Hello Baby || Week 13

Dear Baby,

We are now entering into the second trimester, which makes us 1/3 of the way done and even closer to getting to meet you.  Last night, I dreamt that I was holding you in my arms.  You were so beautiful and were smiling in your sleep.  I kept looking at you thinking, You are  mine.  When I awoke, my arms ached to hold you and I couldn't go back to sleep, instead I lay there smiling and thinking about you.

Yesterday, your daddy and I heard your heart beat for the first time - it was so fast; swoosh, swoosh, swoosh...  I wish that I could hear it again and again.  Our God is such an awesome God.  He knew the exact amount of time it would take for you to develop, and it amazes me that at just 13 weeks your fingerprints are even developed!  It reminds me of the verses in Psalm -

For thou has possessed my reins; thou hast covered me in my mother's womb.
I will praise thee for I am fearfully and wonderfully made:
marvelous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well.
My substance was not hid from thee, when I was made in secret,
and curiously wrought in the lowest places of the earth.
Thine eyes did see my substance, yet being unperfect; and in they book
all my members were written, which in continuance were fashioned, 
when as yet there were none of them.

I love you with all of my being and cannot wait to meet you little one.

Love,
Mommy

PS Your favorite thing to eat for breakfast is cereal with almond milk and you enjoy sucking on jolly ranchers during church and long car rides.

a year full of happinesses...

It is so hard to believe that it has already been one year since my Mr. Wonderful swept me off my feet and made me his Mrs.

I will never forget that first moment I saw him standing on that bridge - so dapper and trying to contain his excitement.

I remember while getting my hair done that morning, my hair dresser - who had just been married a month prior - giving me some advice.

Throughout the day make sure you stop yourself, look around, listen, and breathe in your surroundings.  Your wedding day will go by in a blur and before you know it you will be walking back down the aisle a married woman!

 

So that is exactly what I did.  I enjoyed my wedding day to the fullest.  I looked around, I listened to each of the songs I had picked since I was a teenage girl, and I savored each moment throughout the day.

 

Before I knew it we were kissing and being introduced as Mr. & Mrs. Jack McDonnell!

It was beautiful and wonderfully perfect in every way and I wouldn't have changed one thing about that day.

But that was not the end of our story; it was only the beginning...

We honeymooned in Florida and had a wonderful time.

Before we knew it; it was time to head back home and get settled in as husband and wife.

I know we have been married a year now, but I still feel as though I am on the honeymoon and I still have stars in my eyes.

 

God has been so good to us.  We have been able to remodel a room together, photograph ten going on eleven weddings, go on our first vacation, and become expectant parents!

A year ago I didn't think it was possible to love another being any more than I did at that moment.

But I have discovered in the last year that the day I married Jack the love I had for him was just a fraction of what it is growing to be.

 

Dear Jack,

I never knew it was possible to be as happy as I am now.

 

I never knew that marriage could be so wonderful - that God would fulfill my every dream in you.

You are my better half - you know exactly what to say to make me feel better or when to just listen.

You are a wonderful husband and you make me want to be the best wife I can be with the Lord's help.

I am so excited to see what God has in store for us in the upcoming year.

 

I know that you are going to make an excellent daddy and I cannot wait to raise our baby with you.

 

Happy Anniversary my dear, I love you!

Forever and Always,

Your Nicole

Hello Baby || Week 11

Dear Baby,

From the first moment we found out we were expecting, I couldn't wait to meet you.  I wonder if you will have your daddy's twinkly eyes and curly hair, or if you will have my straight hair and big eyes.  I wonder if you will be a talker or an observer.  But most of all I just can't wait to hold you in my arms.  Right now you are the size of a lime and weigh approximately .3 pounds.  It is amazing how such a small being already takes up so  much space in my heart.  Some days it stops me right in my busy-ness and I can't help but smile and think, We are having a baby!

Daddy and I are praying that you will be healthy and strong, but most of all we want to raise you to love Jesus and serve Him with your life.  I will be honest...sometimes I get a little scared when I think that I am accountable for you...  That I will be training and responsible for such a special person.  However, your mommy has had a great example to learn from.  Reading parenting books has caused me to reflect on my own childhood and realize what wonderful grandparents you have. My dad and mom both took the preaching they heard and applied it in the home.  I never had to wonder why my parents did one thing at church and another thing at home.  I am only now starting to understand how much love they had for me.  Love enough to discipline and train, love enough to parent and not try to be my friend.  Because of their faithfulness, I have a wonderful relationship with them and I cannot wait for you to meet your grandparents.

I am still in awe of the fact that God has chosen to give us you and we cannot wait for your arrival in May!

Love,
Mommy

PS  Currently your favorite snacks are Welch's fruit snacks and apples. :)

Big News!

Exciting news for Nicole and I.

Check out the video clip below to share in our big announcement!

The love of a family...

...is life's greatest blessing.

Free Autumn Printable

I am so excited to be entering the season of fall!  I absolutely love everything that comes along with Autumn -  from the crunchy leaves, to the changing colors, to the celebration of Thanksgiving and our wedding anniversary... :)  It is my favorite season!

I recently made a printable of some festive activities that I hope to enjoy with my husband this season.  I like to just display it on the refrigerator and as the activities are completed they are crossed off with a dry erase marker so that it can be used again next season.  You also could put it in a frame!

If you would like to have a digital copy of this Autumn To Do List please visit my Etsy store and message me mentioning this blog post and I will email you both a jpeg and PDF copy to be printed and displayed in your home.  But make sure you message me before 12:00PM on Friday, September 20th.  After that time you will still be able to have your own copy but you will have to purchase it through my shop's listing for $1.95.

Enjoy and Happy Fall!! :)

House Tour|Living Room & Kitchen

 Jack and I have been married ten wonderful months.  We have settled in quite nicely but I have put off doing a house tour until it was 100% decorated, remodeled and perfect.  I have of recent come to the conclusion that I will never be done decorating, or doing pinterest inspired projects.  As I type I am looking at 3 vintage suitcases I was given that have yet to find a place in my house.  I have several ideas, just have to choose one... :)

All of that to say, I am going to go on ahead with our house tour.  To you it may just look like a small house with several imperfections, but to me it is the most beautiful house in the world because it is shared with Jack.  I am sure some day we will look back on our first place and recall it's defects and lack of closets, but for now I will keep on my rose colored glasses and proudly show you our little nest!

Our living room and kitchen is in one big room since before we were married it served as Jack's photography studio.  Jack had painted, trimmed, and floored it before we were even dating and I love his work!  We were able to pick out the cabinets, counter-tops, and hardware together and my uber handy husband installed them all by himself!

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 This was the view as you walk in the front door... (a year ago) 

and now this is the view...

Let's start with a close up of the living room

vs.

As you can see, there have been a few changes...

Starting with client canvases coming off the wall. ;)

One of the first things we did was paint the legs of the existing coffee table black.

You will see throughout our house that very often I like to paint the legs/base of furniture black...

{wedding photography credit to: Photography by Britton}

{our first project we ever did together...you can see more pictures of it here}

Most of our decorations were either wedding gifts, garage sale finds repainted or things I had bought and stored from Celebrating Home throughout my single years.

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Moving onto the kitchen...

 to...

 I love cooking in this little space!

Because of our lack of cabinets Jack built me this handy-dandy pull out next to the fridge...

 

So very handy!!

I love open shelving and someday when we have a larger kitchen we plan on having lots of that, but for now Jack was kind enough to build and paint me my own two shelves to display fun things. :)

 This rolling island serves its purpose very well and adds another 'counter space' 

for me to meal prep on.  It was a $15 garage sale find that my dad painted the base black.

And of course we can't forget about the life size chalkboard that we made

using mdf board and framing with trim.

Hope you enjoyed Part One of our House Tour.  Stay tuned for the hallway|bedroom tour next! :)