daffodils blooming.

(He's driving with his left hand!

Several deer were browsing in among this bank of daffodils!

Praise God for the risen Christ, for blooming flowers, for His hand upon us and His presence with us even in hard times.