Month: December 2011

Last Saturday was one of the most fun days I have had in a while. A friend of mine, Rachel, who is also a neighbor decided to make me feel special by throwing me a baby shower for our sweet little boy. I knew it would be a lot of fun, but it was more than that. I loved having every person that was able to come and share the joy of having a new addition to our family just within weeks now. I can’t thank enough each and every person for making the time to come! The presents were absolutely wonderful and needed. This lil’ man is definitely spoiled already and I know that it is only the beginning. The decorations were beautiful, the food was delicious and the games were a lot of fun. I don’t know if Rachel will ever read this post, but I am truly grateful and blessed to have a friend like her. Her fun and outgoing personality is contagious and people can’t help it but fall in love with her as soon as they meet her. I met Rachel after we moved in to our home two and a half years ago, when Lissy was only eight weeks. I am so privileged to see this little girl grow up right in front of me and now share full days with Isabella. We are definitely blessed!

We might be known as one of those “crazy” families that can not wait to get their tree every year. Some years we have even gone as far as getting it before Thanksgiving, but this year we decided to be “good” and get it the day after 🙂 I always think, we only get to have it for one month, so why not get it early? This year Bella was much more into the process, not to say she wasn’t last year, it was just a completely different interaction, she wanted to be more involved and touch every ornament and put them up and help with lights…the list goes on. As much as I love holidays in general, this year more than others I have realized how much more fun holidays are with kids. The excitement about the littlest things are just priceless. She loved going and picking the Christmas tree, she loved decorating it, was excited about candles and all of the other gadgets that we usually put out and of course the stockings. I can’t wait to have hers filled on Christmas morning 🙂 Below are a few pictures of our tree this year and our little helper 😉

Tonight I come to my precious God with a heart full of gratefulness and praise. The list is endless for all the people and things I am grateful for, but there have definitely been a few that stood out this year more than others. We have our daily routines and schedules that seem to sweep us away from even the thought of being alive and breathing every day. It is unfortunate that I personally forget in the midst of life to really take in every minute as we do not know how much time we have with our loved ones. Today, I am above and beyond grateful for my family and the new life that is kicking as I type this journal. What an awesome feeling to have a living soul moving and kicking inside of you. I couldn’t help but to think this morning how God worked His miracles of creating life and even though it comes at a very painful price, there is nothing more worth it. I am thankful for my amazing and loving husband that stays by my side through good and bad, I am thankful for our precious daughter Isabella that has been nothing but an absolute joy to us. What an honor to raise a child and what a challenging job at the same time, I thank God for this opportunity every day. I am especially thankful for my priceless parents this year; God is very gracious and has blessed me with them abundantly. I cannot think of better role models. I thank God for giving us trials where we are constantly aware of who is in control. He has some remarkable ways of doing that and the bottom line is Faith, Trust and Prayer. I thank God for one of the most challenging but rewarding years.
We celebrated this l holiday with both families, Barry’s and mine. It was joy to get together and share the most delicious meal and to hear what each heart was thankful for. You can’t help it but just sit in that moment and be joyous and grateful for every person and every event that took place in their life.

November has always been a wonderful month.  Not only is it a month of praise and thanksgiving, but we also celebrate a birthday of a very special lady- my mom!  Oh, how I love her and what a great example she is to me, not only as a mother but as a friend.  I can’t even think of all I have learned from her but the list is endless.  I could not ask for a better mom, I feel truly blessed!  I ask God for one thing and that is health for my parents.  My thinking is if you are healthy, the rest is doable.  For her birthday I wanted to do something different, so we went on a little day trip to Napa Valley.  Both of us love Fall and what a better place to be than Napa to see all of the Fall has got to offer with it’s beauty.  We also had a great opportunity to visit the Culinary Institute of America and attend one of their cooking classes.  We had such a wonderful time!  The tour was wonderful and we even got to taste some of the dishes that students made, which was such a treat.  I must say, the best ribs I have ever had, it’s too bad I will never be able to make those myself, as the guy that made them went through two different culinary schools to learn how to make ribs.  All in all, I can easily say that it was one of the best days I could have spent with my dearest mom.