Trip to Jackson w/ Nana
Elli and I made the trip down to Jackson this weekend to visit with my mom (Nana), and to do a little shopping at the Jackson Spring Market. SO MUCH FUN!! We picked Nana up from the airport on Thursday and started our shopping extravaganza on Friday morning. The Spring Market was in the Jackson Convention Center downtown. Vendors from all over the US set up their booths selling everything imaginable. We got Elli a precious little smocked apron outfit for the summer...oh my gosh is it precious!! I'm all about smocking, by the way :) There was jewelry, clothing, shoes, bags, books, bows, and on and on and on. It was the perfect place for a girls weekend!
Here are a few of my treasures:
LOVE this red cross!! It will be on my mantle shortly, I just have to re-arrange a bit to make it fit :)
And THIS, my friends, is my newest favorite thing EVER!! It's a casserole carrier. Genius! You can't see the inside (thanks to my lazy picture taking), but your casserole dish fits nicely in there, all bundled up w/ fabric that has insulation sewn in. There is also a tile on the bottom that you stick in the oven and heat before transporting it so that your dish stays even warmer. Plus, did you notice the monogramming?! LOVE it!!
As if the Spring Market didn't quench our shopping desires, we headed over to an outdoor mall to top ourselves off....and the Easter Bunny was there!! It was a gorgeous day, so we took some pictures around the area.
Elli and Mr. Bunny
She's getting so big!! She loved looking at that pretty flowers!
My mom and I have a tradition of taking a Girls Trip every year. We've been to Ashville, NC, Savannah, GA, Charleston, SC, Belgium, England & Italy...but this year, in Jackson, might have been my favorite. Every place we've been has been wonderful, but this year was even more so because I got to share the experience with Elli. She loves her Nana so very much, and it was incredibly special to spend some quality time together, just the three of us.
Elli's first Girls Trip!!
Mama & Elli is our favorite place...Barnes and Noble!
Elli & Nana...that is one happy girl!
SLI ~ Week 1
I've learned something new this week: reading is not quite as easy as it used to be! Let me clarify a little bit...finding time to read is not quite as easy as it used to be!! Ha! But, I'm so glad that I made the effort b/c I really enjoyed the first 2 chapters of our book. How about you?? While trying to do a little research on what we could talk about here at our little web-meeting, I went straight to the source...Beth, herself! On her blog, she is doing the same thing that we are, only on a MUCH larger scale. The discussion questions/thinking points that we'll use are straight from her so I think we'll really get a lot out of the book! Let's dive in!!
Discussion/Assignment:
**Beth wrote these herself, so the "I" is referring to her.**
1. Write a journal-type entry on the inside cover of your book describing this present season of your life and why you’ve chosen to read a book like this. If you already have a relationship with God, write it in the form of a prayer. I do this almost every time I begin a book that I think could have a considerable impact on my life. When I finish the book, I always go back and read it and it ends up meaning so much to me. Listen, Sister, if you expect little, that’s probably what you’ll get. But if you expect something big from God when you start a journey and you posture yourself to receive from Him, even when frail human beings are thrown in the mix, you’ll end up with something huge. Something life altering.
2. Based on Chapter 1: When was the last time you came face-to-face with our gender’s massive struggle with insecurity? Describe the setting.
2. Based on Chapter 1: When was the last time you came face-to-face with our gender’s massive struggle with insecurity? Describe the setting.
For me, the last time I came face-to-face with our gender's (my) massive struggle with insecurity was about a week ago (on my birthday) on the floor of my closet. Let's just say I had a "moment" (or twenty!). Looking back, I'm going to blame it on the poor lighting and the terrible mirror...but in the midst of my total meltdown I felt hideous. I can laugh now, and chalk it up to the 29th birthday blues, but deep down it still hurts a little bit. No woman wants to feel ugly, or fat, or pasty white (can I still blame that on England?!), or all of the above. And though I don't feel that way every day, or even every other day, there are some low moments scattered throughout my month where I feel pretty bad about myself. And let me tell you, Chris just LOVES it when those moments rear their ugly heads!
3. Based on Chapter Two: What part of the definition or description of insecurity resonated most with you and why?
The definition that resonated the most with me was the part that said insecurity is "a deep feeling of uncertainty about our basic worth and our place in the world". Doesn't that just sound awful?! Let me tell you, it's pretty tough to write it. But we're being honest, and it is my sincere prayer that I will truly learn something by exploring this side of myself.
As a military wife, I have found that it's often difficult to find my own identity. It's not easy to have a career when you move all the time. For me, it's even hard to find the motivation to pursue things that I know I won't be able to continue at our next location...wherever that may be. And when I feel that way, it's hard to feel like I have a "place". And I'm not talking about my "place" in my family b/c I truly believe that I have the best job in the world being Elli's mommy & Chris's wife. I'm talking about the doubt in my heart that I am using the gifts that God gave me to the best of my ability. The questions, "am I wasting time", "is this what I should be doing", "am I doing enough", are always in my head.
I'd love to hear what all of you think about these questions & the book in general. Whether you've read the book, are reading it with us, or would just like to leave a comment...I'll treasure your responses. Though I had thought about what I was going to write, it wasn't until I actually sat down to start typing that my true feelings started to come out. Maybe it will be the same with you...and maybe we can overcome some of our own insecurities together :)
Hope you all had a great weekend!!
Things That Make You Happy
What makes you happy? REALLY, REALLY happy?
Here's a few things that are on my list...
~ My family
~ Traveling (This is us in Venice)
~ Christmas Cards...well, Christmas in general, really!
~ Spending time w/ friends...preferably while traveling at Christmastime!
This picture is of Wendy & I at the Christmas Market in Hamburg, Germany :)
Also:
Sundays ~ Church, Fellowship, & Lunch @ Cafe' on Main :)
Hot Chocolate on a cold day
A book that I just can't put down
A good lap dog
Swimming
Getting a card from an old friend
Anything crafty
Watching the birds in my backyard every morning
What about you? I'd love to hear about all the little things that make you smile :)
SLI ~ Book Club!!
Since my ordered copy of "So Long Insecurity" never came in, I decided to take measures into my own hands...I broke down and went to Books-a-Million. I don't know if I've just been spoiled by Barnes and Noble or what, but I'll do just about anything to keep from having to visit Books-a-Million! It's so disorganized & chaotic in there, it drives me crazy (yes, I admit I'm a little OCD about that kind of thing...I take my books seriously! Ha!). Anyway, I now have the book and I'm ready to dive in :)
So, for those of you who are on board (I'm thinking there's 2!), I thought we could read the first 2 chapters this week and discuss next Monday (29th). Sound good? I have to admit, I've thumbed through a few of the chapters b/c I just couldn't help myself. I'm a serial "end of the book" reader. It's terrible, I know. I totally spoil it for myself! But since this isn't really that kind of book, I think I'm good :)
Happy Reading!!
Busy Bee
We've had another busy week, and by the time Monday rolls around again I'm always amazed at how quickly the time is flying by! My dad came out to visit us last Thursday, and we had a great time just getting to spend some quality time with him. Elli sure does love her Papa!! He and Chris got to test out Chris's new golf clubs (for the first time since Christmas!), we had my birthday dinner at Jacks (yes, that's the 2nd time we've been there in 10 days!), and we just spent a whole lot of time vegging out on the couch, catching up. It was awesome. We're so thankful that our parents take the time to come out here to visit us as often as they can. Living far away can be difficult sometimes, and we feel so blessed to have families who are so understanding and supportive of our on-the-go lifestyle.
Here is some of what we've been up to lately...
She's trying to crawl. She wants to soooo badly, but she's not quite there yet.
Elli's Easter Basket!! Thanks, Adriane, for the heads up about where to get it :)
Elli is teething and pretty much makes this face ALL the time. My dad felt a little left out, so he thought he'd make the same one :) Ha!
Trying out her new sippy cup w/ water. Not quite a pro yet, but she's making progress!
Our new bath seat! Yay! I'm so happy w/ it, it makes bath time SO much easier!
This is one of Elli's favorite toys. I think she just discovered that she can see herself in the mirror, and she absolutely LOVES it! You should see her flap...it looks like she's fixing to take off with excitement!
Success!!
Our first attempt at homemade baby food was peas...
this was Elli's reaction.
(Please excuse the runny nose, we're teething at the moment!!)
She wasn't a fan, obviously!
So then we tried sweet potato's...mommy's favorite!!
Just puree' the cooked potato's in the blender,
**Yes, that's a food processor in the above pic, but it didn't work so we moved to the blender...I'm ever-so-adaptable :)**
and you'll end up w/ some yummy goodness :)
Chris fed her one night...
and my dad fed her another...SUCCESS!! 
I store the extra food in ice cube trays,
and I just get two per day out to thaw for dinner :)
So simple, so good, and so healthy for my sweet baby girl.
Next up: Zucchini!!
I gotta admit, I'm not all that confident that we'll get another happy reaction!!
I Can Actually Sew!
After quite the hiatus from my trusty Singer, Gayle gave me the confidence to try it out once again. I think the reason that I stopped 5 months ago was because the dress I was trying to make was taking forever! Well, that and the fact that I have a baby who takes up roughly 98% of my day :) I just needed a little refresher, some encouragement, and an inspiring project.
I've always loved pillowcase dresses, but every time I go to buy one I can never justify spending $30 for one. I always tell myself "you can MAKE that, why buy it?"...but, we all know how quickly I was on that one! So anyway, I thought a pillowcase dress would be fitting for my first "clothes project" for Elli. Plus, they're SUPER easy to make, especially if you have a cute pillowcase...which I did not. Ha!
So, here is my newest creation. It's not perfect by any means, but I think it turned out really well for my first try. I love the fabric, it's so girly and cute...and I think that Elli looks just precious in it. I can see her wearing it a lot this summer!
I didn't even pin it!! I hate pinning!
Not the most accurate of measurements, but oh well!
I wanted to get a good pic of Elli standing up in it to show how long it is. The great thing about these dresses is that little girls can wear them forever!! When they grow a little taller, they can put leggings under it, and when it gets super short they could even wear it as a cute summer shirt!
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