Flashback Friday: Easter

My sweet friend Jenn will often do Flashback Friday posts on her blog, and I am going to borrow her idea for our blog.  Please note that Jenn's flashbacks are fun, intentional, reflective looks back at the past.  My use of flashback Friday is an attempt to blog about things that have happened in the not-too-distant-past, but  long enough ago that they can't be considered current.  (This seems to happen a lot in our little corner of the blog world, so thanks for taking a trip down memory lane with us)!

The weeks surrounding Easter were a sweet celebration.  We did a lot of fun things, and a lot of reflecting on the true gift of our salvation through Christ.  Here is a quick look on some of the fun things that happened around here.

We dyed Easter eggs, which Mikayla LOVED...  

 

 

 

Our sweet girl on Easter morning...

 

A little bit of Easter basket fun...

 

 

We also had a mini Easter egg hunt in our back yard.  Mikayla was really good at finding the eggs and wanted us to hide them over and over again...

 

So thankful for a special day with our family!

One Year Ago

One year ago today I woke up as nervous as I ever had been before.  I knew my life was about to change forever because Brian and I were to meet a new member of our family.  One year ago we traveled across a busy city in a foreign country to meet a little girl who was already part of our hearts, a child for whom we had prayed long before we even knew her.  We stepped out of a van and walked up the stairs to a room with six tiny cribs.  One year ago, a video camera watched as we laid eyes on this sleeping beauty who was our daughter for the first time.  

 One year ago today, we fell instantly in love with our little Tamir.

Has it really been a year?  In so many ways it feels  like just yesterday we were in Addis for the first time.  In so many other ways, it feels like I have known Mikayla forever.  What a difference a year makes!

Mikayla Tamir, we are so thankful for the blessing you are in our lives.  We are so much richer for being your parents.

Wordless Wednesday: Family Photos at the Lake

A Tradition Continues

It is hard to put into words what a special place our family's little lake house is.  It has been in my family since my mom was a little girl, and I have spent my summer here for as long as I can remember...

Flashback:  Homemade ice cream is synonymous with the lake.  My sister, Julie and I were ALWAYS first in line!

Flashback: Racing out of the house with bread when the ducks showed up on the lawn is one of my favorite memories.

Brian also jumped right into the lake tradition as soon as we met.  He cares for it as if it has been part of his lifelong memories as well.  In fact, Brian and I got engaged at the lake!  We have dreamed and talked for years about the joy of sharing the lake with our child.  Introducing a little one of our own to the lake is something to which we have looked forward.  Finally, this was the summer!

While we didn't make it to the lake as often as we would have liked this summer, we enjoyed our time there (although the lake with a kiddo in tow felt MUCH less like a retreat and more like real life)!   Mikayla is such a water baby...just like her mommy and daddy, which made our time on the water so much fun.  By the end of the summer she was putting her face completely in the water and blowing bubbles.

Lots of sweet snuggles on the screened in porch

Ready for action

Such a ham

Checking out the water

Our little water baby

Where Has the Time Gone?

My mom recently posted the picture below with the caption, Goodbye Summer, and I had to shake my blogging head in shame!  Yes, summer is long gone, and while we have done a great job living life, I have been slack in documenting it.  Will you bear with me as I relive a bit of our summer over the next couple of days?  You can never get enough scrumptious baby legs in bathing suits, right?!

Her First Boat Ride

We love spending time on the water, and we are especially fortunate that we live in an area that is surrounded by lakes.  Earlier this summer, we took Mikayla for her first boat ride after Brian got home from work.  She was fascinated, and seemed to really love feeling the wind in her face.

A picnic on the water...can dinner get any better?

A little floating...High five, Daddy!  This is great!

You guys sit back and relax.  I'll be happy to drive us back to the dock.

I honestly think I was more miserable looking at her in the bulky life jacket than she actually was, but bless her heart!

Feeling the breeze on the water

Can't wait 'till she is old enough to get behind the boat for some fun!

P.S.  Yes, Mikayla is in  her pjs in some of the pictures.  After swimming, we got her ready for bed so we could transfer her straight from the truck to her crib since this was a quick trip after work.

Kissy, Kissy

Our sweet girl is into kisses right now.  She loves to give kisses, and as you can tell by her "kissing face" below, Mikayla doesn't give wimpy kisses!  She really puckers up and lets you have it.  Just imagine the big kissing sound to go with that face.  So, so sweet and cute!  Mikayla kisses friends too, but by far, the members of our household get the most kisses.  Just for fun, though, leave a comment telling us who you think gets the most kisses from Miss Mikayla.  I'll share the answer in a day or two!

                                   

Who gets the most kisses?

Daddy

                                                    

Oliver                                    

Mattie

Mommy

Can't wait to read your guesses!

Happy Anniversary to Us!

Today, we celebrate six years of marriage!  More so than ever before, I find it hard to believe that it has been six years.  A lot has happened in these 6 years:  2 houses, 5 jobs, 4 cars, 1 boat, two surgeries, 1 miscarriage, 4 nieces and nephews, countless weddings, and 1 Mikayla later, here we are!  Our journey has been a bit of a roller coaster, but we have had so much fun together, and I wouldn't trade a bit of it.  I am so thankful to be on this road with my best friend.

Brian and I at our rehearsal dinner 

The first words spoken at our wedding definitely reflect my feelings today as well:

Shout for joy to the LORD, all the earth.
 ² Worship the LORD with gladness;
   come before him with joyful songs.
³ Know that the LORD is God.
   It is he who made us, and we are his;
   we are his people, the sheep of his pasture.
 ⁴ Enter his gates with thanksgiving
   and his courts with praise;
   give thanks to him and praise his name.
⁵ For the LORD is good and his love endures forever;
   his faithfulness continues through all generations.
-Psalm 100

Strawberry Picking!

As a kindergarten teacher, I went on a lot of fun field trips with my students.  One of my favorites was going to pick strawberries.  I can't explain it, but there is something about picking strawberries that makes me extremely happy.  It didn't take long once we reached strawberry season to suggest that we make a trip to a farm about 5 minutes from our house.  I'm so glad we did!  It was a beautiful, mild day with tons of sunshine.  Even on a Saturday afternoon, it wasn't crowded, and there were so many great strawberries to pick. 

Once we were given a row to pick, there were so many strawberries that we hardly had to move.  This meant that Mikayla could be the keeper of the bucket.  She really enjoyed taking strawberries out of the bucket and then putting them back in.

Maybe a couple didn't make it back into the bucket :)

She was such a good helper.  (And in this picture, it looks like she is picking a strawberry, but actually she is trying to put an already-picked-berry back on the plant.  I guess we still need some work on the concept of picking strawberries)!

Our haul...we had plenty to eat, dip in chocolate, share with friends, and freeze for yummy things later (like smoothies)!  I feel like this should be a tradition for the Mitchells!