HAPPY VALENTINE'S!!!

is what Grace exclaimed the moment she walked into her MDO classroom yesterday!

She was so excited to give her teachers their little gifts. Here she is with Mrs. Laura and Mrs. Veronica - never mind her funny expression - she was being a little chatterbox :)

Her favorite rocking chair - everytime I pick her up from MDO the little pumpkin insists on "just a little rock" before we get in the car So excited to open an early valentine treat from Noonie and Papa A.J. (have fun on your cruise, Noonie and Papa A.J.!) Checking everything out Her favorite gift: "bouncy balls" (I'm still finding these under the sofa today!) Showing me what she made me at MDO :) I love those sweet little hands...

her requests to "hold hands" several times a day

our secret handshake

the way she gently pats your face when you tell her to be "sweet and gentle"

the way she shakes her index finger back & forth to say "no no"

the way she tries to make "bunny ears" to say she'll be 2 in just a few weeks

the way she twirls my hair when she's sitting in my lap saying our prayers every night

...Mama loves you pumpkin!

Thank you Mrs. Laura and Mrs. Veronica for capturing her almost two year old handprint for me! And LOL, that bow is BIG on Grace's head!!! I thought it looked a little big when I got her dressed yesterday morning, but seeing it in pictures makes me realize IT IS HUGE! Only in the South, my darling!

Inspiration for Hudson's Nursery

Sometimes inspiration can come from the most unexpected places...I love, love, love blabla products and the fact that they are hand knit by Peruvian artisans. It's all (finally) taking shape! More to come...

Sweet valentines, treats, big girl, doctor's visit - WOW!

It was a BUSY weekend for us! Saturday we went to Tyler for Lance's cousin's baby shower - so much fun! Can't wait to meet the little guy, Lindsey!!! Grace was so excited to play with her cousin Carson and kept telling me to "hurry up, mama, Carson waiting for Grace at party" :)

Yesterday we sat down to write out valentines for family and friends. Grace was most excited to color with markers as opposed to crayons and "signed" each valentine herself. Yeaaaaa! for markers!!! She's also in love with her "My Melody" watch from McDonald's and insisted on wearing it all day. Check out all of our valentines! I love that they are vintage reproductions and can't believe we found them at Target, of all places. Deciding who gets what valentine is hard work! We even had to keep one or two to avoid the cascading tears over parting with a duck and a puppy valentine. Next came the treat boxes for Grace's MDO friends. These are by no means healthy treats, but hey, it's VALENTINE's! I think the only non-sugary thing in there are some heart-shaped bubbles and stickers. Next I need to tackle the cupcake pops! I think they turned out rather cute! While cleaning Grace's armoire, I found a packet of little name labels from when she was around 9 mo. old so even though she was a baby in the photo, I stuck them on the treat boxes (blurred out our LN if you're wondering what the squibble is under her middle name)
WARNING - BATHROOM HUMOR!
And since this is as much our family's modern-day "baby book" journal as anything else, I am happy to announce that Grace went pee pee IN the potty (not beside the potty, not on the bathroom rug, not in my closet), but IN the potty for the first time last Thursday, Feb. 5th!! We are now working on repeat performances :) She also has an obsession with emptying the potty - not so fun for whoever is cleaning up after her! And finally, just because this little girl loves animals...today hen we went for her doctor's visit, she was THRILLED when the nurse put us in the Old McDonald room. She kept looking at the mural, smiling, jumping, and then LOUDLY breaking into her own rendition of Old McDonald had a farm EIEIO - so much so that two of the other doctors and a couple of nurses stopped what they were doing to come clap for the little pumpkin's stage performance :) Dr. R - you made her day!

A certain pair of wellies...

A little someone around here is in love with a certain pair of pink polka-dotted wellies. I must say I'm quite fond of the word "wellies", it's one of those words that you can say and it will put you in a fun, silly mood instantly. You see I used to call them rain boots but then a while back my friend Segi, who lived in England for a couple of years when she was little, was telling me a story about her wellies and I'm thinking, "what the heck are you talkin' about?" but I didn't want to interrupt her (really I just didn't want to sound dumb) so when she finished I finally asked her and she matter-of-factly enlightened me. And now I call them wellies and smile.

So since these days it's a matter of "pick your battles" with my resident princess, I'm more than happy to give in to the wellies-wearing pouty-lip pleas (I think the wellies have secret powers because they can change a mood in a matter of seconds). So if you live near us and see the little pumpkin at church wearing a Sunday dress and pink wellies you'll know that it was one of THOSE mornings :) Now I definitely understand why a friend let her 3 year old go to a birthday party covered in band-aids though she had no real bo-bos...aah, motherhood!

I needed to try this dress on Grace to ensure fit and she was not happy to be pulled away from hiding dvd's under the rug pad to humor her mama, so I offered the wellies and a very eager almost two year old came running to me :) - time to grab the camera and hope the moment lasts longer than 30 seconds!

Can you see how in awe she is of these wellies?

So happy to have spotted a couple of birdies in a tree Did you see them, mama?!? Giggle, Giggle It's a lellow (yellow) flower!!! I LOVE THIS GIRL! So I am happy to say that of all the things she probably inherited from me, I think it's safe to say Grace is definitely a shoeaholic. Mama's so proud!

Cherishing my daughter...Remembering the SuperPrincess

It was early last June that I stumbled upon Sheye Rosemeyer's blog and first learned of her beautiful daughter Ava and the tragedy that changed her family's life. I remember sobbing while reading Sheye's words and imagining her pain as only a mother could. I remember hugging Grace a little tighter that day, praying extra prayers over her for her safety, and praying comfort for the Rosemeyer's.

In the days and months that have passed since then, I often find myself thinking about Ava, the SuperPrincess and lover of all things pink and sparkly. I am inspired by Sheye's eloquent words and beautiful photography, but most of all by her honesty and transparency in allowing others to get to know Ava through her eyes, memories, and feelings, and her candor in sharing her heart's aches and longings for a daughter that left much too soon. What a beautiful 3 1/2 year old little girl she was, so full of joy and love. I think the words that have stuck with me the most are the ones where Sheye reminisced over how Ava must have known her journey here on earth would be short for she packed as much joy and experiencing as she could in her 3 short years.

Honoring Ava's memory, Grace and I spent the whole day today in her "princess skirt" and new favorite pink wellies, living in the moment and relishing the simple joys of childhood. This is just our small tribute to you Ava, the original SuperPrincess! Yesterday marked the second anniversary of the day Ava went to Heaven. Ava, you will NEVER be forgotten. You have touched so many people in so many ways. A mother's love for her children, is there anything more pure? Sheye, our prayers are with you and your family. May you find comfort in knowing how many people's lives have been changed for the better all because of Ava! God bless you and your family. ~Jessica

Put a little love in your heart...

Remember that Gap campaign years back (Christmas I think) that used that song "put a little love in your heart" - I can't get it out of my head!!! Fitting I guess since valentine's day is just around the corner. I've been thinking up some sweet pink and red inspired projects. First, the treats:

I've never made any of these exact treats, but they're all on my baking list: And my most favorite are these cupcake pops!!! Click here for great instructions and photos from Bakerella. I think I'm going to make these for Grace to take to her MDO valentine party! And then there's these sweet little pink tank from Amy of nanaCompany that just arrived on my doorsteps last week - LOVE IT! Isn't it so simple and cute?! It's inspired me to get out some of the sweet fabrics in my stash and try my hand at some cute applique tees with all kinds of different designs...hmmm, I can picture a sweet little poka dot cupcake with a button for the topping! Now these won't be any kind of designer tees or anything, but just some sweet little tees that Grace can wear to play in. Already have all the stuff needed at home so no excuse not to at least try it :) Maybe if they turn out cute I can even make some for the girlies that will be coming over for Grace's valentine playdate. Maybe even a tee with a crown for the boys!

Have I mentioned I love pink and red and polka dots and fabric and all things girlie?!?!

A Prayer Request

Update on Baby Bennett (through my friend Michelle): Bennett is struggling from pulmonary hypertension. Baby's have a whole in each lung that allow them to breathe in the womb. Bennett's did not close as they were supposed to when he was born. He was breathing as if he was still in the womb. The Arkansas Children's team placed him in an ECMO machine which simulates the womb allowing him to breath that way. Ben (Bennett's dad) reports that his blood oxygen level is now at 99%, that he is doing much better and that his coloring is now pink. He is being cared for by his own private nurse and own ECMO tech. They estimate that Bennett will be there for 6 - 8 weeks, then possibly return to the NICU at the hospital he was born, then return home. Statistically, with his condition there is a 70% survival rate. Katye will be discharged today and will go with her parents to Little Rock to join Ben, his dad and her new baby. They will be able to visit with the baby 24 hours a day and are hoping to be able to stay at the Ronald McDonald house next to the hospital. Please continue to pray for Baby Bennett!

A friend of mine, Katye, just had her baby boy Bennett this Friday. He's a little chunky monkey at 8 lb. 14 oz. even though he was born early at just 35 wks. Baby Bennett had to be airlifted to a specialty Children's Hospital due to Pulmonary Hypertension and is in critical condition, although the doctors just updated him to "stable but critical" this evening. I remember how scary it was to have Grace early (35wks) and my heart just aches for Katye and her family having to go through all this with little Baby Bennett. I know God is taking care of Bennett and comforting his scared parents. Please, please if you read this, take a moment to say a prayer for Baby Bannett, his mom, dad, sister, and the entire family.

THANK YOU!
~Jessica