...and the Belly grows.....

I haven't really posted too many of these yet... But I've been taking them about every week and I kind of think they're fun to look at and see how much has changed. So I figured might as well share. It's not like no one's noticing the steady expansion anyways! :)

Happy Mother's Day♥

It's hard to believe this is already my second year celebrating Mother's Day! But this year was just as nice as the last.

Jared gave me flowers and after church, we stopped by his Mom and Dad's to give her her card and little goodies and wish her a happy day. Then we got to have Subway for lunch (a yummy treat, indeed!) before heading over to my Mom's house to spend the rest of the day playing games and eating and just hanging out.

It was a very nice day and, even though it was definitely on the chilly side, the sun was shining and I felt loved. I hope everyone else had a Happy Mother's Day, too!

My real Mother's Day gift♥

The little terrarium I made for my mom

Daddy, Holden, Mommy, and Little Brother Bump

Our family

"No one knows how it is that with one glance a boy can break through
into a girl's heart." - Napoleon Bonaparte
(Especially if that girl is Mommy)

My sweet boy♥

Mother's Day Card

I decided to make Mother's Day cards this year for both of Holden's grandmas. So that meant Holden had to pose for some pictures :)

And although I must have taken at least 40 photos just to get these, we did end up with some pretty cute ones.

And I think both grandmas were happy to have their cheesy, handmade Mother's Day cards (and pictures) from us and Holden :)

The Prom

Nine years ago this spring, Jared tapped me on the shoulder with a baseball glove and asked me to our Junior prom :)

The next year, on the night of our senior prom, he gave me a promise ring for our one-year anniversary.

And I can not even believe how long ago that was now.

We have been through so many ups and downs now together and have both grown so much since then- as adults and parents.

But about a week ago, when my younger brother had his junior prom, it just all came flooding back. How young we were! And how far we've come.

And sometimes when I think about it, it kind of amazes me that we really made it. And that I'm really where I am today - where I always hoped I'd be all those years ago. Waking up every morning beside Jared. A wife and mommy.

I'm a little late with these, but here are a few photos of my brother Tyler - looking so grown up - and his wonderful, beautiful girlfriend Emily on the day of their prom♥

May 1, 2010

cute cute cute ♥

so pretty

i just love this one. ♥

gotta have a shot of the Jeep :)

My "little" brother and I

♥

Seventeen Months

Holden is seventeen months old now. Already. And every day is definitely starting to get more and more fun.

Not that it hasn't been fun since the very beginning. It's just that now.... Well, I feel like he just woke up one morning recently and decided he was ready to talk! He will now try to repeat almost anything he hears you say. And he's made lots of animal sounds and other sounds effects for awhile, but now instead of just barking, he will say "Ina" (Indiana) or instead of just vrooooming when he hears a car, he says "car." And it's so much nicer to have him actually ask for what he wants!

It's so much fun to just watch the way his little mind works and see what he comes up with to do. And I feel like he just mimics every single thing we do now, and it's amazing to me to realize how much he has already learned about how to act from us.

But of course, when we look back though pictures of even just a year ago, it's bittersweet to fully embrace how big he is now. And how fast the "baby stage" is really over.

He's always had his own personality, preferences, and quirks, but now he just seems like such a person.

He's definitely fast becoming an ornery toddler. And we really are having fun watching him grow into a boy.




But, for just a little while longer, I think maybe he can still be my baby.

My Buddy♥

"She discovered with great delight that one does not love one's children just because they are one's children but because of the friendship formed while raising them."
- Gabriel Garcia Marquez

♥

My Work

I love being a stay-at-home Mom.

But that doesn't mean that I never wonder what it would be like to still be a successful, employed, money-earning adult. And honestly, sometimes I miss it.

Not the getting up early or rushing around part. But the sense of accomplishment, sometimes.

And I know what I do at home is important, but sometimes, it's just a lot harder to measure.

...

This afternoon when I was sitting by Holden's crib waiting for him to fall asleep for his nap, I was reading a little book called Meditations for New Mothers by Sandra Drescher-Lehman. Honestly, I got this book in the hospital when Holden was born, but I've just recently even opened it. And I think there was a reason I was led to look through it now.

It's just a small book of short, one-page, daily meditations. There's a short story/thought, a bible verse, and a sentence prayer/meditation.

There's been many that have brought tears to my ever-emotional eyes, but one I read this afternoon really spoke to my heart. And I just wanted to share it quickly. In case there are any other stay-at-home mothers (even if just for maternity leave) who have ever felt this way, too.

...

Valuing my Work

"What did you do today?"

I used to love to be asked that question. I took pride in my busyness and productivity. Now it's a question I hate. What I do now can't be calculated like most people measure tasks. I'm busy all day, but I don't have much tangible evidence to remind me of what I did, much less to recount to someone else.

I was a mother today. I loved today, not always perfectly, but I did love. I didn't earn any money today, but I did contribute to the good of the world. I was a mother.

____________

Thank you, God, for
giving me so valuable a job.

____________

Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved by him, a worker who has no need to be ashamed. - II Timothy 2:15
...

Daffodils

"When Spring unlocks the flowers to paint the laughing soil." - Bishop Reginald Heber

. . . . .

Playing in the Daffodils

Trying to smell the flowers

Big Sniff!

How are we so lucky?♥

Our Sonshine


. . . . .

"I love spring anywhere, but if I could choose I would always greet it in a garden." - Ruth Stout

Batter Up!

Holden's great-grandma sent him a little Easter money in his card so he could get something special. And combining his love of (a) being outside (b) balls and (c) hitting things with other things - his first T-Ball set just seemed like the perfect choice :)

He loves the bat. No surprise there. But our dog, Indy? Not such a big fan.

Here's some photos of the first time we set it up for him to try.

Happy boy with his new toy :)

Daddy showing him what to do

Holden's turn to try!

Such a big boy

All by himself! Hooray!

"He is not here; he has risen, just as he said." - Matthew 28:6

This year for Easter, most of my family was out of town, so after church we got to spend all day over at Mom and Dad H's house - visiting, eating, flying kites (an Easter tradition), playing outside, and just enjoying the beautiful sunshine. It was a wonderful day.

And Holden had so much fun playing with his cousins and just trying everything - sitting on Uncle Tyler's new bike, watching everyone with the kites, going for some wagon rides...

It feels like everyone is always so scattered all around and we truly enjoyed just hanging out and getting to spend some time with everybody. We really were blessed with just a great, lazy, fun, sunny Easter day.

And we hope everyone else had a wonderful Easter, too!

So handsome in his Easter outfit♥

Sitting in Grandma's special little chair

Mr. Adventure. It's not fun unless it's slightly dangerous.

I know this isn't nearly the point of getting dressed up
on Easter, but he has just got to be one of the cutest little
boys I've ever seen :)

♥

My main men

Cheesin' with Momma

Our family♥

Baby #2 - 22 weeks

(And I have got to quit referring to him as #2. I'm going to give
the poor boy a complex someday...)

First wagon ride of the day! With Grandpa and Daddy.

Checking out the newest addition - proud Uncle Tyler watching in the background :)

Holden being cool like Daddy

Everyone out flying kites!










Second wagon ride! With Cousin Naomi and Daddy

(Once Little Brother gets a bit bigger, we're thinking we will
definitely be needing to get them a wagon of their own. Holden loves it.)

He has risen indeed! Happy Easter!