Still his mini-me

 

She's always looked like her daddy but I was looking at Ryan's childhood pictures recently I was taken back at just how much they favor each other still. Ran across this picture that was so identical to the one I had taken just earlier that week of Ava. Still his mini-me...

 

 

 

 

Hello Spring!

 

I have some other posts I might catch up on later but today I just want to bask in the fact that Ryan's deadline is done! We are so excited to see him again. March was definitely mostly a survival month as the state of my car and house still have lingering evidence of. I've been slowly working on getting things back in order but mostly enjoyed putting it off a little longer for some rest, relaxation and family Easter fun this weekend.  

 

Ava dyed her first Easter eggs last night!

 



 

We had a fun egg hunt this morning at church.

 

 

The biggest hit of the festivities were the Eatser goats!

(yea, I don't know either what goats have to do with Easter but they were definitely Ava's fav part of the morning, some sweet members of our church brought a mama and baby Pygmy goats for the kids to pet and feed).

 

She told me later "the goats make me so happy."

 

 

35 Weeks!

 



"Sure mom, I'll take a picture with you and baby brother as long as my stick can be in the picture".

One of those times its better to just go with it.

 



Spring of 2013 you will be a memorable one in the life of this little family.

Our Ava bear is turning 3 and we will meet our baby boy in a matter of just weeks. Welcome back old friend!

Ebb and Flow

I usually document in this space the highlights of our family life, things I am passionate about or inspired by, things I can look back and remember the essence and usually the goodness of whatever season of life we are in at that time. On the other side of that coin I also value vulnerability, transparency and true expressions of growth throw difficult and challenging times.

So today I don't have cute Ava pictures to post, baby preparations to discuss or other light hearted thoughts to share. To be honest, last week was a  hard week. Ryan's working longer hours with a work deadline rapidly approaching. Ava and I have had some not good times together last week. We've had more melt downs, limit testing, bedtime shenanigans, and saying my patience has been worn thin feels like even a nice way to put it. I am feeling my body slowing down as this pregnancy is reaching the final stage, hormones are leaving me more emotional, getting good sleep can be challenging. I haven't been the best me or mommy me that I wanted to be last week. Parenting brings out the best in us but also the weakest parts of us.

I know these times ebb and flow. The end of the week things have started to improve. I am finding my stride again with patience and consistency in the parenting department. I am thankful for new week, even if today already had some car troubles and change of plans for our day, its still off to a better start. We are gritting our teeth and ready to get through this week, We won't see Ryan much during waking hours and can't wait till this time next week when this deadline should be in the books for 2013.

Mudpies and Goodbyes

Our recent weather has had a few spring previews. Ava enjoyed making her first mud pies on a recent sunshine Sunday. It kept her occupied for over an hour of intense play. In toddler time that's forever!

 

 

In other news our next door neighbors moved recently. They had the sweetest kids slightly older than Ava and were so kind and neighborly its sad to see them go. I need to go meet the new neighbors but I'm still in a bit of mourning.






 

Can't wait for the sunshine weekend that appears to be in store. Here's to more days of mudpies than goodbyes.



Joy

 

Our Wednesday night Ladies Bible Class just finished this book/study. I felt challenged and inspired by in and our class discussions. The many things that stick out to me is that there are like three times as many scripture about joy then about sorrow in the Bible. He intended Joy to be a part of our Christian fabric of who we are. One part of the book talks about finding and seeking out 'Joy mentors' as one way to work on your joy. I felt convicted that I would like to be a joy mentor for my children and family especially but as I reflect on my day to day with my family during this season of our life, while joy is present, I also get frazzled, cranky and worry about things more than I want too. I really would like to grow in my joy and grow in becoming one that nurtures joy in others (another concept in the book). It is for sure a life long spiritual journey to not only keep the small things but even much more the big storms of life from stealing our joy. Something I knew but need to be drawn back to again and again, circumstance does not define our joyfulness - our hope and confidence in God, he's ultimate plan and care-taking of us does.

Gratitude is one way to grow your joy. I think being intentional about focusing our thankfulness on even the tiniest of blessings is meaningful on my joy journey. So here's a list of gratitude's that left me smiling this week:

• Ava referring to the store 'Old Navy' as 'Old Lady'. She loves 'Old Lady' because they give her a balloon almost every time we go. I have had some birthday money to spend, so getting some maternity clothes that actually fit has kept us with a few return trips recently. (Who wants to try anything on in the store when your 7 months pregnant with your toddler in tow). Friday when the lady asked her if she wanted one, She turned to me, not sure if she should say yes and she whispered "Can I, I already have one at home?". She was sure this exempted her from getting another. I loved that moment.
• Ryan has been on a mission a birthday gift he wanted me to have. At this point I have to say the biggest gift is actually how important it has become to him to get the one he feels is just what he wanted me to have.
• Thursday was a great day at work. I had a great training in the morning with my team and then had the best sessions in the afternoon. I was so proud of the two sessions I was part of for the kind of hard and challenging work those parents are doing to make real changes. I am co-therapist on each case as I am assisting a staff member that is training in a specific therapy model. Everywhere I turned it seemed whether it was staff or clients I was impressed with the courage and fortitude it takes to grow and make real change.
• Getting to celebrate Allie B's birthday with her.
• Getting Baby Boy's bedding in the mail, starting on his room.
• Being inspired by a dear friend's faith through a possible foster/adoption journey. I know God must smile on her faithfulness and many others that put their hearts out there in that way not knowing how it will all unfold but surrendering it to God to guide the path.

 

 



First Sleep Over

 

Last Friday Ava went on her first sleep over. Since her birth she has never stayed the night away from both Ryan and I so this was a big milestone for us. I was hoping to plan a few over-nights for her before baby brother's birth will have us away at the hospital for a few days. The destination was Aunt Amy's, grandma also came to join the fun. The week before she asked me every day if it was the day she was getting to have her sleep over.  She was so excited when Friday finally came. She eagerly helped me pack her suitcase. I had our church's ladies retreat that night. We both had lots of fun at our sleep overs and stayed up way past our bed times. We enjoyed long naps the next day. First sleep over is in the books. 

snow!

Last week we enjoyed a less than 24 hour blanket of snow. I came home from work a little early as I wanted to take Ava out in it before it got dark. My work week from the week before was a doozy, I was held up everyday for end of day crisis' that staff needed assistance with. So as I watched the snow accumulate from my office window I knew I wanted to redeem some of those longer work days away from her with some memorable snow moments. 

 

I love working with the team I do that supports me in the way they do. That fact that I get to work a part time option while continuing to advance in leadership there is unique and I know a true blessing that I do not take for granted. I could predict my boss' response, who has this great ability to inspire you to perform your best by supporting/valuing you as a whole person. In our line of work as in many lines of work you can't really separate the two. You are the tool you use to do the work you do. Your growth as a professional is intertwined with your growth as a person. If you empty yourself in either role without filling yourself back up, you can't bring the best of you to those roles. So I got the big thumbs up, of course, go be with your girl, we are good from here from her and the other management team member that were holding down the fort that day. The message always being we take turns holding the fort and I love fort holding with the team I do.

 

We spent more time bundling and unbundling then we did in the snow. After a few snow balls thrown, a few laughs shared as we leaned heads back sticking our tongues out to catch the giant snow flakes and a few moments enjoying our crunchy boot sounds as we trecked around the back yard, she told me it was cold and we should go back inside.  Fair enough. It was still exactly what I hoped it would be, I'll show her the pictures, she won't probably have a clear memory of that day but like so many other my-heart-is-full mommy moments this will be tucked away and treasured for me for some time to come. My grandmother says that memories are one of God's greatest blessings, we can take the best moments and re-visit them again and again. I would very much have to agree.