Minion Cakes

Ms. Halston loves the "Despicable Me" minion characters, so Mommy made up these cupcakes tonight for her - they'll be given to her tomorrow, despite the fact that her birthday was two weeks ago.  The reason is that the fast ends tomorrow, and everyone can eat sweets.

Madison made it all twenty-one days without sweets or television - and she filled out her devotional each day as well.  This made Mommy and Daddy pretty proud, of course.  Daddy actually gave her a Disney Infinity figure, Francesco, as a reward for keeping with the fast.  A "fast" character (the race car) for the end of the fast.  Yes, the tie-in was weak, but the appreciation was not:  she wanted to play as the character as soon as possible.  This we did, racing about with Francesco today.

The day was cool outside, again.  We did a bit of grocery shopping this afternoon, first stopping at Aldi's, which is Mommy's favorite destination for shopping and saving.  It's like Goodwill, with food.  Of course, the food isn't previous used.  I think I use that comparison because there seems to be this ravenous popularity in going there lately, something that Goodwill saw a few years ago.  Goodwill's traffic has since gone down (despite the fact that Madison's grandparents will be going there this Tuesday), but the Aldi's phenomenon is alive and well right now.  You can tell it's trending big because the place was swamped.  We went there with Madison, and Mommy turned at one point to tell us that this isn't as crowded as it usually is.  Seriously?  It felt like Christmas shopping at on Christmas Eve in there.  You know that feeling where you're constantly in someone's way?  Yeah, that's going there.

Fortunately, as always Mommy has a list and was on a mission.  Madison and Daddy tagged along, pushing the cart and helping move groceries about.  Madison always wants to be the one to put the items in front of the cash register.  So be it!

We pretty much came home after that, and straightened the house a bit more.  We'll have guests tomorrow, special ones all the way from Florida.  One week from today, it's the Chinese New Year, so it will be nice to have them up for this:  we can maybe try out PF Chang's this year, as they have a gluten-free menu.  Traditional Chinese food, however, is out.  Lots of gluten there, and that just doesn't work with Mommy's diet anymore.

So we spent some time playing games - and we drew pictures too.  Daddy is enforcing the "draw more" policy in the house.  Madison used the step-by-step book to draw a picture of Mike Wazowski, and then she wanted to do a picture of Tigger as well.  We also tried a picture of Pluto - although none (including Daddy's) are perfect, they're all part of the practicing phase.  Madison likes to draw, and we encourage her in that area because the more you do it, the better you get.

Which of course she's doing with her piano as well.  She's not at all challenged for the moment, which is somewhat unusual.  It's like the calm-before-the-storm though!  We're playing two pieces in particular with one hand - and then the other.  Soon, we'll have to play those pieces with two hands, and Daddy will have to give out a few power discs for that as a reward.

We're still reading the Bible at night, as Madison wants to hear it all.  This is so fantastic.  Tonight we read about the prophet Samuel a bit, how he heard a voice calling out to him in the night.  Madison is always asking to hear the next part, and so Daddy gives her a teaser - a hint - as to what happens tomorrow night when he reads again.

Then we pray.  And tonight we prayed for a man named Carman, who is very sick.  He was a big influence early in the history of Christian music, and we have several of his CDs.  We even saw him in a movie this week, and spoke about his battle with cancer.  Coincidentally, he's having his toughest struggle of all this weekend.  Mommy knows what that's about.  Battling cancer is something so completely epic.  She made it though, and we all prayed tonight that he would too.

DAY TWENTY-ONE
Psalm 147:1 says “How good to sing praises to our God! How delightful and how fitting.” You’ve made it to the twenty-first day of the fast! It’s time to rejoice, and testify of God’s goodness. Are you glad you did it? Are you glad you made it through? Share below how you feel on this last day of your fast.

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Prayer is one of the most important parts of your life, even after this fast. Write down below when and where you intend to pray each day for the rest of this year. It’s very important to keep that schedule – and pray!

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Read today’s Bible story in Matthew 28:1-20. Jesus rose from the grave, just as He said He would. What were His final orders to all His disciples, including you and me?

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