EPIC Weekend!!

So this weekend has been truly epic, and a blog post is much needed!

First of all, we FINALLY closed on our condo!!!!!!!  I am so excited that it finally happened - I was really starting to get discouraged.  We signed the papers on Thursday, and it was official on Friday.  We're actually getting an air mattress and are sleeping there tonight after church (more to come on that in a moment!).  I can't wait to start painting and putting in a wood floor - it is going to be SO awesome!!!  AAHHHHH!!!!

The next epic thing - Tim and I were received into the Church this morning!!  The Chrismation wasn't nearly as terrifying as I thought it might be - in fact, I had to do relatively little... it was actually very cool and not scary at all.  Whew!  (I have issues with new and/or uncomfortable things, so this has been stressing me out for awhile, even though I really wanted to do it)  We were also the first ones (actually, I was the very first!) to take Communion at Divine Liturgy this morning - so that was really neat too!  And our friend Adam came all the way from Fort Worth (at 8am!) just to be there for it - how awesome is that?! 

So now we're at home resting up for the big night tonight - Pascha (Easter) starting at 11:30pm til 2 or 3 in the morning, and then a huge FEAST!!!  We went last year, but I didn't fast for Lent, so it was just really an elaborately beautiful midnight Easter service to me.  This year however, I followed the fast pretty well - not completely, but way more than I thought I'd be able to.  It's basically no meat & cheese (well, any dairy for that matter).  I still had wine and oil occasionally, though I don't think you're really supposed to.  Going that long without meat (and for the most part, dairy) was trying enough for me!!  SO - this year, I appreciate why everyone is soooo excited to party down after Pascha - and let me tell you, it's a party!  You better believe I've already got my corkscrew ready!  

I got this from the Orthodox Wiki, and it's a really great explanation of what's going on at the service tonight:

Paschal matins begins with a procession that starts around midnight. The people leave the dark church building singing, carrying banners, icons, candles, and the Gospel. The procession circles the outside of the church and returns to the closed front doors.  Next, the Paschal troparion is sung for the first time, together with the verses of Psalm 67 (68) which will begin all of the Church services during the Paschal season.

Let God arise, let his enemies be scattered; let those who hate him flee from before his face!

As smoke vanishes, so let them vanish; as wax melts before the fire,

So the sinners will perish before the face of God; but let the righteous be glad.

This is the day which the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it!

Christ is risen from the dead, trampling down death by death,

and on those in the grave bestowing life.

The doors are opened and the faithful re-enter. The church is brightly lit and adorned with flowers. It is the heavenly bride and the symbol of the empty tomb. The celebrants change to white vestments, the bright robes of the resurrection. The Easter icon stands in the center of the church, where the grave just was. It shows Christ destroying the gates of hell and freeing Adam and Eve from the captivity of death. There constant proclamation of the celebrant: Christ is risen! The faithful continually respond: Indeed he is risen! and censing of the icons and the people.

I'm sure I can't do the service justice, but trust me, it is really awesome to be a part of.  And I'm not going to lie, a big part of my excitement about tonight also involves what is about to be packed into my Easter basket... it's not the Easter basket most of you are envisioning - green grass, Easter eggs, candy, etc.  Instead, we have... beef jerky (mmm!!!!), sandwiches - peppered turkey and Swiss on Hawaiian rolls, wine, smoked salmon, several kinds of cheese & crackers, and chocolate chip cookies... I can't wait!  :D  And I've already planned out dinner for Sunday night... fried chicken!  HA!  I'm sure I'm going to give myself a stomach ache...

And finally - the icing on the cake for our epic weekend: I got an email that the new litter of Russian Blue kitties is here!!!  It will probably be close to three months before our little kitty will be ready to be picked up (I think they keep them for 12 or 13 weeks), but I am already so excited!!!   YAY!!!

I had a really stressful and exhausting week, so having great things piled upon great things was such a blessing this weekend!  Epic weekend, for the win!!