Love where you are at.

I thought I was doing so well with not being an emotional basket case about Norah turning one soon by distracting myself with planning her birthday party, but I started looking at pictures on my phone of Norah when she was born when I was laying in bed the other night, and I lost it. It was a good thing. It's healthy to think back and remember.

Overall, I feel so good about Norah turning one. Yes, I am sad to look back and see that her baby days are fleeting and she isn't so tiny like a newborn anymore, but she is still as cute as ever and I am so excited that I get to be her mom forever. This year she will walk and begin to talk, and that's amazing! I can't wait to have conversations with her and watch her continue to explore the world.

It really made me think about where we are in life and how I am so happy about our current stage, and also about how great every stage has been. I feel like the ideal "dream" of what I wanted my life to look like as a grown up has/is coming true. When I was younger, I dreamed about getting married, teaching, what our home would be like, and having kids. I now have all of those things. I wouldn't call my life "dreamy," because nothing is perfect until Heaven, but it's really good. I am so thankful for the life God has given me and blessed me with here on earth.

It can be far too easy to be wishing for the next stage in your young 20s, I feel. It's so easy to wish that you could find your dream job, meet a wonderful man, get engaged, get married, find an apartment, look for a house, wish for a baby, etc. Whatever it is, there's always something else to want or dream about.

That's true for all of life, but I think it's especially true in your young 20s, when you are beginning to establish yourself as an adult. As I look back on those years, they were so amazing and formative. But, far too often, I fell into the trap of always wishing for the next thing.

So, I know I'm not old, but that would be my biggest piece of advice to college graduates or people in their young 20s. Try to enjoy where you are at! As I look back on our engagement, first years of marriage, first apartments, first jobs, first house, and first pregnancy/baby, it's all so fun to look back on and they were such great years. The years of "firsts" are just that, your firsts, so enjoy the memories being made and try your best to be content.

I feel like Kley and I spent years dreaming about what was to come and working towards where we are at now, and sometimes it's hard to even believe we are here! It felt like forever at the time while Kley was getting through school, but looking back it wasn't forever at all. But it's been a wonderful road. Our years of firsts are over, but it's fun to look back on, and I can't wait to see what God has for us in these next years to come!

Keeping the spark alive.

A few days ago, FB alerted me that Kley and I had been friends for 8 years. I usually think that's dumb and don't love when people share their "facebook friendship," but for that one time, I enjoyed it. It sparked many memories from our dating days, and it was so fun to talk about our favorite first memories and reread the notes that we sent each other.

Kley and I both wrote notes to our future spouse before we met. It was a very special gift to give to each other on our wedding night. Looking back, we also discovered that Kley wrote me a note the night before my high school boyfriend broke up with me. How amazing to think that my future husband was thinking of me and praying for me during that time before I even knew him!

It was also fun to reread our FB messages we had sent each other in college. We thought we were being so cute and flirtatious at the time, but when we reread them they sounded hilariously lame. But isn't that the point? :)

This is the very first picture we ever took together back in 2007. I really don't like it (at the time I thought it was recurring pink eye, but it turned out to be a contact solution allergy, so my eyes were so red during our first month or so together), but it's our first and that makes it special.

Kley, here's to many more years of keeping the spark alive!

Post-baby swimsuits.

I know it's not swimsuit season anymore, but I'm sharing my absolute favorite post-baby swimsuit from the Becca line. I don't think I could love a swimsuit more. (This is not a sponsored post, I just really love it.) 

After having Norah, I wanted a more covering swimsuit, both in the chest area and in the stomach. Personally, I think swimsuits with a V come down so low on me, and with Norah grabbing my suit all the time, it was way too risky for a boob flash to occur. Ha. I really like that this swimsuit has the bandeau style that's more covering. I also really like that it covers my stomach, yet it's so breathable and it's not tight. Some tankinis are so tight on the stomach. The fabric on this suit is so airy. It keeps me cooler and much more comfortable, and still covered! A win in all areas! (I personally prefer tankinis way more than a one piece. One pieces rarely fit me well, and I hate going to the bathroom in a one piece.)

I have the two suits pictured below. Her line also has lots of other prints and styles of suits, and I really like that most of them are more modest than a lot of suits today. The only issue is the expense. I am all for trying to find a steal of a deal, but in this instance, it's worth the expense. It's a quality swimsuit and I really love it.

Becca Ritual Bandeau Top and Becca Ritual American Bottom

Becca Chandelier Tankini Top and Becca Chandelier Bottom 

Also, I am not trying to say that if you have a baby that you need to cover your stomach up. That's your own personal decision with what you feel most comfortable. I am not ashamed of my stomach, I just felt more comfortable in this suit!

Morning on the green!

Norah went to her first morning on the green! It was Northwestern's homecoming weekend, the college here in OC, and they have morning on the green every year with kids games, activities, and inflatables. Kley and I both went as kids (we probably saw each other there before we knew each other!), and the classic memory is winning a goldfish. We had fun walking around and seeing lots of people we knew!

Norah doing the "dino dig" game, which involved her touching the sand very cautiously with one hand. 

Norah's one take away was a balloon!

She was clearly thrilled. :)

We also walked there, so it was nice to enjoy the true, crisp fall weather and be outside together. Weekends are the best!

My husband could act in this video.

When You Can't Do Salads

I think this video is hilarious because it perfectly describes my husband when forced to eat a salad. Especially with the burrito part at the end. :)

Mom funnies.

One of the blogs I follow put up a post called "This is how I feel" that is super funny. Check it out here.

Favorite gifts.

Gift giving/gift receiving is definitely not my top love language, but I was looking around our house the other day feeling grateful for all that we have. Material possessions are not everything (Matthew 6:20), and they will never last, but I am grateful that we have a house and the things we need. I specifically looked at a few of my favorite, or most meaningful, gifts that I have ever been given in my life.

1. Compact case- For my high school graduation, my grandma gave me a silver compact case, because she said that's what she got when she graduated. It opens up with mirrors inside. I thought that was really special. I still have it and will always keep it. (It doesn't look exactly like this, but something like that.)

2. Giraffe glasses stand- My Uncle Jeff gave me this for Christmas one year, and it still sits on my nightstand today. He knew that giraffes are my favorite animal, and I thought this was a really unique gift!

3. Pearl earrings- Kley gave me these earrings when I graduated college. 

4. OPI nail polish case- My mom gave me this nail polish case for my birthday in high school. Unfortunately, I didn't love it at the time and my face is usually a dead give away of how I am feeling, but it grew on me. I took it to college and all the girls on my floor loved it and frequently came to my room asking to borrow nail polish. I still use it today. So, even though I didn't initially like it, I love it now- thanks mom!

5. "My sister, my friend" stand- It doesn't look like this exactly, but my youngest sister gave me a stand with two sisters on it like this that said "my sister, my friend" before I went to college. My dad said he was with her at a store one time and she saw that and bought it for me with her own money (she was about 8 at the time). I brought it to every dorm room with my and it's still on our dresser today. 

6. Giraffe stuffed animal and collage frame- My best friend, Stephanie, has given me many great gifts over the years, but two of my favorites are a big stuffed animal giraffe from our Jr. High days (that is now in Norah's room!), and a collage frame of her favorite pictures from her semester abroad in Rome (which is hanging in our living room).

I'm sure I could go on with many more meaningful gifts, but these are some of my most memorable. My favorite thing about them all was that I never asked for any of them; it was a gift they just really thought I would like.

What are some of your favorite gifts?