One year ago

One year ago I was pregnant and coming up on my due date of March 21st. Kevin and I were driving back from the bay area and saw this beautiful almond orchard in full bloom, where we stopped the car on the side of the road, and ran out into the blossoms and snapped a few pics of my pregnant belly (here).

Last week, the blossoms were coming to a close and I thought it would be fun to snap some with the sweet baby who was hibernating in my belly last year:) The blossoms are mostly off the trees, and the lighting isn't great, but I didn't care…it was so fun to just see the difference a year makes!

A year ago I was dreaming of holding my sweet baby girl, praying into her life, singing to her in my belly, and preparing for birth (and agonizing over her being So late, haha!). What an incredible time that was. I look back at it as such a sweet time where the Lord was catching all my fears and excitement in his hands, gifting me a peace that surpassed all understanding, and a season of celebration for the life to come. I'm so grateful when I look back on those few months before her birth. They were lovely.

In a few weeks, on April 4th, Avonlea turns one year old (HOLY MOLY!). We are having a little birthday party for her, and I can't wait to really reminisce on this past year with her. But for now, here are my pictures one year a part, wearing the same dress, but one with the hope of a child to come, and one with my little treasure in my arms:)

Happy Tuesday! xoxo

{haha I laugh at that picture on the right…i'm so pregnant and am just ready to have my baby, hehe!}
 My little blossom:) 

Why, hello friends! Happy 2018

{avie & I in Liverpool, about the enter the Beatles Museum!!}

Goodness me, it's 2018 and this is my first blog entry of the new year! Hello again:)

We've been busy this year, in a good and lovely sort of way. We spent almost the entire month of January in England. It was delightful getting the grand tour from our British friends Matt and Kate. You may remember them from when they came to visit us in California (overview, Newport and Laguna,  Big Sur and SLO, Capitola/Santa Cruz, and Yosemite ). There will hopefully be lots of lovely England posts to fill this space soon.

Then February came and with it I was caught up in Olympic glory! Guys...I LOVE the olympics. Like am obsessed with it. Just ask Kevin. Every day before work, and immediately after work, I would stream the olympics online (we don't have a tv) and go crazy wild with my excitement. I cried heavy tears of joy when Jessie Diggins crossed that finish line, clapped hard when Shawn White won the halfpipe (I brought the laptop into Avonlea's nursery and watched it while I nursed her to sleep...don't judge!), and pretty much lost my marbles in laughter and awe when Ester Ledecka (the snowboarder from the Czech Republic) won the downhill ski event.

So now i'm back in the swing of things (I think) and am hoping to get some England pics up on this blog, as well as Avonlea pics. You guys, she is So precious. Can I share with you something special that happened a few weeks ago? I wrote it down so I would NEVER forget it, it was that heart warming...

"Something truly magical happened. Being a mom is funny in that an ordinary day can turn into a most extraordinary wonder, all because your child does something so out of your mind's reach. Today for instance, I picked up Avonlea from her nap. She was so sweet and smiley, and as we sat down on the couch together, I took her out of her sleep sack. I reclined on the couch with my back up against some pillows. Avonlea a funny face which sent me into a fit of laughter. Seeing my laughter, she put her face right up against mine, and started genuinely cracking up. Which of course sent me into full on belly laughter. She would sit up, see me laughing, and then plunge back down cheek to cheek with me, and start seizing with laughter. She just laid on me, her face resting on mine, and we both went back and forth laughing for about 10 minutes. I couldn't even handle the situation, how precious and adorable our interaction was. We were bonding in this beautiful connected way. No words were needed...just laughter and some skin to skin. It was one of the most wonderful moments of my life. She was completely in synch with me in a way i've never experience before. I never want to forget this, hence the blog post:)"

How have YOU been? xoxo