little thoughts this afternoon

John, Emma and I are heading up to Dayton (about an hour drive) this afternoon to help his brother Brian and his wife Leah move over from Kokomo, IN (about 2 1/2 hours away). I am so excited to have her within a visiting distance!

I enjoy having sisters-in-law. So far I have been blessed with two and they are just so wonderful. Each unique with her own particular style and strengths.

Sarah, John's sister, and I have gotten to know each other over the past 2+ years. She graciously welcomed me into the family as her first sister (John has 6 brothers and 1 sister) and our friendship has been growing ever since.

Leah married into the family on August 1 last year and I have been delighted to be able to claim her as a sister now, not just as a friend! She gave me this coffee cup last Christmas, and each time I use it it is a reminder of just how blessed I have been.

My sisters-in-law are truly my friends. One of the special things about them is that, even though friends can come and go, they will always be my sisters. I am looking forward to the years to come. :)

"the divinest gift of marriage is this - the daily, unconscious growing of two souls into one. Aspirations and ambitions merge, each with the other, and love grows fast to love. Unselfishness answers to unselfishness, tenderness responds to tenderness, and the highest joy of each is the well-being of the other. ... Day by day and year by year the bond becomes closer and dearer, until at last the two are one, and even death is no division."

-myrtle reed, Flower of the Dusk

new favorite knitting book

new favorite knitting book, originally uploaded by Lizi Beth.

and the beginnings of a sweater vest for Emma (using yarn from a cotton sweater that was just too short on me for my liking).

This knitting book - Essential Baby by Debbie Bliss - is just too sweet! It's projects are all classic and timeless, and range in time consumption from itty-bitty socks to a jumper or lacy blanket.
And the instructions are clearly written, too (a HUGE plus in my opinion!).

on the day Emma was due

These pictures were taken on the evening of Emma's due date, February 20th. I spent that day and the next week wandering around the apartment, doing little things that didn't need doing - since everything was already prepared - and waiting.

I think baby due dates are just wonderful.
Because they are a concrete date, they give a sense of expectancy and anticipation to the waiting family and friends, but can also be (and usually are) a form of divine joke. God is the One Who opens the womb in the first place, and He is also the One Who determines when that little babe is ready to meet the world. More often than not, it's not on the "due date"!

happy valentine's day!

projects

Emma's birthday is just around the corner (where did the year go?!), and in anticipation of it there are a few projects that I am working on.
The napkins are for the party that we are planning to have with the Smillies, and the ribbons might be part of Emma's first year album that I am hoping to have finished by then.
At the rate that I am finishing pages, though, I will be doing well to have the album done by the time Baby #2 is here!

a one-car family

I stumbled upon this post this morning, and found it to be quite encouraging.
As some of you know, John and I have been driving one car since we got married. It has worked out fine overall, but there have definitely been times when I/we have thought about buying another!
Since we aren't in a position to afford one (and by afford I mean pay cash for, etc) without digging into our savings, we have put the idea on the back burner for the near future.
Reading Liz's thoughts on the subject was good, reminding me that not only are others in our situation thriving, but there are actually benefits to it.
Obvious benefits are financial, of course, but also personal. I, too, have had to be organized with my time and shopping trips, and that organization has been good for me. :)

There is one thing in particular that she said that was especially encouraging:
"On a more personal level, I feel that our situation has also blessed me with the opportunity to truly blossom in our home and to focus on my life there."

It's true. When you don't have the option of driving away, home becomes your focus. My challenge is to take joy in that, and not let it become a grumbling point.
As I'm reminded of over and over, this season of life is passing quickly, and I need to focus on it, not the "someday". Emma will be our only child for just a few more months, and she is growing so quickly. With the new baby I will need to focus on two instead of one, and there will be increasingly less time. Focusing on our home and each other (as well as our friends) is something that we will never regret.

And as Liz said to close her post, I may not get out much, but you are welcome to come over! I'll put on the coffee or tea and we can visit a while. :)

a song to start the morning

One of the men in our church sang this during the service yesterday, and it brought me to tears (I had to borrow a Kleenex from the lady ahead of me). I recommend listening to it if you have time this morning. It is so good.

Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea.
I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband.
And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, "Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God.
He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away."
He who was seated on the throne said, "I am making everything new!" Then he said, "Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true."

-Revelation 21:1-5

a bit about the aprons

I'm switching the web store host for the aprons from BigCartel to Etsy. Just to let you know. :) You can follow along on the "Market" blog (it's only updated sporadically) if you like.

Fell free to leave feedback on what you think!

Do you remember this post from last fall? A very kind friend from California read it and sent us the pattern. It was so sweet of her! I found an extremely good deal deal on the material the day after Thanksgiving ($1.49 a yard! so amazing!) and made up the jammies for Emma a week or two later.

The pattern arrived with a paper doll that I'm going to hold on to for Emma to play with in a few years. It is also made of thicker tissue than your usual pattern, sturdy enough to be used over and over as she grows from one size to the next. The instructions are incredibly clear, and I even learned a new technique for making narrow ties (no more turning to the "right" side. it saves so much time). I am now a huge fan of Oliver + S!

Emma loves her new jammies, and looks just adorable wearing them. It has taken me a while to get some good photos of her actually in them, though, since the lighting is pretty bad in our apartment in the morning when she is at her most photogenic. This morning, however, we have a ton of snow which brightens everything.

Thank you, Tammi, for the pattern. It really was so sweet of you!!!

feminine prettiness

Back in November, when Emma and I went to California to visit Gramma and the rest of the family, Mom pulled out a few of Gramma's old hats that she used to wear to her ladies' meetings. We tried them on, Gramma wearing a lovely royal blue feather one for quite a while.
It added a bit of lovely fun-ness to an otherwise emotion filled day.

Anyway, all that to say, I really like those pretty little hats. They're not the sun hat type, not meant to protect you in any way, just to be pretty.
My head is a tad bigger than most womens' (apparently), and I have had a hard time finding any type of hat that will fit (and it's not the hair that gets in the way - the hats really won't fit).

I stumbled upon this veil this evening, and it was so pretty.

Kind of expensive since it is a bridal veil, but so lovely. I would love to wear it to church ...

I don't want to stand out or distract anyone from worshipping (having them wondering why the redhead is wearing a veil when they should be pondering other things is not my intention!) or anything, but it would be pretty. And oh, so feminine. Wonder if I could pull it off?

image from onelittledove