Birthday Party!

Had to call in cousin Robert for some help!


Having pizza with Grandma, so glad she came!


Tearing into all her gifts


Jeremy and his "mini-me"


I know Isabelle has been 1 for almost 3 weeks now....but I'm just now getting a chance to blog about her birthday party!! Anyway, her party was a lot of fun. We just had a small get-together at the house with family and a few friends. She got some really great gifts for her birthday. We're so thankful to everyone who brought gifts, sent gifts in the mail, as well as several cards and Happy Birthday messages. Thank you everyone who thought of our baby girl on her special day. She got a lot of help from her cousins Robert and Karli with opening her gifts and even tearing into her cake! She was a little timid with the cake at first. I let Robert show her how it was done, then she really got into it!! Isabelle was also fortunate to have BOTH of her grandmas in town for her party. My mom was already in town and had made arrangements to leave the day after her birthday. Jeremy's mom surprised us all and showed here the day before Isabelle's birthday!! She rode in a bus for a full day and a half to be here for her only granddaughter's first birthday, it was really special. We're so thankful to the Lord for our precious, healthy, thriving baby girl. We had an awesome first year with her and look forward to what's to come.

Oh how she's grown....

Pretty Girl


This is how she loves to sleep these days



How tiny she looked in her crib at just 1 month old


Almost outgrown her infant carrier


The day we brought her home from the hospital, so little
in her big carseat



Last weekend we celebrated Isabelle's 1st birthday (post and pics from her party later!). Her 1st birthday was very bitter sweet for me. The day before and the day of her birthday I kept reminiscing about those last moments leading up to her birth. I would look at the clock and say "at this time, one year ago, I was...." and fill in the blank with what was happening right at that moment. I remember everything so clearly still, and I hope that I always will. It's amazing how much can happen in one year. How you can can become a parent, and suddenly be somebody's mommy. This year has been a roller coaster of emotions. I've experienced some of the highest highs imaginable when my baby entered into this world, and literally feeling my heart fill to the brim with joy when I look into her face everyday. When we met eyes and she smiled at me for the first time, I was on cloud nine. There's been some lows as well, especially those early months when the nights were never ending and I never thought I'd get a full night of sleep again. And when the tears would flow, and nothing I did would stop them, or when I couldn't console a teething baby. However, the rewards and joy of having her makes even the hardest times pale in comparison. It also amazes me how much change a baby experiences in the first year. They go from sleeping all the time and not being able to get around...to talking, some walking, and eating solid foods! In any case, I feel so overwhelmingly blessed and thankful to the Lord for giving us our precious Isabelle. She has filled our lives and hearts with tremendous joy.

Halloween!

Our little nurse!

We called the one on the right our Izzy pumpkin because it

has just two bottom teeth like Isabelle!

This Halloween was not all that eventful since Jeremy and I both had to work. However, we did dress Isabelle up and my mom took her out trick-or-treating a little bit with my sister and her kids. She's not walking yet and still too young for the whole halloween thing, but it was fun to dress her up and she collected some candy for mom and dad! I decided to dress Isabelle up as a little baby nurse, maybe a glimpse into her future?? :) She looked so cute and I think she had fun. I'm looking forward to next year, I think she'll enjoy herself more.