Celebrating Five Years! An Anniversary to remember.

Five years ago, I stepped out of my wedding reception and into the beautiful adventure of marriage to Mike Harder.  I was wearing my grandmother's ellegant pillbox hat and a smile that you couldn't steal from my face! From that sweet moment on, I have absolutely loved being married and I am so thankful to have Mike by my side for every adventure along the way. 

I consider myself to be a very sentimental person and I love celebrating every little anniversary and milestone of our relationship.  I love to look back and remember exactly what we wore and what we ate and what our conversations entailed. 

After our first year of marriage, we backpacked through Italy on what will always be the most romantic adventure of my life.  We made memories eating gelato in Cinque Terre and sipping wine on the Rialto Bridge in Venice.  I remember sitting underneath the stars on the porch of our bed and breakfast in Tuscany and dreaming of having children and going on incredible mission trips together.  Anniversaries are really special to me!

Looking toward our five year anniversary, we dreamed of going back to Italy and hiking the Dolomites.  We planned to take a side trip into Switzerland for a few days exploring where Mike's relatives originated.  At the time, I was absolutely sure that I would be able to leave our child for a week to ten days and go on an international trip of a lifetime.  But then my sweet Abigail was born and I began to laugh at my silly ideas of jumping on a plane and leaving my baby!

Our overseas trip quickly turned into a wonderful little weekend getaway at a beautiful home on the Lake of the Ozarks.   Problem solved, until I found out my only brother was graduating that weekend.  Cancel that.  I had the perfect back up plan to celebrate at a quaint bed and breakfast tucked away in the mountains!  The perfect solution, until I realized his graduation was not in the afternoon, but early morning.  Cancel that. 

As the week of our anniversary approached, Abigail came down with a virus and I realized my " all day long" sickness was not quite over.  So....instead of an international trip or a weekend getaway at the lake or a romantic evening at a bed and breakfast, we celebrated our five year anniversary right in our living room.  And it was perfect!

Here's what I want to remember and document for our five year anniversary!  I am four months pregnant and rocking my sweats because my clothes don't fit.  We ordered J.Alexanders and ate in our living room which was sprinkled with baby shoes and random toys.  We ate carrot cake and drank sparkling juice from our wedding champagne flutes.  We watched our wedding dvd and eventually ended up talking about our baby girl and our new blessing that's on the way most of the night! My sweet, thoughtful husband remembered that I mentioned wood was the traditional five year anniversary gift and bought me the most adorable wooden keepsake box from my favorite store! It was a perfect evening!

And honestly, I wouldn't trade our night for any trip in the world or romantic dinner for two at a five star restaurant.  I am so blessed and my life , though messy and slightly out or sorts at the moment, is such a gift and I am grateful! 

16 weeks!

Happy Anniversary to us!!

Mother's Day at Nanna's house

Yesterday, we took a trip down to Columbia to celebrate my sweet Grandmother Shirley and all the amazing moms in my family for Mother's Day.  Nanna is such a great example of a mom and love simply radiates from her through the generations of her family.     

It was a beautiful day to celebrate and all the kids enjoyed playing outside, especially Abigail!

The driveway at Nanna's is about a quarter of a mile long and that seemed like the perfect place for Abigail to take a walk.  She finally started walking at 15 months old and now she can't seem to stop!  I remember dribbling my basketball up and down this driveway as well as riding my bike so it was really fun to see Abigail try to keep up with her big cousins doing the same thing!

She is such a happy little girl and I love watching her explore!  In fact, this little girl is so busy these days that I have to grab her and steal a kiss when I can because she has a lot to do! 

I love you sweet Abigail.  It's so fun to watch you toddle around exploring the world.  You are such a blessing from the Lord and I have learned so much about His great love for me just by being your mom.  I can't wait to tell you all about Jesus and how much he adores you too.  

As we anticipate the arrival of our new bundle of joy later this year, I find myself thinking about how much my heart is about to stretch again.  Mike and I feel so blessed to see our little family growing before our eyes!

{Mother's Day 2013}

My thoughts this Mother's Day

Mother's Day is a day that wasn't always joyful for me, but now is one of the most precious days of the year for me to reflect on!  This morning, my heart was heavy for so many friends that are experiencing pain or heart ache on this day and I feel like the words expressed below truly capture my heart for all of you.  No matter where your heart is this Mother's Day, I hope this blesses you or someone you love dearly.  

To those who gave birth this year to their first child—we celebrate with you

To those who lost a child this year – we mourn with you

To those who are in the trenches with little ones every day and wear the badge of food stains – we appreciate you

To those who experienced loss this year through miscarriage, failed adoptions, or running away—we mourn with you

To those who walk the hard path of infertility,– we walk with you.

To those who are foster moms, mentor moms, and spiritual moms – we need you

To those who have warm and close relationships with your children – we celebrate with you

To those who have disappointment, heartache, and distance with your children – we sit with you

To those who lost their mothers this year – we grieve with you

To those who experienced abuse at the hands of your own mother – we acknowledge your experience

To those who lived through driving tests, medical tests, and the overall testing of motherhood – we are better for having you in our midst

To those who will have emptier nests in the upcoming year – we grieve and rejoice with you

And to those who are pregnant with new life, both expected and surprising –we anticipate with you

This Mother’s Day, we walk with you. Mothering is not for the faint of heart and we have real warriors in our midst. We remember you.