Celery and Purple Baby Shower

My dear friend Rebecka is having her baby in December. She doesnt know what she is having, so I decided to throw a color themed shower.  I had fun making the bunting and discovered how cute water bottle labels can be.  The nappy cake was a hit as well!

Family Photos

We wanted to get some family photos done of our growing family.  Our dear friend Matt at Matt Ethan Photography did an amazing job capturing our day out at the park. If you ever want your moments captured, he does an excellent job! You can find him at www.mattethan.co.uk.

  

Blessed

The dictionary has many definitions for the word blessed. I think the best one which describes how I feel right now, and strive to continue to feel is number 4 on the list...

4.  blissfully happy or contented.

 

 God has blessed me with a loving husband of 3 years, Chris, and an beautiful baby girl, Olivia, who is now turning 10 months old.  We live inside Jesmond Parish Church, as Chris is the verger there. Although challenging, I truly believe the Lord has called us to live here for this time. And for that, I am blessed.  I think I need to count my blessings more often. I often find that I get in a slump, feeling as though the entire world is closing in on me.  But then God does something amazing... He answers a prayer that has been prayed so many times. He is so faithful. Chris was an answer to prayer... when I was a single girl praying each night that the Lord would bring my husband to me. Olivia was an answer to prayer...as I prayed for months that the Lord would allow us to have children. Its funny... how I can forget those 2 huge answers to prayers when life gets tough. Yet, God is still faithful.

Today I passed my driving test. After 3 attempts, I passed. Thank you Lord.  I also have been blessed by wonderful friends, who, when I needed them, watched Olivia for a few hours so I could take my test without stressing about her.  I guess I just need to count my blessings more often.

Sleep!

What a busy couple of weeks we have had here in the Parry home. We dedicated Olivia to the Lord on the 3rd of this month, which was a very special service. It was followed by afternoon tea- with many, many cupcakes! We were blessed by all those who were able to make it (about 90). It truly reminded Chris and I that we are part of such a loving church family.

We have now finished the first week of sleep training. Let me tell you, it is a nightmare! Liv has been in our bed since birth...but last Wednesday night we decided it was time for her to be in her own bed. There has been many tears, screams, etc coming from our house... but I think we are making progress. If you are mom out there, and need to get your little one out of your bed, try the Baby Whisperer pick up/put down. I highly recommend it!

Olivias Baby Dedication

God has truly blessed us with our little Olivia Grace!  Our greatest desire is that she grows up to know and love the Lord, calling Him her Lord and Savior.  It was very important to both Chris and I that we dedicate her life to Him in a ceremony at church.  It was such a beautiful day, filled with lovely songs, and followed by yummy food. I made loads of cupcakes, with the help of my dear friends Sarah and Eleanor. The color theme was pink and orange, and I think it came out quite nice.  Everyone seemed to be very impressed with the afternoon tea. We had sandwiches and baby foods on one table, tea cups with tea and coffee on another, and then the cupcake bar.