One Year Ago...

Tonight I tucked in a one year old and kissed her sweet little head goodnight.  One year ago, I was kissing that same sweet head, only hours old on our first night together.  Unbelievably, today has already come and gone.  She is one!!  No longer a baby, but quickly moving into that toddler stage...

I have much going on in my heart and mind, much I want to share with you and of course, pictures galore. But tonight as I lay my head on my pillow, I have one phrase that keeps running through my head...

Joy!  Unspeakable joy....

I know that lyric is from a Chris Tomlin song, but it's on my heart tonight because it's what this past year has meant and brought to us.  Joy.  So much joy.  Ava has been the biggest blessing we've ever received and this past year has been an absolute gift from God.  We have experienced more joy in one year than some people do in a lifetime.  And I'm overwhelmed with gratitude because of it.

I will post pictures and tell you all about our sweet day soon, but for tonight, the verse we chose for her birth announcement is a fitting way for me to sum up this first year...

"The Lord has done this, and it is marvelous in our eyes."  Psalm 118:23


Thank you Lord for the sweet blessing you gave us, just one year ago, when you brought our little Ava Page into our hearts and our lives forever....

She is truly our joy, unspeakable joy!!

Re-Living the Past

While I was home last week, I took advantage of a sunny afternoon and got in the car with Ava and my sister Jennie, to do something I've been looking forward to for awhile.  I am so excited that Ava is at the perfect age to begin playing at the park.  She loves to be outside and I think we will be spending as much time as we can this summer and fall exploring our local parks.  Anyway, I had a little spot in mind that I wanted to take her, just minutes from the house I grew up in.  I grew up calling it "circus park" and spent many hours there, including a birthday party or two.  In my mind I could still picture it, but I had no idea if it was still in existence or not.  I was thrilled when we pulled up and discovered, it was still there and contained much of the old playground equipment!  

It's definitely seen better days and several of the "attractions" are not in the shape they used to be in, but I loved the vintage feel it still had and the fact that it's not even been repainted since I was little!  I was amazed at the memories that came flooding back as I walked around, this time not as a child, but as a parent with my own daughter.  

Ava was also intrigued, happy to be out of the car I think :) 

We took her right to the baby swings while she giggled and kicked her little legs!

She loved getting pushes from Aunt Jennie and let us know with that toothy grin of hers!

But because she's a curious little thing, she had to examine everything around her, including the sand beneath us.

And then she must have set her sights on something interesting :) 

She looks like a little navigator, huh?

I have a feeling we will be logging many hours in baby swings this summer!

After the swinging ran its course, we walked over to the gem of this park...The old, original elephant slide.  I could not believe it was still here and how nostalgic it made me!  It was exactly how I remembered it.  Old, metal and steep.  I LOVED it when I was a kid!

Ava liked it too :) Must be hereditary!

Aunt Jennie helped her sit at the top and we both helped her slide down...So weird to think I was doing the same thing, many years ago.

I remember being in high school and college, driving around my hometown, wondering what kind of plans God had for my life.  Would I live here someday, where I grew up?  Would I meet my husband there?  What kind of job would I have?  How many kids would God give me, if any?  Where would we buy a house?  Usually I thought about those things when I was discouraged and convinced that God had forgotten me :) I liked to imagine what might be in store and how God might do it...

Never in my wildest dreams could I have painted the picture He was creating for me.  It's surreal today for me to go back home, with my Texan husband and my firstborn baby.  God's plans and more importantly His timing, is always perfect.  I didn't dream big enough when I wondered if He cared about me, about my future.  He has taken me on a ride so wild and fulfilling, it makes me wonder why I ever doubt Him!  In a crazy, sentimental way, being at that old park and re-living some of my childhood gave me a fresh reminder about God's Sovereignty.  Someday I know that Ava will go through those same emotions and have similar thoughts, imagining and dreaming about how the Lord will direct her steps.  I hope I can remind her of what He did for me and how He scripted the best possible story in a way only He could.  

For a moment last week, I soaked up all the sweet nostalgia of being with my baby, in a familiar place.  Funny how God can use a park to remind you He's still there, pen in hand, writing a future that He's had in mind for you all along.  

We had a great day at the park and a fun week being home.  I can't wait for all the other little places and memories I'll get to re-live with her as she grows up!  

The Lord has been so good to me!!

"My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways,' says the Lord.
'For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways,
And My thoughts than your thoughts." Isaiah 55:8-9

Let the Parties Begin!

As much as I've dreaded it and even though I knew it was inevitable, somehow my "baby" is just days away from turning one.  How is that possible??  Where has this year gone??  I can clearly remember, exactly what I was doing just a year ago, waiting and waiting for Miss Ava to make her big debut in our lives.  I spent my days walking and walking and walking, trying to coax her out but she was clearly quite  content to stay put.  Now here I am, ordering a cake, wrapping gifts and trying to wrap my mind around having a toddler.  Everyone told me this year was going to go so fast and of course, they were right.  If I wasn't 3 1/2 months pregnant and about to do this all over again, I think I'd be in tears about letting this first year go.  I've loved every stage we've shared with Ava, but there is something very sentimental and hard about letting them pass you by.  I've said it a million times, but I just wish I could stop the hands of time and savor these days a little longer.  I wish I could go back to that hospital room and stare into the eyes of my brand new baby girl all over again.  

But, I can't and so here we are.  It's happening.  Ava's birthday week has officially arrived and we are off and running in the party department!  We celebrated with my family last week, while all three of us were in town, but we have a few more parties ahead as well.  Ava of course had no idea what this was all about, but I think she could get used to the present thing!  

Our big girl!

Lots of fun presents...None more fun than the tissue paper however!  

A little cake my Mom ordered to match our theme :) 

I found the lady bug stuff online and had it shipped to my parents' house...Ava has no fascination with lady bugs, I just thought it was cute! 

Our little spread :) 

Rather than trying my hand at a lady bug cake, I opted the next best thing.  Cupcakes.  

Because they're easy :)   

Maybe if I wasn't pregnant and totally impatient I would have done the Mom thing and made the cake.  

But I doubt it.

I did buy really cute, handmade fondant lady bugs to go on them however!

I think I scored some points for that find, right??

The bakery where my Mom ordered her cake gave us a little smash cake to take with us.  

Which was good because I really didn't want her to smash the lady bug one!

Singing to our little birthday bug!

And blowing out her candle!

And then waiting for her to do something.

Anything.

Like touch it, or smash it, or even eat it.

But the most we got out of her were a few frosting licks :) 

She mostly just stared at us and wondered why we were all staring at her!

But even with just a little frosting, she still managed to make a mess!  

And really, that's all we were going for.  

The classic first birthday look!

Maybe by her 3rd of 4th party, she'll get the hang of it!!  

Winter Wonderland Wedding

In December, I had the privilege of doing a Christmas wedding for Lori and Greg, but in a terrible moment of forgetfulness, I didn't bring my camera with me on the day of the wedding!! I couldn't believe it. I never do that. Anyway, I just got these photos back from their photographer and I love them!  I've been waiting to get these so I could share them, and I'm so happy with how they turned out. He did a beautiful job capturing a gorgeous Minnesota winter day and I thought you might like to see it!

The Happy Couple! 

Red was the color of the day and the theme for this sparkly, winter wedding.

The Groom's bout.  

Loved all the texture in this one, as well as the icy detail that we repeated in Lori's bouquet.  

I always make sure the bride and the groom coordinate.

The Bride's Bouquet.

Lori wanted a non-traditional, nosegay bouquet that was mostly red with touches of white.  Roses, tulips, freesia, hydrangea, protea, hypericum and some seasonal greens helped make this spectacular bouquet pop in a white winter backdrop.  This was a fun bouquet to do because Lori was a girl who loved sparkle and drama!  If it glittered, sparkled or shined, she wanted it!  

Loved all the textures and dimension in both the bride and groom's flowers.

The Groomsmen's bouts.

Mostly white with touches of red.

Gorgeous girls!

Because they wore all red, we went with all white bouquets with touches of red.

White mini callas, roses, stock and lisianthus made up the bridesmaid's bouquets.  

I found a sparkly red jewel that we wove through the flowers and greens to give it a little extra something.

Darling!

Junior Bridesmaid's Bouquets.

Lori's nieces were her junior bridesmaids, so we echoed the same look with smaller bouquets.  

White hydrangea and white roses were all it took to create a round and petite bouquet.

Greg with the two junior bridesmaids.

Lori wanted a similar red, sparkly look in the Church, without a "Christmas" feel.

A memorial table in honor of loved ones.

The unity candle arrangement.

Loved the simple touches we chose for the platform.  One way to save a little money is to use fresh greens with glitter branches and leaves, instead of flowers.  Still gives you a wonderful impact and lots of color without the cost of fresh flowers.

I loved this cake topper!  

Classic red roses with the same jewel flowers in Lori's bouquet.  Simple and gorgeous.

Floating candles are still one the easiest, most inexpensive ways to dress up a table.  A red candle, a sheer silver ribbon and red/clear marbles created the simple look Lori was going for.

This was a fun wedding to do and one of my favorites yet!  

There is nothing like a classic, winter wedding.

And let's face it, Minnesota provides a perfect winter backdrop!

Congratulations Lori and Greg!

Easter Blessings

I hope you had a Jesus-filled Easter like we did!  We had a wonderful time celebrating the resurrection of our Savior with my family in Iowa.  We kicked off the weeked with Trav's birthday on Good Friday and then picked up my sister and brother in law from the airport and made the drive south to our parents' house. 

I've taken the last few days off from my computer, facebook and twitter to just relax and enjoy time with family.  It's been a nice break.  BUT, I'm getting harassed for Easter pictures, so here you go! 

This is a little slice from Ava's first Easter...

I'm not sure who loved the Easter basket more...Ava or her Mommy!  I had the best time filling it for her :)

She got some new snacks, a pair of new shoes, new jammies, bath toys, a new book and a wind-up egg.

We filled her plastic eggs with her favorite yogurt melts.  She was delighted to discover those when she pulled the eggs apart! 

She also loved her new hipppo bath toys, which she got to play with before Church when we gave her a morning bath! 

And then, after we got her all shiny and clean...

There were hardly words...

Isn't she adorable???

Our precious, little Easter girl.

I cannot even tell you how my heart swells at this picture of her in that dress, in that old rocking chair.  My sisters and I have hundreds of pictures of the three of us in that chair.  Now my daughter is rocking in it...Crazy!  Anyway, we loved this little dress on her (which was a sweet gift from her Aunt Shaye and Uncle Troy) and her new Easter shoes went perfectly with it!   

It was a little chilly on Easter morning, but at least we didn't have snow!

Daddy and his Easter bunny :)

Aunt Stacie and Uncle Jesse

Aunt Jennie and Uncle Dave

Grandma and Grandpa

Last Easter I was VERY pregnant with Ava because she was due on Easter Sunday.  It's a good thing she didn't come on Easter because I famously stuffed myself silly with ham :)

 Who knew that this year year I would also be pregnant :)

And this year stuffing myself with BBQ Brisket!!  Ha Ha!!

12 weeks along with baby #2

 Ava was fascinated with the ground...she keep lunging out of my arms to get down!

 So I put her down and she sat around...

 And entertained us all :)

 He is risen!!

He is risen indeed!!

Happy Easter from the Armstrongs...Travis, Stephanie, Ava and Baby :)