more to come...

So, I know it's been a while and I actually have quite a few pictures to share...but, I'm not at home where my pictures are!! I'm at my parents and I spent yesterday and today here. This afternoon, Eric is driving out and we're all headed up to the mountains for the DeBlauw Family Reunion! I'm actually pretty excited about it...it's always fun to catch up with relatives you don't see all the time. We rent out an entire YMCA camp and all stay in cabins...I hope that goes ok! This year, Eric, Ella and I will be in a cabin with Jani, Grant, and Anneke (Dan's going home with Tessa at night) and my mom and dad! I'm really praying for good sleep for Ella because she'll literally wake the whole cabin if she wakes up...there's no rooms, just bunks! But, next week, you can expect to see pictures from the zoo, camping at Carlsbad, Ella's first birthday party, and the family reunion...I know, I know, you cannot wait!!! :) AND, next week's the last week of school...can I just say hallelujah for that? I CANNOT wait to be done!!! Have a great weekend!

Happy Birthday, Ella Grace!!!!

Today is Ella's birthday! It's almost over and my one year old is sound asleep! We had a great day at the zoo...I will try to post pictures tomorrow! Tonight we had the board social at Eric's school so Eric's parents kindly watched her for us! It's been a busy day. But...now, at 10:30 pm, I sit here thinking I cannot believe my baby is 1! That seems so old and I feel like that first year of her life passed by in a blink of an eye. She brings me more joy than I could ever know! I love just watching her...seeing her explore new things or "read" her books. I love seeing her when I get home from school because she gets so excited and it just melts my heart! I love knowing the little quirks about her. I love knowing what will make her laugh. I love that she is learning new things everyday and that I get to see her little mind develop! I love seeing her personality come out more and more everyday...the good AND bad of it! :) What a wonderful gift from God she is! It's been a wonderful year and I look forward to many more of them with her!

Happy Mother's Day!

This is my first Mother's Day! Last year on Mother's Day, I looked like this...

Now, I have a walking, babbling little girl who is such a joy to me and who I cannot imagine life without! What a difference a year makes!

This picture was taken by my friend Jen who is starting up her own photography business! She did our family pictures yesterday and Ella's one year pics and I absolutely love this one! I stole this one off her blog!

Anyway, this has been a great Mother's Day. Ella slept in for us (until 7!) and I was presented with a breakfast menu...I chose the egg and bacon bagel sandwich! (I debated between that and the "mom-lette"!) Eric and Ella made me breakfast and I got my gift of a parking pass to this HUGE park by us with a nature center and lots of other fun things that I never explore because I have to pay to park...I hate that! But, now we can go for free whenever we want! We went to church and then went and had lunch with Eric's family. Now we're just resting as Ella naps!

Happy Mother's Day to all you moms out there! And Happy Mother's Day to my mom! Thanks for being such a wonderful mom to me, for blessing me with a full childhood and for giving me much more than I have ever deserved! I love you!

Kendall Susan

Kelly had her little girl on Thursday! Kendall Susan was born at 9:31 am and weighed 8 lbs 9 oz. She's SO cute and looks a lot like Cameron did when he was born! Cheryl and I got to go visit Kelly in the hospital and hold sweet Kendall! I can't wait to see her again!

Fun with Water

A couple weeks ago when we had that 3 day heat-wave, Eric & Ella had some fun with the hose! She absolutely loves the water and we cannot wait to take her swimming this summer!

This week...

was a stressful one! I'm glad it's over! There was some drama at work and it was just yucky and I'm happy it's in the past! Yesterday I went with 16 of our GEMS (Girls Everywhere Meeting the Savior) girls from church to Sea World. It was a really fun time and a beautiful day but I SURE missed Ella (and Eric too!)! They had a great day together but it was the longest I've been away from my baby since she's been born...a little pathetic, yes! Anyway, we had a great time! I got home about 7:45...played with an overly sleepy little girl for about 10 minutes, put her to bed, changed my clothes, freshened up my face and then the babysitter came and Eric and I went to Casino Night! You pay an admission fee and then get a certain amount of fake money to play with. It is SUCH a fun night and we had a great time! At the end, you cash in your chips for tickets and try to win prizes. We didn't win anything this year although Carmen gave us one of the FOUR she won so we still walked away with a prize! Today we have just been relaxing and enjoying the day! I can't believe another week starts tomorrow! However, this week brings some excitement as my friend Kristen flies in from Seattle for the weekend and for her first baby shower! I'm SO excited to see her growing belly and feel that baby kick! What fun it will be to celebrate with her! Have a great week and for those of you counting down...7 weeks 'til summer! :)

Finally...

OK....it had been quite a while so be sure to scroll down for the multiple posts I finally did tonight! I know you all have been dying to hear what's going on in our exciting lives! :)