Too Blessed to be Stressed...But Still a little Stressed 😩

I still remember I'll wait till you're done I feel the same go ahead so tired um John's mom is here with us right now and she's got the big kids at the creek we've got little Cohen wow he likes that that's his favorite bounce Shake him up make him daddy bounce I am so tired um but in a good way we have had the most incredible week celebrating suot the Feast of Tabernacles uh if you are not familiar with that in the Bible God gave seven feasts and festivals AKA holidays uh to Israel and to anyone who was grafted into Israel by their faith which includes Believers in Jesus if you believe in Jesus you are part of the People Israel by your faith in Yeshua the Messiah so when we learned that four years ago yeah when we kind of realized who we are as Believers in Christ and that that means that the whole Bible is for us that all of the promises um all the commands all the feasts and festivals are ours it gave us like a whole new i' like I don't know a whole new depth to our faith um it's been something that has been just really exciting to explore and dive into because you can dive so so deep into learning about all of the symbolism Within These feasts and so soote happens to be our favorite yeah our kids favorite Feast of the year just saying that we kind of Switched lanes and our kids I feel like they didn't miss a beat they dove in their faith has like added so many layers to it and gotten deeper with ours which has been really cool to see anyway soot is their favorite not just their it's our probably all of our favorite holiday so coat is like an 8 day long party celebration we get um usually we go camping usually we pack up a bunch of our friends and their families pack up and we go to a campground together and we you know we eat together we sing and worship together we study the scriptures together our kids run and play all day long they pass out every single night like early yeah cuz they're so tired from running and normally he were saying do it elsewhere but because of the animals and it was just nobody no one had really planned anything the baby and the baby oh yeah there's a baby newborn baby um it was just like you know our friend was due during cot her due date like she was pregnant and ready to have a baby that week so we just decided it would be easier to just do it here and even just by ourselves but then we mentioned it to some of our friends and they were like absolutely let's do it let's just well do it in your backyard and so that's what we did and it was actually really great yeah um but we did not I did not no one did pick up the camera for the first like 3 days of it maybe we were not even like completely ready for everyone to get here so when they got here we're so setting up so like the first day was literally like trying to get set up um realizing all the things we forgot or still needed or needed to do or change or whatever so maybe that's why but it was very much like but also yeah getting this thing I don't even think we thought about a camera because it was just it was honestly the first two days were chaos chaos in a good way but chaos but should have been documented wish we had a camera person to do that next year next year we'll do that hire someone to do it anyway that's the thing is you get so like excited caught up in everybody arriving and trying to welcome them and get everyone set up everyone's putting tents up and organizing their food or going to the grocery store or whatever it's like those first two days were just I don't even know what it is still a blur when I look back so day three we finally got to pick up the camera to start off with this scavenger hunt that I found online a seot themed scavenger hunt for the [Music] kids [Music] you didn't find a branch what are you feeling sad about me who she doesn't Nana she doesn't think I can handle a pocket knife and I'm telling her you let me handle a pocket knifes and I can but she takes them away from me okay well hey let's do this let's not do pocket knife right now while just because we're trying to do you know we have friends around we don't want them to get hurt on just by accident in case we have one out and they run by and get cut by it or something okay so let's just we'll save that for when it's just us at our home okay I don't even want Tyler or Elena playing with pocket knives right now okay but let's not miss out on the fun time because we are upset about something I know but I don't even know how to do it come on we're going to go find the stuff let's go you my team there's no teams uh actually poetico did you want to read it yeah okay read the second one right here Angels came and told the Shepherds about messiah's birth when they were in this place do you know where were they in a field in Luke 28 we have I have it now they were in the same country Shepherds living out in the fields keeping watch over their flock by night we're so we have Fields some of these are really tall grass don't go into the tall grass but go to the edge of it and grab some some stuff from the field [Music] okay I'm careful Hur your hands maybe just get a couple at a time is it working Adeline yeah a good good idea daddy does this count beautiful this [Music] is okay wise person builds their house on a rock rock a rock a small Stone find a rock let's find little ones not B go ahead one just one and then come right back one small rock oh my goodness she had the baby she had the oh the worm John she baby not you what there's a baby worm and the sack too there's another one over there in the sack she's having multiple babies wait where I want to see where which one twin baby worms twin baby worms so the scavenger hunt was so fun um we try to keep the kids like just getting little chunks of activities that help them learn about the significance of the holiday that help tie everything to scripture to you know whatever so I had like a little craft plan for them each day or activity that kept them busy and engaged and it was just so special all right dinner's done now it's time for campfire and some roasted marshmallows we'll have some more soon but have the gram crackers yet so tonight it's just roasted marshmallows Izzy you want to roast your first marshmallow here go ahead watch Adeline go you can get a little closer go a little closer take two steps nope it didn't get roasted yet not roasted yet there you go okay hold it right there y hold on [Music] you say thank you poppy it's hot [Music] buddy it whatever you do can you blow it out it ever can I give B yeah I'm trying to pass this over thanks is that good good mm is it [Music] yummy happy camping so Shabbat is Saturday it is the Sabbath uh Arab Shabbat is Friday night in Hebrew culture they their days went from Sundown to sundown so your your Sabbath would be starting Friday evening when the sun went down and so traditionally they would share this big meal to kind of welcome that really special day it's a holiday every single week that's what we look at the Sabbath as a holiday every week so this is like extra special because it's the Sabbath during soote so oh there's the burp chili was like the best option the easiest thing for me to make for everybody for a bunch of people can make it gluten can make it gluten-free my mom made hollow bread for everyone we got everything set up this is like the longest day of my life full transparency the stress was real for those first few days John and I were kind of not getting along the best for a minute there oh we were getting along all right it was great you weren't getting along and I was in the kitchen all day I was so stressed out we get down everything set up we're just about to have this meal to bring in this rest like a big exhale and I realized the bread is all gluten my mom was making gluten hola like regular hola bread for everybody else and we would have our own but then I realized at the tables that we're sharing and then if they want to get chilly and touching all the utensils after they've broken bread and eaten it with their hands and it's going to be cross-contamination everywhere oh my goodness um and I kind of had a bit of an emotional breakdown we are having us a a uh Shabbat Sabbath meal tonight and it's extra special cuz we're doing outside we're doing a big old chilly night it's going to be it's going to be so nice check this out that's not going to we're going to have to break the bread last after everyone gets their food okay cuz it's gluten I want to cry why I'm just like I know I just like I don't know I always feel bad asking people hey you wash your hands make sure you wash your hands don't we feel bad that you have to deal with it like it's not an inconvenience for your whole life has been like changed because of it like it's a day for us it doesn't matter like it's okay it's not going to W hurt and you know what two people from the table two people the washing machine and soap is right there get the so what ended up happening is we did most of the blessings everyone came and got their chili sat down then we broke bread and ate and then anyone that wanted a second serving John and I just served them their food um they were all super gracious I felt so silly but I think it was a combo of postpartum hormones being exhausted probably being hungry and just like you know just just a lot and then I feel like that moment that dinner was just like a like I said a big exhale but I think we need to maybe get going it's 7 o00 all right see you later if you want to go too much for you yeah let's get going can you and David are you want to help carry pot of chili down of course have you ever seen the office it's like an 80 lb pot of chili you ever watch the office yeah you ever see the episod where Kevin's carrying the pot of chili and he drops it all over the floor in the office are we going to reenact we're going to do that or hopefully we're not going to do that the goal is to not do [Music] that and then that night around the campfire our friend Chris LED everybody in an impromptu like worship session with a homemade song he like made it up on the spot going around saying what everyone was thankful for so he'd say like what are you thankful for they would answer and then he would write a little couple What A Chorus and a verse yeah like a little Verse Chorus a little versy and chorus about for each person and it was like one of my well the highlights I think of the week and I hope that we do that same exact song every year because I love it so much so Adine thankful for everything let me see if I can think of some example of what to be than for a jelly beans thankful for ice cream thankful for jumping beans thankful for trampolines know I'm trying to say everybody we're so all right so this is our last full day here well not here we live here but um with our friends in here they are all leaving um tomorrow morning so we're going to make the most of this [Music] day you making some eggs this morning got to do a little fried egg for the kids even though they already have breakfast and you start making your own breakfast and they want your breakfast too you know what talking about that's what we doing right [Music] now my mom blow dried his hair that's why it looks like [Music] that [Music] so in all the other kid activities we did we did like a fruit of the spirit craft and made a keychain we did oh buddy oh we did tie dye shirts um and then one of the kids favorite things every year is to end seot with a glow party with a bunch of glow sticks so we wanted to make sure that we had the glow party here even though were different this year and smaller we still want to make that happen the kids absolutely love [Music] it so tell me what you're [Music] [Applause] thinking so that's a little peek into our seot this year yeah it was fun it was a lot better than I thought it was going to be I think even our kids were a little concerned it wasn't going to be as fun being at our house I think they thought because it wouldn't be the same yeah like this is like you know when your childhood your childhood holidays that you have these traditions and it like it's just like how you do it and you get so excited cuz you know it's coming it's like the best thing ever that's how they feel about soot and so I think this time they were like wait we're not going anywhere like it just we're not going to Grandma's yeah not this year kids sorry so I think they were worried but I think they ended up actually having a really great time um um and only friend said like this was the best one yet so that makes me feel good cuz to me it felt chaotic and tumultuous a little bit like making sure people have what they need and feeling like I wasn't doing enough maybe I don't know in hindsight now that it's over I think it was I think we can go into like if we host again here in this space like knowing what we would do differently or prepare ahead of time but overall it was just like a really special it's always really special anywhere the presence of God is is going to be special no matter what you do or don't do have or don't have no matter where you are so um I think it was really cool to be able to I don't know just get to celebrate another year in anticipation of the marriage supper of Li that's kind of what we're looking forward to when we celebrate toot so that was a peek at our special celebration all right let us know in the comments if you guys celebrate the Feast and what your soot was like or if this is something maybe you want to start doing for next year absolutely if you have any questions about it we'd love to answer them for you we love you guys we love you guys we'll see lat you later bye