I woke up this Thursday feeling very blessed and thankful for the important people in my life.  My hubby and I got some news last night that really put us in a "funk" (don't worry - nothing baby related!).  For some reason, instead of waking up pissed, I woke up feeling grateful for my husband, family, and friends.  My husband is very chill and down to earth - nothing really frazzles him.  He keeps me calm, patient, and reminds me that the little things really don't matter in the grand scheme of things.  I'm not quite sure what I would do without him.  I woke up feeling grateful for my parents and sister.  Having my little one has really taught me to appreciate them and to appreciate what they have taught me as an adult.  I have such great examples that I can model from as I learn how to be a mom and parent our little one.  My sister has shown me what a love between an aunt and nephew can be.  She truly loves my little one and I think it is such a gift for both of them to have one another.  I woke up grateful for my friends because they have shown such kindness since the birth of our baby.  For all of these people, I am grateful and I can't thank them enough for their love and support. 

On a different note, my husband and I received a very special gift from a parent of mine.  I taught her son this year, of course until I left on maternity leave.  She is starting a photography business and gave us the gift of photo sessions for us once our little guy was born.  She has always loved pictures and she loves to tell a story through her work.  Search for Blake Marler Photography on facebook or online to find her spectacular work.  Here are a few of the pictures from our family session.

I am so beyond pleased with her work.  What's special about this session is that my husband and I didn't do wedding professional pictures or engagement pictures.  We just didn't feel like we needed them at the time.  I wish now that we had more from our wedding, other than what our resort captured for us.  I am so grateful for these pictures because we have this moment in our life captured forever and we will cherish these pictures for a lifetime.

Thank you to the special people in our lives that have given us something to smile about.

XOXO

-Ashley-

I know I know.  I said I would wait until later to post the "Reveal Picture" we put on facebook to tell our friends we were expecting.  I think it pretty much explains it all.

I Have Been Inspired.

I have been inspired.  My younger sister decided to start back up her blog called Sense of Wonder.  Her blog is a collaboration of DIY projects, questions to ponder, and a place to journal random thoughts.  I used to blog all the time and I lost track of time and got carried away with work, being booked solid on the weekends, and of course the greatest inspiration of all, my son.  I had this great vision to blog while I was pregnant and to track everything and every moment with my friends in the blog world.  Between morning sickness, teaching my fourth graders, and attempting to get rest, I completely fell short with blogging.  I did however get a chance to snap pictures along the way.  I didn't share ANY of my pregnancy pictures with friends on facebook or even with my closest friends.  I figured, "Who wants to see belly pictures?"  Now I'm wondering why am I even going to share them on my blog?!?  I want them to be seen.  I want to share my journey with you all in hopes that I could share in your journeys with you too. 

 One of my favorite moments of being pregnant was when we revealed our pregnancy to our family.  Have you heard of the game Mad Gab?  We took one of the cards and (kudos to my husband) came up with our own card for the game.  It says, "Jaw In Dash Layer Praying Nut".  When said quickly it should read "John and Ashley are pregnant."  It took my in laws quite awhile to figure it out and we video taped them attempting to read the card.  It was pretty hysterical.  Anyways, I searched far and wide to find a creative way to reveal our pregnancy to our family and my husband spit this idea out.  Who would have thought the Mr. could be so creative?  Wait until I post the picture we posted on facebook for our friends to see?!?  Totally the hubby's idea!

I have to say that I am thankful that my pregnancy is now over although I'm grateful for every moment I had during pregnancy.  There are many women who don't get to share in this experience and I reminded myself of that often.  I didn't want to complain or make a fuss over morning sickness, restless legs, or any of that.  Things could have been worse.  I am blessed with a healthy baby boy now and I couldn't be more happy.  I am looking forward to keeping up and starting my blog back up for you to read and to share.

XOXO

Ashley