Day 3: something i never leave the house without

wow,

i have been having a tremendously difficult time with this one.

i always forget my phone or wallet.

i often have to use Thom's car key cause i've lost mine.

even diapers i forget, and i don't always have Isla with me - especially now - *sniff*

i don't even think that there is one thing that i always check that i have.

this suddenly seems strange to me.

then i thought of this:

this is my engagement ring.

it was my mother's engagement ring,

and it was my grandma Elaine's engagement ring before that.

Elaine is my dad's mom, she died when my dad was 18.

this is a very special ring.

engraved in the ring it says

Terry to Elaine 1950

this is also an old ring.

i love it.

i do wear this every day.

even during my pregnancy when my fingers swelled and i had to take off my wedding band, this ring was still able to fit.

now in truth, 

the ring actually only says

Terry      Elaine 1950

this is because apparently i have fatter fingers than my grandma and my mom did.

which is funny, because if you know me, you know that i do not really have fat fingers.

i mean really, my ring size is 5 and a 1/2

tiny.

anyway, i love this ring.

it symbolizes history,
3 promises of love,

which includes the pledge of love that my husband made to me.

small style #22

here we are with a very fun Halloweenie small style :)

a cutie little chicken!

this was Isla's first Halloween.

she was moonlighting as a bun in the oven last year.

we had a lot of fun doing some trick or treating Meika and Sophie.

here is our little family:

didn't you know that rabbits marry bees and make chicken babies?

well known fact, really.

chicken costume: Old Navy, consigned

leggings: Gap kids

socks: SmartWool

shoes: Mexx, consigned

you can check out all kinds of awesome and cute costumes over at Mama Loves Papa!

Day 2: three inspirational quotes

-unknown-

We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation. And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love.

-Romans 5:3-5 (New Living Translation)

There are some things you learn best in calm, and some in storm. 

-Willa Cather

image found here

a year ago today....

a year ago this morning:

miss Isla Beth was welcomed into the world

you made this guy a daddy

you made me a mommy

you changed us forever!

we love you Isla!

Happy 1st Birthday!

Day 1: a self-portrait

so, here I am.

this is me today

at the end of a fairly ordinary day.

hanging with Isla at home in the morn,

and in the afternoon - a trip to get our passport photos done, 

then to walmart, also a stop at work to drop off some necessary documents.

but the fact is, it didn't feel all that ordinary.

today is my last full-time day at home with Isla.

tomorrow I am off to work, and she is off to daycare.

it is the end of one thing, and the beginning of another.

(endings and beginnings often work like that don't they?)

but as you may be able to tell by the photo, I am still at peace.

complete and utter divine peace.

lovely.

-I am joining in on so fawned's 30 Days Hath November-

30 days hath november

I've decided to join up with the Fawn this month in this little bloggy series.

It will ensure that I keep up the blogging once I head back to work....

tomorrow.

here is what you can expect this month:

Day 01: A self-portrait.
Day 02: Three inspirational quotes. 
Day 03: Something I never leave the house without.
Day 04: A friend I adore.
Day 05: Three years ago today.
Day 06: A book I'm reading. 
Day 07: A song for the day.
Day 08: The last item I purchased.
Day 09: A close-up of my day.
Day 10: What I love about my job. 
Day 11: Something I’ve been craving.
Day 12: Three blogs I can’t get enough of.
Day 13: Something I'm proud of. 
Day 14: A favourite movie.
Day 15: Some style inspiration for the season.  
Day 16: Someone who inspires me.
Day 17: My family.
Day 18: What I wore today.
Day 19: A silly self-portrait.
Day 20: A childhood anecdote.
Day 21: Something I could never tire of.
Day 22: Some place I’ve traveled.
Day 23: Eight things you didn't know about me.
Day 24: Something that means a lot to me.
Day 25: The contents of my purse.
Day 26: Something I'm looking forward to.
Day 27: Myself, one year ago. 
Day 28: A skill I'd like to learn. 
Day 29: Some place I'd like to visit.
Day 30: Three wonderful things that happened this month.

I'll be back very very shortly with day 1!

Thanks to Desiree for the inspiration!

mad men

as promised

here are the photos of our family 'mad men' style.

sorry for the blurriness! 

Sarah's not sure what happened to her camera settings.

family photo

baby Isla

baby Isla and Daddy

a few things:

1. i'm glad that i don't live in the sixties-Thom is a super dad, changing diapers, cleaning house, dinner making, getting up in the night kind of super dad-i don't think this happened in the sixties very often!

2. i think that this is my favourite theme party to date-i had the dress, Isla had the dress, Thom had the suit, we just had to add a few pieces.

3. Isla is wearing the bonnet i wore as a baby at my christening-it was a little big, but made the outfit complete :)