A Legacy...

So, this day is always a happy/sad one for me each year. 5 years ago today, my grandmother, my inspiration, was given a new body...she was greated by God and I am sure His first words to her were "Well done my good and faithful child!" 

She had very little, but gave everything she had to others. She was a quiet woman who never uttered an unkind word to a single human being. She never thought of herself as anything special, although she was an incredibly talented pianist; she was so humble about her talents. She loved children, flowers, her piano, her bible, but most of all, she loved the Lord. I can only hope to become more like her. It is such a beautiful story how she went to be with the person she loved the most on the very day that we celebrate His resurrection: Easter Sunday. The picture posted here is Ella at around 7 months playing my grandmother's piano. Although this piano is nothing fussy or fancy, it holds such a special place in my heart.

Right after she passed away, I heard this song on the radio that I have on my blog: "Legacy". I thought of her right away when I heard this song. It has new meaning to me now that I have a child. I wonder if I am living a life that will be a legacy to Ella. I wonder if she will think of me the way I always thought of my grandmother. "How will they remember me? Did I chose to Love? Did I point to you enough to make a mark on things?...I want to leave a legacy."

I will never forget the special memories we made while she kept me every Monday and Tuesday as a child. I always think of her when I play so poorly on her piano...because I am sure she would say "Sarah, that was beautiful"...as she often told me as a child. I laugh when I think of how many times she told my parents I was an angel even when I had been completely rotten that day. And I will always remember how she always told us as children to be "peacemakers"...although, I'm not sure I understood her at the time.

I wish I could spend a day with her...tell her how much I miss and love her. I wish I could show her how beautiful her great granddaughter is. But, I know without a doubt that she and I will be playing duets on the piano again in eternity. How lucky I am to have known her and the legacy she left for me. 

A trip down memory lane...

With Ella's 1st birthday quickly approaching, I was thinking I should make a collage of my favorite photos over this past year. Of course, now that I look at it, I realize I made it using only recent pictures...so, this is just my practice one. What? You thought I was going to cut and paste a collage...oh please! Why would I do that when I can just download a fun program that can do it for me?! I'm probably going to get a virus from doing this. But, hey...this is pretty good, eh?

My teacher, my daughter, my heart...

As we grow up, we have many teachers...teachers in school, our parents, perhaps a minister. But, no one told me that my child is the greatest teacher I would ever have. We are told as parents that we are to raise them and guide them, but I can't help but feel that Ella is teaching me way more than I could ever teach her.  When you look at your child, you have a small glimpse into God's heart; you start to have a small understanding of how much He must love us, his children. 

Ready for Spring in our pink clothes!

Learning to walk

The family

My teacher...my heart...my daughter...

A Little More than I deserve...

As a whole, I probably spend more time on my knees pleading to God to rid me of all my sorrows and stress. I beg Him to change any situation I am unhappy with and to rid me of all those mundane things that keep me awake at night. But, is it really possible that I am now on my knees telling God it is TOO MUCH GOODNESS?Is is really possible to be too happy or full of joy?

I am not sure where these feelings stem from. I am not trying to say that my life is perfect...but, lately I feel as though God has blessed me more than I deserve. I do not feel worthy of all the goodness in my life...but, I feel a little nervous admitting this...God might send a hail storm my way!!

Or is it possible that I have just grown so much spiritually that I have given my burdens to Him and finally decided to trust Him. Being the control-freak, obsessive compulsive person that I am, is it possible that God has finally broken me? I have prayed for this day; a day where I stop worrying so much...a day where I look at how much I have been given.

I know everyone thinks they have the best husband in the world...but, I truly am married to one of the most amazing men who ever walked this earth. Part of his beauty is that he is so humble and does not realize how great he is. He is wonderful to everyone who crosses his path and NEVER expects anything in return. Shouldn't we all aspire to be this way? 

And of course, it is no question how blessed my life is because of Ella. She has filled my heart when I did not know it was even empty. She has helped me understand life in a while new light. She makes me want to be a better person. We do not deserve her, but so grateful that God gave her to us. I will never forget the moment she first appeared in our lives 

I am so blessed in love...from my child, my husband, my friends...it really is more than I deserve. 

Spring is Near!

Last Sunday, it snowed...so, of course, this weekend it was 75 degrees (sarcasm). The weather in Georgia in March is always crazy like this. Nonetheless, it was so beautiful this weekend, we went for a walk at a new park near us. I was shocked to see that the daffodils  were already blooming. So, I just had to stick my beautiful little girl in a field of one of my favorite flowers. Throw in a fabulous picnic lunch prepared by the love of my life, a walk through the park with our daughter on Andrew's shoulders, and seeing Ella's smiling face while swinging on the swing set...and I could not have asked for a more perfect day on a "hint of Spring" Saturday afternoon.

Isn't she just a little doll? 

Picking our favorite from the bunch...

My little family!

Dear Ella,

Whenever I use to go to the park, I would see these families who looked so happy. I was envious...all I ever wanted was my own little family to take picnics with in the park. Today, we were that family! That family I use to dream about before you were born. Nothing could have made this day more perfect. Watching you smile while your daddy pushed you on the swings is a moment I will always remember and cherish. I love you a thousand times!

Mommy

"Lions, Tigers, and Bears...Oh My!" Ella Goes to the Zoo

Ok, so what do you do in Florida on a beautiful sunny day?...besides go to the beach...

You go to the zoo, of course! And what's a trip to Florida without seeing some flamingos? (Besides the plastic fake ones that people put in their yard).

A cute little hedgehog!

Can you believe this peacock let me get so close? So beautiful!!!

And this is Ella with her fabulous nanny in tow...I mean, Andrew's mom! Hahaha! No, really...she was so helpful and fun to have with us!

I had to take this one for all my redneck friends! Ella on her first tractor!

 She loved watching this little otter do flips in the water. He was very playful!

Hmmm...is that Tigger our cat? No, but he reminded me of that Tiger in "The Jungle Book."

My little animal lover

This was the perfect age to take Ella to the zoo for the first time. She was very interested in all God's amazing creatures.

This picture sums up our day! A very happy day!

Swim Lesson: Take One

So, being that Andrew and I are HUGE water people, we decided that we needed to get Ella use to the water early in life. In order to make it an enjoyable first experience, we put her in a warm "hot tub/spa" (I promise it wasn't hot) to start. It was like a huge bathtub. She was a little apprehensive when we first put her feet in, but after a few minutes...

we had a very happy and "splashy" little fish!

Here is her supermodel, "Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Model" pose.

One of my favorite pics in color...

and of course, I just had to do it in black & white. I love the vintage feel of black & white photography. In fact, I probably prefer it over most color photos. 

So, Ella had a great first swim lesson. When we went back the second day, she put her entire body in and swam for a long time. She was so happy in the water!