Personal: Eli is 3

I quietly slip into his room every night just to squeeze in one last peek before I go to bed. It’s these quiet moments – as I’m tucking the falling blanket over his arms- that I most often think about the beautiful blessing we’ve been given. I remember praying for this child – this precious little boy even before he was born. We waited eagerly for him and counted the days until we could hold his tiny hands. I would stay up late pondering the possibly of who he would become and what his character would be. He has grown since the first day we met, but his hands still fit nicely in my own. He reminds me so much of his daddy, but he’s got his own personality too. Now days I soak up all the snuggles, hugs, and kisses he’ll let me have because I know that someday they will be fewer and farther between. I know that my role as his mommy will change over time, as all relationships do – but most nights I wish that time would pass slowly to let me savor him as my little boy a bit longer.

“I’ll love you forever, I’ll like you for always, as long as I’m living my baby you’ll be.” – Robert Munsch

Eli turned 3 over the weekend – my little boy is growing up! I love him with all my heart and I’m so proud of the little man he is becoming. I cherish all the smiles, laughter, and love he has brought to our little family. He is the sweetest boy I know, and I feel beyond blessed to be his mommy. Happy birthday Eli – you are loved more than you know!

Here are some pics from his special week:-)

Eli is so special they had a festival in town on his birthday! He loved it – and wore his birthday crown the whole time:-)
This past week Eli wanted to have a pillow fight on our bed – so I of course grabbed my camera. I LOVE these pictures – and it was so much fun!

James took some video of Eli the morning of his birthday – this little clip was too adorable not to share!

 

20130428 01786trim from James Kanka on Vimeo.

We love you Eli – my beautiful, bright, and wonderful 3 yr. old

Personal: Friends

They share pretzels and hugs as they giggle over toddler conversation – and my heart is overflowing with joy. This is Eli and his buddy Anna – they are like two peas in a pod. She came over to play last week and I couldn’t help taking some pictures.

Aren’t they adorable?

 

Personal: Un-planned Fun!

He smiled mischievously at me as he aimed the water at my toes. His giggles could be heard across the parking lot. He ran around the balcony aiming at anything and everything he could find. It was a beautiful moment of joy and I had to capture it on camera- the real one. Not just my iPhone photos that I love to take for sheer easiness. I grabbed my camera excited to capture my little boy being exactly that – a little boy.

You wouldn’t know it but yesterday morning did not go as planned. My snuggly son came into our bed to give us hugs and got sick on top of us daddy in our bed bed. I quickly realized our day wasn’t going to go as planned. I was selfishly bummed that we would have to take it easy and stay near the apartment. It was a gorgeous spring day outside and I wanted to go enjoy it. As the day progressed Eli seemed to be fine – praise God. (Not sure if the getting sick thing was just a fluke or what but I’m happy to say we avoided the disgusting stomach bug.)  And I began to think – just because the day didn’t go as planned doesn’t mean we can’t enjoy ourselves right here, right now. So that is exactly what we did – and it was perfect!

The whole day was a great reflection for me. I began to think about my plans vs. God’s plans and this day was a perfect reminder. How many times does our life not go according to our plans or our wishes? Sometimes we think we are entitled to have things, or  we feel we’ve earned it -only to have those exact things slip away. It’s easy to get mad, frustrated, and feel bewildered. Thankfully, I believe in God and I know He has perfect plans for me and that they will happen at the exact right moment. Even though I can’t see the big picture – I have joy knowing that God does.

Happy spring ya’ll! As a friend put it, yes, I can say that – I live in the south now!

Personal: Snow Day!

Some of my favorite childhood memories involve snow. I used to love peeking out the window on winter mornings to find a magical blanket of white just waiting for me to jump in. Growing up in Michigan we experienced a lot of snow! With milder temps here in Tennessee I was sure we would miss out on fun snow day activities  this year. You can imagine our surprise a couple weeks ago when we woke up to snow!!! I think I was just as exited as Eli that morning. We quickly bundled up, grabbed our camera, and rushed out the door to have a little fun in the snow before it melted. It was a lovely morning, and Eli spent the entire time eating snow.  At one point I was worried he was going to get frost bite on his lips- they were blue from all the snow. After our excursion outside we headed to historic downtown and had coffee and hot chocolate. By the time we left the coffee shop all the snow had already melted. Here are some of my favorite pics from our snowy morning – enjoy!

Happy Valentine’s Day!

It’s valentine’s day! Even though Eli and I have been pretty sick the last two weeks- we decided to do a little impromptu photo session this morning to wish you a very happy valentine’s day. Go and enjoy this day with those you love! Also, check back soon for lots of new update posts- I have so many photos to catch up on.

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