Sending Some Love Your Way

Love is patient, love is kind.
It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.
It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered,
it keeps no record of wrongs.
Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.
It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

1 Corinthians 13:4-7

Ohmagoodness!

Pinterest.
Have I shared with you all just how much I love Pinterest? (You can follow my boards here).
Well, I do. I love it. It has honestly boosted my desire to be more creative and try more things than anything else in the social media world.

And...I just discovered something even more amazing about it...

The oh so amazing, Design*Sponge, is on Pinterest. (Read her announcement post here). If you were ever looking for the best boards to follow on Pinterest, Design*Sponge would be the one to follow. For those of you who are not familiar with Design*Sponge you must check it out. It's fabulous. That's the only word for it. And now that she's on Pinterest - oh my goodness - look out creative inspiration world!

February Photo a Day

This month I've decided to participate in the February Photo a Day Challenge on Instagram. I've always wanted to do it, so why not start this month. Now I didn't get started until February 3rd, but it's been fun nonetheless. Here's what I've captured so far.

P.S. You can participate, too. Just visit Fat Mum Slim to follow along with this month's list.

Day 3: Hands (from the summer time)

Day 6: Dinner (with a side of yellow and orange)

Day 7: Button (in my studio)

Remember

I was sitting in my 11th grade US History class when my friend Erin came in the classroom and said a plane had crashed into the World Trade Centers. At that time in my life I didn't know the WTC and the Twin Towers were one and the same so I didn't think much of it. My teacher turned on the TV and we began to watch everything unfold. Then class was over and the main topic of conversation was if we would get out of school early because the Pentagon had also been hit and that was 3 hours north of us, so of course every selfish teenager's thought was what kind of deal can we get out of this. The magnitude of this event just hadn't hit us yet.

The school day was over. I was supposed to get a haircut that night, but Mom said we weren't going anywhere that night because of everything going on. I remember being mad and throwing a fit about it. School pictures were coming up and I needed a haircut. Again, I didn't realize what our country was going through.

And then it started. The constant images of the planes, the ball of fire, the ash-covered city. (I don't think we turned off the news for 2 weeks straight.) That night, as we sat down to dinner, I asked if I could say the blessing over our meal. I don't think I ever did actually thank God for the food. Instead I cried. I cried and prayed for the families, the country, the President. It was too much for my 16 year old mind and heart to grasp and handle.

Now, ten years later, as my husband and I are raising a child in a "post 9/11" world, it still seems so surreal. I still tear up at every story. That sick feeling comes back into my throat when I see the images. And I'm reminded that we are a resilient country and that even through the hardest time known to any American, God has had His hand on us. Guiding us, comforting us, loving us. He is in control even when control can't be seen in the chaos. He is our strong tower. Our refuge.

So today, I pray. I pray that each person in our country would taste and see that the Lord is good and know that His love heals all wounds and strengthens every defeated heart. That when hard times come, God hasn't left us. If anything, He's holding us tighter as we walk through this crazy thing called life.

Oh What a Year

Gracious. What does it take for me to actually get a blog post posted when I would really like it posted. I started writing this 3 days ago and had every intention of posting it yesterday, but alas here I am, finishing it up tonight...

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Oh dear friends, what a year 2010 has been. I feel as if I've grown up over and over again this year. The Hubby and I have encountered so many new challenges and blessings this year that really have given us a good "it's time to grow up now" kick in the tush. And you know what's crazy? It literally started last January.

January: We decided we were ready to buy a house. Ok. So we started looking. And to our surprise we found the perfect house for our little family of two adults, two dogs and a cat. (Little did we know that our household number would be changing soon).

February: I started having heartburn and was tired all the time. Hmm...

March: On the first day of the month to be exact, all signs (and pregnancy tests) pointed to a baby on the way!

April: We made an offer on our house and after a few back-and-forths between us and the sellers, it was ours for the takin' (well, I should say purchasing). I also turned 25 years old - a quarter of a century!

May: The craziness of packing up our stuff and moving out of the our apartment began and we shared our Little One's heartbeat with the world.

June: We signed the papers on our house and were given the keys. Let the moving begin! On June 11th, we found out we were going to welcome a Little Man into our lives.

July: My wonderful brother visited for about a week and half, making for some really great bro & sis time.

August: We finally traded in the Mazda after putting 150,000+ miles on the thing. Now we are the proud owners of a Saturn Vue. The perfect vehicle for new parents.

September: At 32 weeks along in the pregnancy, we were able to see amazing images of our Little Man with a 3D/4D ultrasound. It was there that we discovered that he had Mommy's nose and dimples and Daddy's cheeks.

October: After 11 hours of labor, our Little Man Ethan Glenwood, entered the world on October 18th at 6:04pm. Our lives were never going to be the same again.

November: We're hittin' the road. With Little Man in tow, we made our first voyage home to Virginia for Thanksgiving for the first time since we've been together - that's 5 years people!

December: We enjoyed our first Christmas as a family of three and for the first time actually had Christmas Eve and Christmas Day in our own home. It was lovely being able to have our parents from both sides come up and visit our home for the Holidays.

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After finishing up this post and looking back at everything that has happened, I am deeply moved and challenged by the goodness of God. In every moment of every day, He has been there, even during the trying times. He has blessed us with more blessings than we could ever imagine. But the biggest blessing He has given us is Himself. He has poured His life out onto us so that we may pour His love onto others. God you are the reason all of these amazing (and sometimes not so amazing) things have happened and for that I am thankful.

So I raise my glass to you 2010 and say, it's been a great year and I'm even more excited to see what 2011 holds for us. Happy New Year!

Such a Cool Kid

I know a lot of my posts as of late have not had a lot of words, but I mean, when you're showing off such a cutie, who needs words? I think the pictures say it all. Can you tell we're enjoying every second with our Little Man?

Rainy Day

Everyone needs a rainy day every now and then...especially a brisk, autumn one.

{this moment}

{this moment} - Inspired by SouleMama. A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

Baby Bump Update - 32 Weeks

Just a little update on the growth of our Little Man.
It's hard to believe that we only have 8 weeks left!

Just When I Think...

...Anthropologie couldn't get anymore creative...
...they do something amazing like this.
*Swoon*

Rest

Goodness, has August flown by. I can't believe this is the beginning of the last full week of this month. In all the craziness that has been this month, I could really use some rest. Seems like this guy has the right idea.

{this moment}

{this moment} - Inspired by SouleMama. A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

Photo Archives

I was archiving some photos the other day, when I stumbled upon this one of my Lil' Bro. He's gotta be the coolest guy I know (other than my Hubby of course). I can't wait for our Little Man to call him Uncle Nick. Love ya Lil' Bro!

For My Mumma

{this moment}

{this moment} - Inspired by SouleMama. A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

{this moment}

{this moment} - Inspired by SouleMama. A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

Baby Bump Update - 28 Weeks

Here's a little Baby Bump update for y'all. I can't believe we're at 28 weeks already! Can't wait to meet our Little Man in just 12 weeks.

Because Sometimes That's Just How You Feel

Need I say more? I think this photo pretty much sums it up.

Simple Joys

I felt the need to post something random today. I've noticed that the majority of my posts here recently have been the weekly, scheduled out ones...not that there's anything wrong with that. I like the structure and schedule. But I also enjoy just updating you on what's going on in my life.

***

We're pretty much all set up in the house. The only room left to complete is the nursery, which we seem to be working on a little bit here and there. It makes the process more enjoyable and exciting, I think. We have the crib assembled and all set up.

The sweet Mama Sheep and Lamb were made by my Mom from this darling tutorial.

Every time I walk by the nursery I want to just walk in and stare at how comfy the crib looks or sit back and relax in the rocker. The first night we had the crib set up, Hubby told me he wanted to sleep in the nursery because of how comfy it felt every time he walked in. What's great is that we could actually do that because we have the futon set up to serve as additional seating/change of scenery.

***

Let's see, what else...my Lil' Bro is in town visiting us. He's been here since last Wednesday and it's been fun hanging out with him. He and my Hubby did a bunch of fun NASCAR stuff this past weekend since the Brickyard was going on and tonight they're off to Cincinnati to see John Mayer.

***

Our Little Man is definitely growing. Today is the first day of our Third Trimester. I can definitely feel the many differences that are accompanied with that. Little Man is so active, making me much more aware of him. It feels like and looks like my Bump is getting bigger every day, which I'm loving. There really is something so beautiful and extraordinary about being pregnant. I should have an updated photo next week (I'm trying to space them out every 4 to 5 weeks). I also have my glucose test next week. Yum. Can't wait to drink pure sugar water. My nesting instinct is definitely beginning to kick in. I have quite the laundry list of projects that I want to complete before our Little Man gets here. I'm hoping to get started on some of those this weekend. I've got a few baby gifts to finish up for this Momma and this Momma, so as soon as those are complete, I will be in high-baby-making-stuff-gear.

***

So there's a bit of an update for you. Life is beautiful. I have no complaints, and even in the moments when I could complain, I'm reminded by how great God is and I count it a joy to be living and serving Him with each day.

{this moment}

{this moment} - Inspired by SouleMama. A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.