Project Life: Week 20

 Welcome to Week 20!

 

Welcome to Week 20! 

For more information and inspiration, check out Jessica Turner's blog @ The Mom Creative

Saturday, May14


The cold snap that had been predicted all week finally set in today. It was rainy, cold, and otherwise nasty--the perfect day for one last batch of chili.

Sunday, May 15


In Elaina's world, where one is good, two are even better. This is true for stuffed animals, books, pacis, and, as demonstrated here, sippy cups. I think the only thing that would have made her happier would have been two mouths with which to drink!

Monday, May 16


After awakening to the sound of Winston getting sick, I decided to take this slightly warmer evening to brush him out. I'm fairly certain there is at least another cat's worth of fur there...

Tuesday, May 17


Happy bath baby!!

Wednesday, May 18


Tonight Elaina enjoyed her snack at the table, sitting on Daddy's lap.

Thursday, May 19


In addition to the garden, we started a few seeds for watermelon and tomatillo in peat pots. Today we finally started noticing growth!

Friday, May 20


Josh got a call from our building company today and found out, much to our irritation, that the property lines hadn't been properly marked last year and that two of the newly planted trees were technically four feet over. He was told he could move them or, should anyone ever build on the lot next to ours, the trees would be theirs. Needless to say, Josh moved them!

Project Life: Week 19

Welcome to Week 19!

For more information and inspiration, check out Jessica Turner's blog @ The Mom Creative.

Saturday, April 30
After a busy day, we went to Josh's folks for dinner. Elaina enjoyed her time with Papa!


Sunday, May 1
Mother's Day. A couple of pictures of me and my girl. She is so, so special, and such a gift! I can't believe next year I'll have two!



 
Monday, May 2
While Josh finished putting the fence around our garden, I got the pleasure of chasing this ornery little girl :)


Tuesday, May 3
We finished our garden! Josh and I decided we may have been a bit ambitious in our plant selection: we have, I believe, 18 tomato plants and 14 pepper plants, in addition to peas, basil, cilantro, cucumber, and watermelon. Hope it pays off in a couple of months!


I also messed around with the settings on the camera and shot a few black and white pics of my favorite subject:
 




Wednesday, May 4
Playing with Elaina in the evening. I wish I'd known I looked like death warmed over before I asked Josh to take a picture!
 

Thursday, May 5
No picture

Friday, May 6
Elaina has discovered the joy of not only drinking out of a big girl cup, but of playing in it as well. Josh gave her a drink of water, and she found much amusement washing her hands!

 

Have a blessed week!

Project Life: Week 18

 

Welcome to Week 18! 

For more information and inspiration, check out Jessica Turner's blog @ The Mom Creative.

Saturday, April 30th

Today Mom and Dad came for a visit. It was finally dry enough to till for our garden and plant new trees, so while Josh and Dad went about manlier pursuits, Mom and I got Elaina's 18-month/Easter pictures taken. It was an exercise in exhaustion for all of us--Elaina napped on the way home, and I think both Mom and I would have liked to. But, you can't argue with the results :)

 

Sunday, May 1st

Today Josh made his first attempt to roast corn on his new grill. The results were quite tasty!

Monday, May 2nd

No picture.

Tuesday, May 3rd

Elaina had a rough night tonight, but we've stumbled upon a solution that meets most of her needs. For her first birthday, I made a video of pictures/videos set to the songs "Faithful One" by Selah and "You Cannot Lose My Love" by Sara Groves. I put it on for her one night, thinking she'd like to see pictures of her family, and she sat transfixed for the entire thing. It has become a nightly routine.

Wednesday, May 4th

Tonight Josh worked in the yard while I played with Elaina on her slide and went for a walk. When we got home, Josh proudly showed me the "yard toupee" he'd created to fill in some gaps in the landscaping.

Thursday, May 5th

Tonight Elaina ate her snack while sitting at the table. This is notable for several reasons, the least of which is not that she sat at the table, not on the table.

Friday, May 6th

Nothing special today, but I noticed Winston hasn't been getting as much face time as Chappu, and that can only be remedied by this:

Project Life: Week 17

Week 17



In the grand scheme of things, this will probably go down as one of the least pleasant weeks of the year thus far. It was rainy and cold, and life was messy. Thankfully, with God's help (and the hugs of a certain little girl), we made it through. Here's a look back on our week, and here's to hoping for a brighter one this time!

Saturday, April 23
Today we went to Gramma's to celebrate Easter and Dad's birthday, but we decided to have some family time at home before leaving. Elaina emptied out our magazine holder, put it on top of her toybox, and climbed inside, proud as could be of this accomplishment!

 

We had a really nice time at the farm. It was a little windy and a little cool, but the time with family made up for the less-than-ideal weather. Here, Mom, Elaina, and I relax on the front porch. The farmhouse has been a part of our family for over 150 years (I think), and to me, it's a little piece of Heaven on earth.



Sunday, April 24
Today was Easter, a day set aside to celebrate Christ's resurrection and freedom from sin. Instead, our day seemed to be surrounded by it. Or, to put it much less eloquently, it was a day sandwiched in crap. Crappy morning, okay mid-day, crappy afternoon/evening. Needless to say, I didn't even get a picture of Elaina in her Easter dress. Here, she is relaxing with Daddy after our crap-tastic day, watching Dora the Explorer. As a general rule, we don't put the television on for her, but I think tonight we all needed a little something together.



Monday, April 25
Tonight's entertainment came in the form of a laughing, squalling toddler being thrown through the air to land on our bed. No matter how bad the day is (and today was pretty bad, too), nothing is so bad that it keeps me from appreciating her smiles, her laughs, and her Daddy.



 

Tuesday, April 26
After dinner, Elaina and I took a walk while Josh constructed his new grill. He was quite proud of himself once he had it all together, and all of our tummies have benefited from it!


Wednesday, April 27
One of Chappu's nicknames is "Chompers". The cat has the most disproportionately long fangs of any cat I've ever seen, and he bares them most when begging for his ball to be thrown (one of the reasons we refer to him as our Dog-Cat). Guess what I was enticing him with here? 
 

Thursday, April 28
 While I was fixing dinner tonight, I noticed Elaina was particularly quiet. Not sure what trouble she'd gotten herself in to, I looked into the living room. She'd pulled herself into the lazy boy with a couple of books (The Little Engine that Could is a current favorite) and was happily reading to herself.
 

Friday, April 29
No picture, just a couple of words of thanksgiving. One, we made it through an incredibly long, hard, and trying week. And two, my precious baby is officially a year and a half old as of today. I can't believe how fast this time has gone. Each day I am in awe that God has trusted us with such a special gift. My prayer is that we raise her in a way worthy of the gift she is to us.

 

Healing Hugs

Yesterday was Easter Sunday, a day set aside to celebrate redemption and forgiveness and hope.

Unfortunately, yesterday was also a day of sadness and heartache and reminders that even though Christ came to take away the sins of the world, they are still very much a part of our human experience. The day was punctuated by pain at its start and pain at its end. I told Rachel that I felt stuck in Saturday--like Good Friday had come, but we were still waiting for Easter.

Thankfully, God provided healing hugs...glimpses of the hope this day brings.

The first came with the first pain. As we watched the news and Josh read Elaina a story, my phone rang--a call from a loved one, a call I had somewhat anticipated, but a painful one nonetheless. I was able to hold it together until the call end it, and as I closed my phone, I hid my face in my hands and wept. Josh told me my crying was upsetting Elaina, but I couldn't stop. And then, my sweet baby squirmed down from her daddy's lap and ran over to me, arms extended, anticipation washing her face. I picked her up and she wrapped her arms around my neck. When our hug was finished, she sat next to me on the couch, a content smile spread across her lips, as though she knew she had helped. And she had. Not even quite 18 months old, too little to rationalize why I was upset, or that I'd be fine after a few minutes, she reacted in love. There are so many things I don't know about what her life will hold, but I know if this is her heart as a toddler, she is destined to do great things with her love.

Her hug was of healing, of, it's going to be okay, Mommy, of, Mommy, don't cry. Of I love you. Of it won't last forever. Of there is reason to hope, reason to hold on.

I kissed her on the head as she smiled, and our morning continued. When the day fell apart again later that afternoon, her arms wrapped around my neck once again, and I breathed in her comfort--God's comfort--and exhaled.

The Reason to hope had been hidden, but it was there all along.

Project Life: Week 16

Here's a little glimpse into the 16th week of our year. I didn't take pictures Saturday or Thursday, so Sunday and Monday are two-for-the-price-of-one :) For more creative ideas, hop over to The Mom Creative!

Saturday, April 16
No picture

Sunday, April 17
A busy Sunday. After church, Rita came over and helped me decorate our bathroom, and our grill and lawn mower were delivered later in the afternoon. Josh took Elaina out for a spin. She wasn't sure what to make of it--as her expression clearly suggests!



Later, we played in the backyard. Ever the observant child, Elaina decided to try the grass out for a taste. After all, it seemed good enough for the cats!


Monday, April 18

Josh decided to "work out" with Elaina. She loved it!



 

Tuesday, April 19
 Chappu has a reputation as being a lap stalker, and tonight, he followed me into the kitchen and leg-rubbed until I came back the living room for a seat. He's going to be disappointed when there's no room left!



Wednesday, April 20
After being poked with needles seven times in two weeks, I decided a batch of cookies was just what the doctor ordered. Yum!



Thursday, April 21
No picture

Friday, April 22

I had today off for Good Friday and got to spend the day with my girl. While she was napping, Winston struck a pose. Such a good cat.

Project Life: Week 15

Welcome to Week 15 of Project Life!  I am really enjoying documenting our year. For more info and inspiration, check out The Mom Creative!

Saturday, April 9

Today we celebrated my grandparents' 65th anniversary. What a blessing to celebrate two anniversary milestones in less than a month! And don't they look great? :)

Had to also include this picture of the cousins playing Gramma's piano. Rylan, Brycelynn, and Elaina had a blast!

 Sunday, April 10

While I was pregnant with Elaina, Josh's cousin Tony was exploring Central and South America. He brought back a beautiful dress from Nicaragua for our little girl. Today, she wore it for the first time. :)



Monday, April 11

Perhaps a little out of sorts from a busy weekend, Elaina didn't take her normal nap today and instead fell asleep on our way home. When she woke up a little early, I gathered her into my arms and let her continue her nap there. It seems like only yesterday these naps were part of our every day. They are much more fleeting now, and I cherish every one.




Tuesday, April 12

Elaina is learning her body parts and can correctly identify her nose, eyes, hair, feet, and so on, but her absolute favorite is "BELLY!"




Wednesday, April 13

At supper tonight, Elaina found endless amusement at Daddy's kissing face. I love how much they love each other.




Thursday, April 14

Today I got the absolute best parking spot I've ever gotten at work, and I had to take a picture. This may not seem significant, but when you consider that once inside the building, I still have a good five minute walk to my desk (no joke) and the fact that I'm into my third trimester now, this was an event worth celebrating!




Friday, April 15

After failing my initial gestational diabetes screening by seven measly points, today I had to take the three-hour glucose test (ugh). Josh took a picture of my war wounds, which are now a lovely shade of greyish green.