i love rainy days

elise and i slept in until almost 9 this morning!! what a blessing! with the lack of sunshine and steady rain coming down, it was easy to do. i sat on the couch with her this morning, just enjoying the sound of the rain hitting the windows, feeling the breeze from the fans, and loving that we slept in. i love days like this because it's so yucky outside, all you can do is be cozy inside. some pictures from today: elise is now moving around in her walker!! she's mobile!

my birthday

the best birthday gift ever...jay surprised me friday by taking the day off work to be home with me for my birthday. the weekend was going to be very busy for us, so he surprised me and we celebrated together a day early. what a gift! for him to stay home was so meaningful. i reacted with my predictable i'm-so-shocked-and-excited-that-i-have-nothing-else-to-say but, "Shut up!" (note: that was also my response when he proposed!) we took a day trip (see if you can guess the location by this lovely picture) and had a great time. quality time with him, especially when he took off work just to be with me, was the greatest gift i could ask for.

elise enjoyed the day trip as well-she slept most of the time :)

here's my handsome husband in the tree house. thank you, my love, for a wonderful day!

uncle miguel

uncle mike (or miguel as i like to call him) was in town last weekend and we had the privilege of seeing him. here he is holding his niece (and he's quite good at it too.) i'd like to take a moment to note the things i appreciate and respect about my brother. the last few years have been rough for him, to say the least. through it all though, i have seen him mature in many ways and enter adulthood. i think his appreciation for the little things in life has increased as well. he continues to try to take what he's learned and put it into practice on a daily basis. and even though there are still many tough elements in his life, he's seeking to move forward and not live in the past. i have seen our friendship grow, which i am so grateful for. he is wonderful with elise, which leads me to believe he will be wonderful with his own children, someday too. little brother, i am proud of you. keep growing and seeking truth...keep living it...keep moving forward and don't look back except to learn from your mistakes or to smile and remember how far you've come. remember the One who has brought you this far and carried you every step of the way. i love you always.

a quarter of a year!

here we sit: elise and her mama. i can't believe she's been in our lives for four months already! (by the way i was going for the drama with the title of this post-could you tell?!). as i type this one-handed (and yes, i've gotten quite good at it) she's snuggling on my lap, holding her finger, relaxing after a full feeding (...and then she spits up!). even while i fed her this morning i could see the growth she has made. i held up my hand and she held up hers to mine, as if to compare the size. then she grabbed one of my fingers at a time, meticulously focusing on each one.

we just finished a little four month photo shoot. i'm amazed at how she sat up in the chair and could hold her balance for the most part all by herself. you'll also notice how much her hands are in her mouth...another dead giveaway of her age.

as she now grabs my fingers, shoves them into her mouth, and utters a few wonderful baby noises, i realize i must go--it's time to play! check out some video from her play time on the mat! (this is my first video post...i hope it works!)

amazing

here's our little girl. it's hard to believe she'll be four months old this weekend! i can't get enough of her smiles, noises, "talking", kicking, grabbing, you name it. her eyes are mesmerizing... especially when she's nursing and staring up at me. her voice is adorable and as girly as you get. words cannot describe the love that daily grows in my heart for her. i recently handed in my resignation and though it was bittersweet at moments...i could tear up at the thought of not being with her throughout the days. i would not trade this time. this picture gives you just a taste of what my days are like :)

the rest of kendell's visit

mimi reading to elise

mary and me before she left for her junior prom-doesn't she look beautiful!

here we are having ice cream after dinner. karen was really excited about her jimmies...notice elise eyeing them up though...watch out karen!

we went hiking with our friends john and eileen...then there's jay with elise at our church luncheon (notice the open button on her pants...they were so tight we had to unbutton them!)

and finally here's kendell and me. what a blessed time we've had together. thank you Jesus for a wonderful friend.

wonderful busy days

my college roommate has come to visit this past week and boy have we been busy! the other day we went to the city (the first pic) to check out some stores and we had elise in the moby. it was so fun! we've gone for a walk almost every day she's been here, including down town from our house, the city, around the corner, in the park...you name it! elise has had more fresh air in the last few days than the 3 months she's been alive! i'm so thankful for the gorgeous weather we've been having that has allowed us to be outside so much. today we went with some friends to an awesome park with hiking trails. elise was outside in the woods with us for over four hours...what a trooper! and as i write this, she is sleeping...out cold! having my dear friend here has been wonderful. it's been such a blessing to spend this time together once again...and i'm sad to think we only have a couple more days left...