Bad things come in...?

Threes I hope? Where to even begin. Let's just say the past few weeks have been a little challenging around here. It all started about a month ago when our car was involved in a hit and run leaving it un-drivable. After a hefty car bill we were back in the game. Then this past week it broke down on the side of I-35 during one of the busiest times of the day-right before rush hour. The car overheated and smoke filled the cabin as we rushed out as fast as we could. I stood on the side of a busy interstate holding my baby girl for hours in 90 degree weather. After an expensive tow and an estimate from the dealership we were looking at a $5,000 fix. Without the necessary repairs the car would not be drivable, once again. We left for the Keys the next day, so we had to leave it at the dealership in the meantime. When we returned Jay's car died just as he was planning to leave and drive to the dealship to deal with my car, leaving us with no useable vehicles. Today we got a call that Jay's school is closing which means he is unemployed. So here we stand with no vehicles and down a job. I bet you think we're in panic mode, right?

Strangely I'm at peace with everything. At this point nothing surprises me and all I can do is laugh about it. I'm solely relying on God to provide for our family as he always does and I know he will. Patience isn't usually a strong suit of mine, but I'm certain it's why he puts me in situations such as this. I'm learning. I'm growing.

We were on our way to a family photo session when we got the call, and all I could think about during the shoot was how lucky I was. How lucky I am that my car broke down because it meant I had means of transportation to get me where I need to go. How lucky I am that Jay lost his job because it means a better opportunity waiting, and he will get to spend more time with Lucy while looking for another. How lucky I am that we go through trials like this so God can bring us closer as a family. And most of all how lucky I am to have the two of them to hold onto in times of need.

Please keep our little family in your prayers tonight. xoxo

Much to share!

So much has been going on that it's hard to put everything into words as each day is fun and thrilling with Lucy and I wish I could share every detail. My first Mother's day was spent as a family at my Mom's. Bunny and Papa came up to celebrate and we grilled steaks. My 26th birthday followed shortly and I've never felt so young. Lucy keeps me on my toes! Jay planned a special birthday for me and took the day off of work. While we had originally planned on spending it doing something very special (more to come on that!) we had to change our plans and he took me to downtown Stillwater for the day. It was the one day out of about 2 weeks that was actually warm and sunny and we had a great time just wandering around as a family. We started out with burgers and malts for lunch and then he patiently took me antiquing! That night my mom and sister made us a homemade scallop dinner and we had cake and gifts. It was more than I could have ever asked for. Here are some pictures from our day!

Lucy makes even the smallest of things special for us. She's such a joy in our lives. I'm not sure a night has passed since she's been born where Jay + I haven't been cuddled up in bed after she has gone to sleep and we've said that we are the luckiest people in the world and we love our little life we've created together. I think it's funny to think of the trivial things we based our life off of or the things we worried about or spent our time on pre-Lucy. Children certainly change your view on the world :)

She had a great 4 month check-up and we were thrilled when the doctor observed that she is very socially advanced for her age. She's in the 75% percentile for height but less than 50% for weight, she's such a tall + scrawny little peanut. We keep waiting for her to get her baby chub, which there is still plenty of time for...but she's perfect to us ;) She's babbling like crazy, wanting to stand on her feet, and laughing a lot. She does this adorable thing where she smiles so big she has to close her little eyes and we think it's the cutest. We love to see her happy! We also recently started her on rice cereal and it's pretty hysterical to see her face when we try and feed it to her....let's just say she's less than impressed. We'll get there.

We have a lot of fun planned {and a little surprise too!} for the week so I hope I can make it back to blog about that sometime this week before things get crazy and we leave for vacation.

Before I was a Mom.

My mama e-mailed this to me on Mother's Day, I'm not sure where it originates.

Before I was a Mom,
I never tripped over toys
or forgot words to a lullaby.
I didn't worry whether or not
my plants were poisonous.
I never thought about immunizations.
Before I was a Mom,
I had never been puked on.
Pooped on.
Chewed on.
Peed on.
I had complete control of my mind
and my thoughts.
I slept all night.
Before I was a Mom,
I never held down a screaming child
so doctors could do tests.
Or give shots.
I never looked into teary eyes and cried.
I never got gloriously happy over a simple grin.
I never sat up late hours at night
watching a baby sleep.
Before I was a Mom,
I never held a sleeping baby just because
I didn't want to put her down.
I never felt my heart break into a million pieces
when I couldn't stop the hurt.
I never knew that something so small
could affect my life so much.
I never knew that I could love someone so much.

I never knew how much I would love being a Mom.
Before I was a Mom,
I didn't know the feeling of
having my heart outside my body..
I didn't know how special it could feel
to feed a hungry baby.
I didn't know that bond
between a mother and her child.
I didn't know that something so small
could make me feel so important and happy.
Before I was a Mom,
I had never gotten up in the middle of the night
every 10 minutes to make sure all was okay.
I had never known the warmth,
the joy,
the love,
the heartache,
the wonderment
or the satisfaction of being a Mom.
I didn't know I was capable of feeling so much,
before I was a Mom.