Scripture for Isla: Isaiah 40:31

Bible verses to teach your children. Isaiah 40:31

Four years and counting...

Four years ago today, my hubby and I shared a scoop of ice cream and a bashful kiss under a gazebo in Blowing Rock. This was the first year we celebrated the Holidays together. Little did we know, we would soon share many more things together including a house, marriage and a beautiful little girl. I’m so thankful that our paths crossed and my crazy choices in life led me to him. 

 

Scripture for Isla: Luke 2:14

Bible verses to teach your children. Luke 2:14

Blessed...

It’s been a little over 6 months now since I held my sweet girl in my arms for the very first time. 

In the midst of extreme exhaustion and pain, her life and first cries brought immense peace to every fiber of my being.  My life forever changed in a blink of an eye and I feel like I’ve found a whole new type of love. 

My love has grown in so many ways. An unbreakable bond has been forever sealed for Isla and me. I have a new understanding of my mother’s love. I’ve fallen in love with my husband all over again as I watch him grow in his new role as a father. I see him look at Isla so endearing and it reminds me of my dad’s love for me. But most of all it has made me grow closer to God. I’ve drawn near to him as I finally understand his unconditional love for me. I pray constantly as Isla continues to grow and new milestones creep up on us. I understand the importance of my life here on earth and the importance of my role as a wife, mother, Christian and friend. Parenthood has been the favorite chapter of my life so far and its only just beginning.  

Thank you God for blessing me with such a precious life!

 

 

 

 

We'll miss the Joneses

Today is bitter sweet. This was Isla’s last full week with Auntie Alexas and her Jones cousins. She will start at Nova at the first of the year. 

We have been incredibly blessed to have her with Alexas since October. She has taken such good care of her as if she was her own baby. I was also fortunate enough to be home with Isla for the first four months of her life and Alexas made the transition from home to work so much easier on me. I am forever grateful to her for all the help she has given us. She is a role model mommy and I love her dearly. 

I know Isla is going to miss seeing her cousins every day, but she will also enjoy the new babies she will be with at Nova. Isla loves her cousins so much. She watches their every move and I can tell she wants to keep up with them. She laughs out loud at Macie and her face lights up with smiles whenever Macie or Emery talks to her.  Emery says, “Isla is me buddy.”  It’s so cute to watch the three of them growing and playing together.  I know the girls will continue to grow up together and I pray that they will always be close. 

Isla will be one of three babies in the nursery at her new childcare. We were very pleased with the low ratio and the family focused environment. Most of the staff has worked there for over ten years and some over twenty! She’ll also be super close to our work and home which means no more daily two hour commutes and we’ll be able to see her at lunch time. 

I know the first few weeks will be challenging for Isla and I so please remember us in your prayers. I pray for a smooth transition, continued confidence in our childcare choice and a happy healthy baby!

Thanks again to Awesome Auntie Alexas! We love you so much. 

So much change...

Wow, so much changes in just 6 months! My love grows with each and every day!

Isla 9 days

 

 Isla 6 Months, 5 days

Babble, babble, jabber, jabber

I love to hear Isla’s voice. It’s the sweetest voice in the world to me. To hear her begin to make sounds, discover her voice and be so eager to communicate melts my heart. So far she has been mimicking us when we say mama, dada, hey or hi and bye. When she says, “hey” she says it so quietly as if she is whispering. It is so cute! She even mimics us when we pick up our phone and answer it. She is so smart!

Last week we started Baby Signing Time… well Joel started it I should say. I know the basic signs, but I have some catching up to do. Dad knows them all it seems! He has been signing everything to Isla. It’s so cute and funny. He even quizzes me and makes me answer him in signs before he will do what I ask him to do. Isla watches so intently. She catches on to things so quick. She’s such a little sponge. It reminds me to always think, act and say positive things, because my little sponge is always watching and absorbing everything I do. 

I pray that I will always be a positive mother for my sweet girl. I pray that I will always live by example and keep everything in perspective. I pray that each day of my life I count my blessings and remember how truly blessed I am. I pray that the words that come out of my mouth, always be words of Grace and Honor and that my sweet girl learns to repeat those words.

Holiday Memories...

The Holidays bring back such fun memories for me. I adore Christmas. It is definitely my favorite Holiday. I have such wonderful memories from my childhood of winter white Christmas’, church plays, sleigh rides, hot cocoa, homemade candies, hunting for presents and warm family togetherness.

We were blessed enough to have the dream of a white Christmas come true on multiple occasions. I hope that as Isla gets older she will be able to experience the magic of waking up to piles of snow on Christmas morning.

My hometown church always had church plays and I loved being a part of them. Several seasons, I played the part of Mary. Other years I was an angel. I used to get so excited to get up in front of everyone and sing our songs. I also loved that my entire family would come to watch the play and be at church celebrating the season together. I’m pretty sure I thought I was a much better singer than I really was, but still I got smiles and hugs from everyone. I also loved the huge Christmas tree the church would put up. The white and gold ornaments were so large and dazzling.  I loved sitting around the tree for children’s church and all the goodies that they always shared with us every year.

My parents have the perfect setup for sleigh riding. Our house is perched on the very top of the hill with my uncle and grandparents living towards the bottom. We would start at the top, ride all the way down to the bottom and bail (most times) just in time to miss hitting the creek.  Sometimes we would even get my dad’s motorcycle helmets out and really suit up for the icy ride. After an hour or so… or whenever we could no longer stand the wet cold snow that had slide down our suits and socks, we would head in for some warm cocoa. I remember hanging our cold wet clothes up and mom having a warm cup of cocoa ready for us.

Another favorite memory is the homemade candies and pies my great-grandmother, grandmother and mom would make. Chocolate was always my favorite pie, but she also made a delicious coconut, apple and pumpkin pit too. The whipping on top and consistency would be perfect. I could eat a whole pie by myself! For candy, we would have fudge, chocolate and coconut balls, white chocolate covered pretzels and peanut butter crackers. It makes my mouth water just thinking about it! I’m looking forward to continuing on the tradition of making these candies with mom this year in honor of my grandmothers.

I was always on the hunt for presents growing up. Once I found out about the North Pole, I knew they were hidden somewhere in the house and it was my goal every year to find them! I remember the year my search was a success and the look on my mom’s face once she realized I had found ALL my presents. She took everything back, and that was the end of that. I didn’t search the next year.

I love this season and the way it brings our family together, I love the special time we all get to spend together. I love the many laughs we share, the delicious food we are blessed with and the memories we make, but most of all… I love the true meaning of this season. I’m so grateful that God thought so much of me to send his only son to live on earth, die for my sins and promise me forgiveness and a place in heaven.

Thank you God for this season you have blessed us with. Thank you for giving us this opportunity to be together and celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ!