how owning a home has changed me...

it hasn't.

if i was a woman of few words, i would leave it at that.
but you all know better than that. ha!

before i begin... let me just say that i love my new home.
love it.
i am thankful for it.
i am totally aware of how blessed i am.
and i do not take it for granted.
not one bit.

however.
after spending time with a variety of people over the last several years, i was under the impression that something magical happened as soon as you signed a contract stating that you...er...the bank...now own a particular house. (please note the sarcastic tone)
i remember feeling like people looked down on me.
like they were just a little bit above me.
and was even informed that i was considered lower-class until i owned a home.

i admit that while i know absolutely that God is not a respecter of persons, and he does not ever love one person more than another based on their possessions, i still struggled.
still.
i still struggled with not only feeling like less of a person,
but i struggled with judging the people who thought they were so great because they owned a home!
it looks ugly when i type it, especially in bold black type, but it's the honest to goodness truth.
i know my Bible.
i know my God.
and i know that God doesn't care about that stuff.
so this is why it would frustrate me that other people acted as if they didn't know this part of the Bible!
i never understood it, but i honestly thought that maybe i would get it once i owned a house.
i thought that maybe i would wake up the first morning in my new home and suddenly feel different.

i didn't.
i felt the same.
because i am the same.

last fall i took a few pictures of adam and the boys playing outside and it looked like this

and then i took a few pictures of adam and the boys playing outside today.
those look like this.

weird, right? they look a lot the same!
and that is the point.
i am the same.
i am who i am because of who God made me and what He created me to do.
not what i decide to own.

i hope and pray that any person reading this right now who doesn't own a home will stop feeling like you are less of a person than anyone else!!
you. are. not.
i hope that you will ignore the looks and comments of other people around you who are thinking less of you.
let. it. go.
and i hope you will be able to hold onto the truth of where true worth comes from:
it comes from a loving Father who created you and had plans for you before you were even born.
pretty amazing.
that is who you are.
don't let other people make you feel any differently..
it just. ain't. true.

"finally brothers and sister, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable - if anything is excellent or praiseworthy - think about such things."

philippians. 4:8

Awana and all that jazz

our church has offered awana  for over 20 years.
it is a pretty amazing program that gives kids the opportunity to memorize tons of scripture.
i mean tons.
i don't know the exact number but it has to be close to 600.
they also have a game time, a Bible teaching time, and are able to earn patches and awards along the way.
the boys worked really hard this year and completed their books.

aj completed the entire program (our church only offers up to the 6th grade)
this means he completed NINE books!

we are so proud of our boys and have seen over and over the benefits of having so much Bible memorized!
even adam, to this day, can remember many verses that he memorized at his church's awana program when he was 10 years old!
pretty awesome!

here are the boys with their listeners.
aj with ethan
and riley with matt.

photography 101 - photoshop creations

if you're anything like me, you love seeing those little wall hangings at marshalls or tjmaxx that have all different sayings, with a variety of fonts.

i see them all the time, and either don't want to spend the money (i am pretty cheap!)

or they just don't have quite the right sayings.

so.

if you have photoshop...you are in luck.

if you don't, you can download a free trial version and get 30 days for free!

if you don't have a variety of fonts already on your computer, there are many different places you can go to snag some.

1001 free fonts, dafont, and font squirrel have some really good ones!

then you can pick your own sayings and make your own little artwork!

you open a new file in photoshop.

make it whatever size you plan on purchasing (in inches not pixels)

then you start creating!

here is one that i made a few months ago with quote i found that i loved

and then right after the boston marathon bombings, i found this Bible verse that i thought was so exactly what was needed so i made this..

you can get creative and use different backgrounds.

i will add this one here, in case you want to use it. 

you can google to find free paper backgrounds and come up with quite a few!

you can use this as the background by going to file. then place. once you do that, it will give you the option to add any pictures from your computer as the background.

once you have used whatever fonts and words you want, you can save it as a jpeg file.

then you can order a print through any company, but i recommend mpix. 

and you can buy different mountings through them as well which you can see here.

i have bought the foam core and the double weight matboard, and really like both of them!    then you can just hang them up and not even have to buy a frame!

pretty cool stuff! it ends up being much cheaper, and you can custom make it to be the exact colors and fonts that you want.

let me know if you have any questions! i am happy to help!

and show me your masterpieces when you have finished!

My first post from my new house

So this weekend was our big moving weekend.
Now while most of you are picturing tons of boxes and a uhaul. Um. Not quite. It was more like grab-a-ton-of-stuff-and-dump-it-wherever-you-want. Yep, that about sums it up.
But we are here. My boys have been giddy all night and I think are finally settling down to go to sleep.
I am surrounded by mounds of clothes but don't worry...the bed is made!
That's how I roll.
So tonight's post is short and sweet.
I am thankful for what God has provided for our family.
Blown away, actually.
I get very sentimental especially at night, so I will just leave it at that.
Grateful.
Thankful.
Amazed at my loving God who cares so much about every detail of his children's lives, that he even decided to give me my very own school room!
So thankful.
So.so. Thankful.

if i could ask Dzhokhar Tsarnaev's mother a few questions...

if you watch the news at all, i'm sure you have seen this face

the face of a young man named Dzhokhar Tsarnaev.

he has become known instead as the marathon bomber.

the 19-year-old boy who, fueled by his anger against america, worked with his brother to try and bring fear and death to her people.

if you've clicked on any of the news stories along the way, you've probably seen this face

this is dzhokhar's mother.

i often think about my role as a mother.

i work very hard to make sure i am instilling positive, godly character qualities for my boys to follow and live after.

but at the end of the day? they are still responsible for their actions!

proverbs tell us that even a child is known by his doings.

does that mean that i just sit back and hope for the best?

of course not!

i will continue to work hard. i will still continue to train and discipline them the way that God wants.

but back to dzhokhar's mother.

i wish i could have the chance to ask her a few questions.

what is she thinking? 

is she thinking back to all the sleepless nights when her boys were babies?

is she remembering the long weeks and months of potty training?

is she reminiscing about her boys playing, giggling, wrestling...

is she wondering what went wrong?

what was her life like then? 

did she spend hours researching and studying ways to raise strong, loving leaders?

did she hug them a lot?

what about her words. did she use them to speak life into those impressionable little lives...

or was she building up bitterness and anger?

was she conscious about helping them gain self-confidence...without it turning into pride?

because...see. all of these questions? are very meaningful to me. 

i think they can affect me.

i think that every choice we, as moms make. every response we have. every hug we give...or hold back -

those make an impact that can affect our kids forever.

i want to know how to raise my kids.

i want to know that what i am doing will help them grow. 

grow to be strong. loving, godly and responsible.

so dzhokar's mother.

what is she going to do now?

is it too late for her? is she feeling like her life is over? like there is no hope?

i mean...she will forever be known as the mother whose sons killed innocent lives.

does she feel guilt? responsibility? shame?

i can't know that.

but i just can't help but be inspired when i hear the stories about those injured and the families of those who have lost a child in the bombings.

i know that good things can certainly come from bad...although it is easy for me to say.

i didn't lose a child.

i didn't lose a leg.

but when i think about this horrific incident.

i can't help but think about it from a mother's perspective.

and do you know what it does for me?

it drives me.

drives me to make sure i am constantly communicating with my boys.

teaching them that our God. the one we serve...does not show favortism. to anyone.

it motivates me to love harder today.

to hug more. smile more. laugh more. and be stressed less.

it makes me want to teach my boys the way to love people. 

and to keep current. current with their feelings and emotions, to make sure they are thinking right first. 

to take responsibility for their actions.

so if i could ask dzhokhar's mom a few questions.

here they are.

what are you thinking? what was your life like?

and 

how did it go from what it was then to what it is now?

because it doesn't happen overnight.

bitterness grows.

anger grows.

hatred grows.

but it can also be stopped.

and we can help our kids learn that

forgiveness can grow.

patience can grow.

love can grow.

let's take this time to really evaluate our kids lives.

our own lives!

what if you could be that mom that people are dying to ask questions of...

because you have raised upstanding amazing kids!

let's try and be that mom. who's with me?

go big or go home

i am so horrible at actually printing out my pictures.
i love taking them.
i love and adore looking at them.
then i blog them,
then i save them to my phone and my computer.
then i close my computer and put my phone down.

so. now that i am moving into a bigger place with much more wall space.
i am going to go buck wild.

i am a lover of canvases.
i mean...everyone should have them.
they look amazing on your wall.
like the kind of amazing where you can't stop smiling when you see them!

so this picture here?

next time you see it, it will be in a 24x36 canvas version on my family room wall!
that's right baby.
go big or go home!

so excited to get it and i can't wait to update with pictures of what it looks like hanging up!
go and get you a canvas!

photo credit: bethany chase photography
hair and makeup: rachelle chase photography

little flashback from the last few years

sometimes i like to just look back at where i was in life last year at this time.
and the years even before that.
i love that i have been blogging for so long, because it makes it easy to just go back and reminisce!

here are my babies in the dominican in 2007

and here's some from april 23rd of 2008
you can read more from this day in the blog post here

april of 2009 we were enjoying our trip to disney! you can read about that trip here

 april 8th of 2010 we spent a day in boston and my little chums were cute as ever. here's that post.

may of 2011...you can see here that they were growing like crazy!
but aj still wasn't quite as tall as me!

and here are my favorite pictures from last year that are hanging up as canvases in my bedroom!

so tired today.
so thankful that i have a lot to look back on and see that way God has been blessing my family.
the way he has never left us.
and the way that we have all grown.

just so thankful.
what are you doing tonight?
maybe you should pull out the old photo albums and see what God has done in your life over the years!

why your stupid cliche does not help my feelings...no offense.

have you ever had someone try to make you feel better by saying...

God must have something better for you!

or

hurtful people are hurting people.

funny how somehow, at that moment, the only thing i think would actually make me feel any better?  would be if i clocked the person saying it!!!
ha! come on now...you know you've been there! admit it!

i try really hard to stay away from quoting cliches that may be true for one person and not for another.
or things that may be true universally, but does nothing to make me feel better!

i mean, let's face it.
after you have been hurt by a person saying hurtful things about you.
does it really make you feel any less hurt to know that they are hurting?
not really.

so i was thinking about the way that i can be encouraged, and then the things that can get me down.
i have been talking to a lot of people who are going through a lot of different pains, struggles and just all out discouragement.
it's real, people.
we all have times of doubt. of hopelessness. of fear. and of discouragement.

i was reading in 1 Samuel 6:30 and saw that david encouraged himself in the Lord.
this might not seem like all that big of a deal to you, but it was exactly what i needed to hear.
the times when i am the most discouraged and the most frustrated.
what i feel like i need is:
some girlfriends to build me up.
my kids to give me a hug
my husband to tell me i'm beautiful.

but. here we read that david encouraged himself...in the Lord.

does that mean that i don't even need anyone else to get out of whatever funk i may be in?
does that really mean that i can be encouraged just from my own efforts?
it seems hard to imagine, but as i studied out the hebrew for strengthened himself i started to understand a little better.
it implies persistent and continuous effort.
i love the idea of persistent and continuous effort...sometimes.
i love training.
training for a race.
running through pain and finishing a race totally exhilarates me.

but the idea of living through hurt in life and finishing with a smile totally drains me.
why???

i don't really know, but i know that it doesn't really affect the enemy that much to watch me get in shape physically.
it drives the enemy totally insane to see me get in shape spiritually.

so i am trying a little experiment.
the times when i am feeling down. when i am feeling hopeless and frustrated...
i am going to tell myself. to make myself. remember the Bible verses that offer joy and hope.
i am going to persistently and continuously push myself to overcome, to fight through the pain, to live with my mind focused on the finish line.

i am going to ignore your stupid cliches (haha) and i am going to encourage myself.
because i can.
because it's what God wants me to do...
to become totally and completely dependent on HIM. and Him alone.

and when i start doing that -
thinking right.
the outcome will be that i will start feeling right.
and that is something i want to push for!

my sunday ramblings recap

last week i started teaching a ladies class.
it is about the importance of staying in God's presence.

because all of you can't attend it, i thought i would re-cap each week's lessons here!

The Power of Being in God's Presence

Exodus 33

-God's presence is what sets us apart from all other people on earth. (v.16)

*weak presence = weak power

*strong presence = strong power

We all receive God's presence at the moment of salvation.

Living in God's presence will affect every single aspect of your life.

We experience God's presence before we even realize what it is! - John 16:8

God's presence does three things:

1. convicts

Psalms 19:7-11

2. comforts

Psalm 94:19

3. compels

Deuteronomy 6:1-2

“self can never cast out self, even in the regenerate man…nothing but the presence of God can reveal & expel self.” Andrew Murray

~What are you spending your energy on?

*don't waste your energy talking about problems or people

Zephaniah 1:7 – stand in silence at the presence of the Lord

Am I being quiet enough to even hear God? Am I allowing Him to do His job?

*What is the biggest factor that affects your time with God right now?

*What is one change you think you could make this week to?

This will be a 6-week class. Anyone is invited to attend any Sunday! It begins at 9:30 and goes for one hour.

holding my boys a little tighter tonight

so this past monday we started our morning talking about the boston marathon.

just like we do every patriots day.

our family loves watching all the coverage each year, and we love watching every aspect of it!

we always talk about going into the city to watch it, but haven't yet.

i love running and have run the hartford marathon twice. 

i am absolutely certain that i will run a marathon again, and would love to run the boston.

we did not ever expect such a horrific tragedy to take place on such a family fun, carefree day.

with everything going on the past four days, we have been glued to the tv.

just watching, wondering, praying.

even as i type this, word has just come out that they captured the 2nd suspect in the bombings!

crazy to even comprehend what has happened, and what has been going on.

while we live a little less than an hour from the city, we know people who live closer, and still can't help but feel a little tense realizing the seriousness of it all!

we do not understand why things happen the way that they do, but we know ultimately that this world is not our home. and that God is in control.

it kind of puts things into perspective, doesn't it?

you just never know what tomorrow may bring.

so thankful that my today brings this...

just thankful for what God has given me today.
especially realizing what so many people have lost.
holding my boys a little tighter tonight.

getting my make up groove on...

so i love makeup.

i really love what it looks like. 

i'm obsessed with all the things i see on pinterest with pretty eye makeup and bright red lips.

i just don't wear any. ever.

i mean, i wear eyeliner and mascara. 

and if i'm trying to get real fancy, i'll throw on some eye shadow.

but i want to! actually, i want to get my make up done professionally!

in fact, it is #19 on my 101 things to do in 1001 days list

so. i met this girl tina when she did the make up for my 1940s styled shoot i did last month.

well, i actually met this girl tina in high school, but i don't really remember a lot about high school friends. 

and what i do remember is. 

well...that is for another post at another time.

so tina.

she is like. crazy.

and i mean crazy in a good way.

she is filled with energy. smiles all the time. and laughs loudly.

i love that about her.

she is a mary kay super star. 

seriously dude. she drives a sick car that she got from mary kay! 

and she makes me want to wear make up.

so i had the chance to attend one of her weekly meetups, and watch what she does.

it was a lot of fun, and gave me some motivation in a lot of areas in my life!

here is a little bit of the night...

so i placed my order with mary kay.
and i am going to go crazy when i get to have my make up done for real!

i am about ready to be getting my make up groove on, baby!

progress on my new house...a couple before and afters

i'm totally the kind of person that needs things finished.
like...yesterday.
i mean...when i paint a room? i want to hang all the pictures and position the furniture before the paint is even dry!

so having things move slowly with the house has definitely been a challenge for me!

i don't really like to show pictures until the finished product is ready to be revealed, but i figured i'd be nice. and show you a few.

so. here is riley's room before

 here is his room after

here is aj's room before

here is aj's room after

the boys are pretty thrilled with how everything came out!
riley loves barcelona soccer, so he picked the red and blue stripes.

aj loves the color green, and he loves real madrid soccer.

thank you auntie sarah and uncle dan for the super cool fathead! (riley got one too, but just hasn't put it up yet!)
and thank you to my uncle glenn who has done an amazing job putting in the carpet!

i am one very blessed and happy girl.

lies i am constantly believing

sometimes i really throw myself off when i stop for a second and realize that i have been listening to lies. 
real. live. lies!
because sometimes i trick myself into thinking that they are truths when they are in fact not

we certainly know that the Bible tells us that satan is a big fat liar. (my own version)

but it says in John 8:44 referring to satan: 

He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies.

i am speaking mostly to women here. (although he is such a loser that he has no problem lying to anyone and everyone!)

what kind of lies are you believing today?

do you even realize that it is a problem?

here are just some of the lies we can believe every day without ever realizing we are believing, therefore living these lies!

* i am a failure as a wife

* i am a horrible housekeeper

* i am a terrible mom

* i am a selfish person

* i am ugly

* i am not as good as _________ (you fill in the blank)

while i think it is nice when you can find blogs or articles that might:

-give tips on how to be a better mom

-give however many steps on your road to success with your business

-give practical ways to make your home look beautiful

and on an on.

sometimes?

when i read those things it just makes me more depressed.

sometimes?

when i read those things it just makes me feel like more of a failure that i did not even know how to come up with those things myself!

the bottom line is this.

no one has arrived. no one has it all together. no one lives a perfect life.

the most important thing to remember is that focusing on the lies that satan feeds us everyday will never ever make us better. it will only condemn us.

Jesus, however, did not come to condemn us. and there is no condemnation in Him. He DOES give us verse after verse filled with love and acceptance of us.

here are a few:

*I am His daughter. - John 1:12

*He loves me with a love that is everlasting - Jeremiah 31:3

*He forgives my sins - 1 John 1:9

*Possessions and even status will not last - Matthew 6:19

(this means that your being "cool" now will mean nothing for all of eternity!)

*God does not love one person more than any other - Acts 10:34

*I am free. free from sin. free from death. free from bondage! - Galatians 5:1

so tonight, as you are getting ready for bed.

don't...do not listen to lies that are being fed to you about your lack of acceptance, your unloveliness, your looks, your weight, your downfalls and your failures.

listen. stop comparing yourself to anyone else. 

anyone.

there is no one like you. God made you for a reason with special gifts and talents that are completely unique to you! 

because he has plans to use those gifts through you in a way no one else can!

stop listening to the lies.

just stop it already!

break the habit!

start living with the realization that the God who created this entire universe and controls the world...wants you. yes you. 

he wants to show you how much he loves you.

imagine that?

ain't no board on pinterest, no amount of likes or comments, no amount of money or size of your friends list is going to come anywhere near to the satisfaction that can bring!

let's live a lie-free day tomorrow. 

you in?

hard to find words tonight...

there are really no words.

I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world. John 16:33

Jesus is the only answer.
He is our only hope. I don't see how it could be any. more. clear.

where are you God?

if you have ever found yourself asking this question, i would love to have the privilege of helping you answer it.

see...i am the kind of girl that opposes cliches and hates when people act as if i am the only one who has ever had any issues.
i believe that ultimately, we all share the exact same problem.
i am no different than you. you are no different than me.
pretty much, everything boils down to one or two root issues...
pride and selfishness are usually the culprits.

sure. they show themselves in many different forms, but that just about sums it up.

and so, i will be spending the next 6 sunday mornings sharing my heart with any woman who wants to listen!

i have been so convinced that any weakness i start feeling begins with a weakness in my time spent with God!
i mean it likes jumped out at me like crazy a few weeks ago.
God gave me this verse:
Zephaniah 1:7
Stand in silence at the presence of the Lord.

seem like a simple, easy-to-obey verse?
it blew me out of the water.

stand.
in silence?
just stand there?
but i want to defend myself!
i want to vent!
i want to get everything off my chest!
i want to ask for prayer! (wink wink)

and so.
this little tiny sentence has decided to come into my life and change everything.
everything about the way i think. the way i talk. the way i live.

and i hope that you will join me as i talk through what God has been showing me.
this is an invitation to all of my friends.

even my friends who are reading this and aren't quite sure that they want to hear me talk about the Bible...because, well, they just don't believe it.

even my friends who are reading this and maybe go to a different church. (i am not asking you to change your church, but if you can come to my class in the morning, it still leaves time for you to get back to your home church!)

i would love to have all of my homegirls come out.
i just love me some good, old fashioned girl time.

and if you are one of my peeps but live in a different part of the country, it's ok!
i will be posting my notes from the class each week. so you can kind of join me!

what do you say? want to give it a chance?

hanging out with dreamers...where ya'll at?

get a load of this quote...

keep your head in the clouds and your feet on the ground.

um. love much?

here's what i have been realizing lately.

while i spend a lot of time...and i mean a lot. encouraging and reminding people (mostly teens) that bad company corrupts good manners. (I Corinthians 15:33)

i think that it is also important to remember the opposite effect of that.

here's what i mean.

when i spend my time with dreamers. with visionaries. with friends who have bold plans...

it has to impact me. 

has to.

i loved the definition of dreamer:

*a person who dreams habitually

do you get that? a person who dreams so much that it becomes a habit! 

i love the idea of that. i am just going to be constantly dreaming. planning. DOING!

here's what happens when you surround yourself with practical, realists.

-you talk 

-you talk about budgets

-you look at your money first, and then decide your plan

-you look at your current surroundings first, and then make your next move

-you do not normally talk in an excited, high energy voice

here's what happens when you surround yourself with "impractical" visionaries.

-you talk...while holding a notebook in your hand

-you don't even care about how much money you currently have

-you look at your dreams and desires first, and then decide your plan

-you look at your vision first, and then decide how you are going to change your current surroundings.

-you find yourself talking in an excited, high energy voice. 

a lot.

now you have to be careful. 

because sometimes, you may not even realize that your friends fit into one category or the other.

you may not even realize that while you once would have considered yourself a dreamer?            you have slowly turned into a realist.

dude. listen.

i have absolutely no guarantee of tomorrow! so...i have decided to make a thought-out decision on who i am going to be spending the majority of my time communicating with!

and you know what i decided?

i want to hang out with dreamers.

i want my homeys to be always talking about their next dream. 

not their last failure.

i want my peeps to be always talking about their next plan for success. 

not their current lack of money or resources.

and so, my amazing readers. 

here's where you come in.

who are you letting influence you the most?

who is on your team, in your group?

who is on your top 10 texting list?

who are you talking to the most?

are they dreamers?

are they influencing you to push harder?

to do more?

to dream bigger?

because you can push harder

you can do more

and you can dream bigger!

when you leave a meeting, are you inspired and amped up to change the world?

or are you reminded of your bleak and hopeless economy?

kind of makes a pretty big difference when you think about it!

i wanna be a dreamer!!!

i am going to keep my head in the clouds and my feet on the ground.

grounded in the truth that i serve a God who NOTHING is impossible with!

there is no dream too big.

where all my dreamers at? i wanna be friends!

~ and just to leave you all with a few pictures, we had the AwEsOmE privilege of seeing lecrae  in concert last night.

it. was. awesome.

(sorry for the bad quality of the pictures. i was so busy jumping around that i only had time for a few quick pictures with my iphone!)

dream big, baby! dream big!

dealing with anxiety, and a multitude of thoughts...

i love reading the Psalms.

they are so encouraging, so honest, so uplifting.

it is encouraging to see that even David had days of discouragement.

even David had enemies.

and even David fell.

but in spite of all of that, he had a relationship with his God that was real and that was deep.

it was exactly how i want for my relationship with God to be.

i don't want it to be surface-y. 

i don't want it to be fake.

david keeps it real. he says it exactly how he sees it and how he feels it.

chapter 94 verse 19 says this

when the cares of my heart are many, your consolations cheer my soul.

if i could pick a life verse (which i never have) i think this could pretty much sum it up.

the cares of my heart?

they are many to say the least.

do i need something to cheer my soul?

do i ever!!

a couple of other translations put it this way

when anxiety was great within me, your consolation brought me joy (NIV)

in the multitude of my thoughts within me, thy comforts delight my soul (KJV)

yes. i have a crazy amount of deep and sometimes troubling thoughts in my head.

and no. i can not even begin to handle all of them by myself.

however.

i have an amazing and huge God. 

who can comfort me. 

who can bring me joy.

who can bring me peace.

and that is what i need to keep me going.

do you have a multitude of thoughts within you?

do you have anxiety?

do you have many cares of your heart?

hold on to that verse today. 

let GOD be the one who cheers your soul!

Emmi's Ladybug Birthday Party

i have some mad talented party planners in my family.

myself NOT being one of them!

my sister-in-law, bobbi, planned this adorable little birthday party for my one year old niece (you can see her cake smash here)

it was totally perfect, and you may find yourself pinning like crazy...just warning you! 

i mean...come on! look at these adorable little cupcakes!!

 

everything was red and pink...right down to the scrambled eggs!

i loved this idea of pictures from the first 12 months of her life!

 the adorable little birthday girl...

 big sister and her best friend eliza...having a little play time!

maybe this next one doesn't look like a perfect shot...photographically speaking. but i loved the adoring look on my brothers face as he looks at his baby girl!

a pretty amazing brunch. for a pretty amazing little niece. by a pretty amazing sister-in-law.

happy birthday sweet emmi! i am so proud to be your favorite auntie! haha!