This time exactly a year ago, I was due with our second child…I was pacing up and down the stairs trying to get my contractions going so I could meet our new baby…we didn’t know if we were having another boy, or a girl, so there was much anticipation.  Mia’s delivery was fast and intense (oh how I wished that epidural would have worked!) And you can imagine how thrilled I was when my hubby looked at me and said “It’s a GIRL!” I had to have him tell my twice!  The second I saw her I was beaming…with love and joy, and excitedness of the years ahead raising a little girl.

Mia Grace Estelle is our little “daisy” (nickname), full of smiles, giggles, cuddles, and sweet little words.  She is a gift from God, and has brought us so much joy!  On her dedication day Pastor Paul spoke about the meaning of her name “Mine”,  and how she was not “our’s” but God’s…God calls her “mine”.  I am thankful that Mia is in God’s hands, she is His, and that gives me great peace and contentment.  Our prayer for her is to continue to raise her up to know the Lord as her personal saviour, to serve Him, and love Him, whatever she does.  I pray that she would keep her sweet spirit of love, and share that love with others.  She is always ready to toddle over and give her Mommy or Daddy a hug, or lay her head down on our shoulder when she is tired, she can hold her own when it comes to Ben, and is so tolerant of his teasing and rough play.  She loves to smile and meet new people, I can already see what a big heart she has!

What a great first year we have spent with our darling little girl, and so much joy she has brought to us and her big brother Ben.  I can’t wait to watch her grow through the years, and see the person she will become.  We love you Mia Grace, and we love having you as part of our family!  Here are some photos from today (her “technical” last day as a baby)  that I would like to share, as you can see she is one smiley, happy little girl.

Happy (almost) Birthday little girl!

It’s time to announce the winner of the “Blankets for my Buddies” giveaway!!  No delaying we will cut right to the chase….by random selection the winner IS…….

#5 commenter BETH who wrote:

“Julia these are beautiful! Shelley, you do an amazing job at your pictures!”

Thanks Beth, and I know your little Jessica will LOVE having one of these gorgeous tag blankets to snuggle up to!

And here are a couple fun photos from a wedding I recently attended for my good friend Mary Beth…

I could use one of those cupcakes right about now!  (made by the talented Heather Hennig, who makes AMAzing cakes & cupcakes, so if you are looking for a cake maker she is your gal, you can look her up on my FB or ask me for her info)

Thank you to Julia from “Blankets for my Buddies” and  Congrats to Beth on your winnings….keep checking back for more giveaway’s…..hmmm what will it be next!  Have a great night everyone!!!

I am thankful to have so many talented friends around me, and so with all this talent going on I thought it would be perfect to start doing some fun blog giveaway’s, because apparently according to my hubby and “Google Analytics” I actually have blog readers!  So I think it’s time I start saying THANK YOU to my readers for all their great support!!!   So here we go!

Our first giveaway is from one of my very talented awesome friends Julia.  Her business “Blankets for my Buddies” makes hand crafted taggie blankets with the softest material and sweetest designs.   Mia was given one of the larger blankets and it is SO soft and warm and she loves it!  We also have a smaller one clipped on to her stroller so she has something to play with and comfort her during walks.  I love the tag blankets from “Blankets for my Buddies” and I am SURE all the little ones in your life will too!  Here are a few of Julia’s photos so you can see what they look like…..

Blue for boys and pink squares for the girls, there are solid pink colored ones as well…

So in honor of all my wonderful blog readers who keep coming back to check up on me, I am going to be giving away a cute & cozy  tag blanket to one lucky person!  ALL you have to do to enter the giveaway is leave a comment here on this blog post, and after a few days I will announce the winner who will receive a “Blankets for my Buddies” tag blanket (blue or pink, your choice!)

And if you don’t win, one of these blankets can still be yours, Julia is currently selling them for a great price!  They are such good quality and a unique gift for your little one, or someone else’s!

The bigger blankets are approximately 13 x 10 inches  - $20

Smaller blankets are approximately 9 x 9 inches  - $15

The material is polar fleece and has already been pre-washed. There is no special way to wash them, other than to keep velcro away from it so that the ribbons do not fray.

They appeal to many of the senses (touch, see). Each blanket comes with a teething ring on it – as featured in the photos.

Great for shower gifts!!!

If you are interested in purchasing one you can contact Julia at juliamorton_9@hotmail.com

Thanks for checking out my blog today, your support and comments mean so much!  And I can’t do a post without some photos so I leave you with these… a sweet little girl I met yesterday…

Don’t forget to leave a comment so you can be entered in the giveaway!!!

This is less of a photography post and more of a family post…if you are into family and fun then proceed!

After a wonderful good friday service at our church this morning I read something really true tweeted by someone saying, remember: Today we don’t morn Christs death but rather our sin that CAUSED his death!  Jesus gave his life for me, so that I could be redeemed from my sins, and not just for me…for every one!  I pray that this message would be passed on to Ben and Mia as they grow and learn more about God and the sacrifice he made.  One way I do that is by reading bible picture stories to them, Ben is becoming more and more interested in stories from the bible and about Jesus, and that makes my heart happy.  I will just keep reading those stories and praying that God would plant a seed in his heart one day soon.

This afternoon we decided to do a little easter egg hunt, to enjoy the beautiful sunshine and make some fun family memories….here are some photos Chris and I took from the day…..

Ben showing off his loot…

showing Mia how to pick up the eggs, she was a little timid…

Mia’s first Easter, cutest little bunny around…

Mia with Daddy looking down at her basket with anticipation…and Ben being a HAM down below…

Sunny picture of our family…..Every day I get to spend with my family, just the four of us is such a huge blessing, and I look around at them and am so thankful for the gift they are to me from God.  My hardworking, loyal husband, my fun loving exuberant little boy, and my sweet and beautiful little girl, what a mix