1000 gifts

i saw this video and wanted to share it here. i was encouraged and convicted at the same time throughout all 4 minutes of it. i don't do this perfect. not even close. but i want to. and i will lord willing. to just be thankful and present throughout all these 'moments'. like really present though.

a few weeks ago i was shopping at publix and a sweet man who was stocking the aisle turned to greet georgia and i and then asked 'if school was cancelled that day'. i said 'i don't think so' and then he said 'oh okay i was just wondering since you had her with you'. i laughed and said 'she's always with me'. i was kinda being sarcastic. then he smiled and said...

"so you're one of those lucky ones"

i've thought about that sentence a hundred times since that day. he spoke such truth into my life that day with those 7 words. i don't want to just think about those words. i want that thought to sink so deep that everyday i feel lucky. blessed. alive. present. in all the moments in this ordinary, holy life.

enjoy the video. enjoy your day. be back soon...

a ballerina party

last week was a fun one. in addition to snow we had a visit from aunt tricia {more on that later} and a ballerina party. maggie turned 3 and her mom decided a ballerina party was in order. it was a blast with a surprise the girls loved...

so here's my ballerina girl pre-tutu. you have no idea how much time it took me to slick back her hair. but if you say to dress like a ballerina...you know i'm going to do it right ;)

she wasn't quite sure what to think when we first got there. there was a mirror set up for them to see themselves twirl and she wasn't twirling. she was holding tight...with a frown at that. silly girl...
she loosened up pretty quickly though when her buddies started encouraging her to dance. why are 3 foot little people so adorable???
having a little 'tutu' drink...that's cotton candy on top of sprite. precious and yum....

finally liking what she sees. unlike her mother it takes her a while to loosen up in social settings. she gets that from her daddy. but once she feels comfortable, it's all show...

all the ballerina girls waiting for the surprise...

they were mesmerized. i was too. she was beautiful and magical. it was so fun seeing the wonder in their eyes as they watched her dance...

and naturally it didn't take long before they were interested in dancing as well. georgia has the same little ballerina routine that she does for us so i was just waiting for her to start going...

she so didn't want that party to end. when it was time to tell the ballerina goodbye she looked up at me like this....

she's been talking about the 'real' ballerina since last saturday. she tells me she's going to be one and of course she's usually dressed like one by 7am each morning. i love having a girl. they are just the sweetest little things and i never ever get tired of pink. or ballerinas. or dreams of being ballerinas. or anything else for that matter really.

hello 2011. i'm a little behind...

hope you all are enjoying this new year. i'm still packing up christmas decorations so i'm just going to pretend that the new year starts this weekend okay? that way i won't feel a little disappointed in myself that i've started this new year off behind already. and speaking of behinds, seriously this girl has a one cheek wedgie at all times. she's even learned to pull her pants down and remove her pull-up wedgie herself. it's kinda adorable.

she's also learned to cross her legs...

which is how she likes to watch her movies or sit on the floor or whatever. she's so into being a 'big girl' right now. and big girl and a princess. just this morning she was dressed in her snow white costume and she kept telling me to 'say hey snow white...say what you doing snow white'...in other words she was bossing me around telling me how to role play with her. and bossy she is. we're working on that though.

our holiday were great. lots of time together and with family. my parents couldn't be more happier than with these 5 bitties around them...

georgia has asked several more times if today was jesus' birthday. she had a blast on christmas and we made sure to do some special things with her to build our own traditions that make it sacred and fun. at one point this weekend she was standing on the back of our couch yelling at the top of her lungs..."glory to god in the heyist {highest}...we're so glad you were born. happy birthday jesus". it's on video. priceless. you can hear me chuckle when she gets to the 'heyist' part every time. i love kids.

and about big girls again...she also asks all the time when she gets to sleep in a big girl bed. her papa is going to help me build her a daybed {although he doesn't know that yet} and we're turning our guest room into her big girl room. here's the inspiration room...

the wall are already painted blue and i'm starting to put all the pieces together and gather fabric samples for the final decision. our hopes are to have it completed by her birthday so we've got 6 months. which sounds like a long time but when you're on a budget it helps to do a little each week to get it done like you want it. her current room will become a playroom. i'm just as excited about this room as i am her big girl room. i'm going to leave it painted it way it is but one new addition will be this 6 foot console that will soon be a pink craft desk...

this is the before picture obviously. i'm going to knock out that middle part to make it a desk. paint it bubblegum pink. add some fun knobs and a covered bench for the seat. it's going to be a great piece when i finish with it. and the best part was that is was $9 at our local thriftstore. love that. so she'll have two rooms to herself and hopefully i can regain control of our living room again. as for the guest room...well it will now be in the bottom of our linen closet a.k.a. a blow up mattress. that makes lots of you excited about coming to visit right????

okay so happy new year. 2011 is going to be a great year. i just know it.