Motherhood is such a journey and has so many ups and downs. Every mother has a different story to tell and I think that is what makes it so beautiful. How we all have our own connection to becoming, being and growing as a mom. I will never take for granted the blessing it has been to be called mommy. It is hard, it is exhausting, but it is so good. I know that God put me on this earth to be a mom, and I'm so thankful that He has given me two little lives to lead back to Him. They aren't mine to keep, and I have to remind myself of that so often. I'm their mommy, their booboo kisser, their cheerleader, their first love, but most of all, I am their reminder of God's love. I have the very hard job of trying my best to always be an example of what Christ's love looks like for His children. Some days are hard, so so hard, but even in those hard days, I try my best to remind myself that this season is short. Even when it is hard, I know God has given me the heart to love them deeper and harder through it. Unconditional love for my sweet boys. 

Asher's new sweet smile that he just stared to give this week 

& Solomon's constant blur of adventure and fun in photo form. These two make me so happy!

Happy Mother's Day to all you Moms out there who are experiencing the hard love. The ones who yearn month after month to hold a baby of their own, to the mothers who are finished holding but miss those days so terribly bad, to the ones who feel like their arms may never stop holding and are beyond tired in the long dark hours of the night. All of it is so hard, but so good, and we are all women who love deeply in our own way. So, happy day to you!

sweet family.

I'm so excited to share these sweet, sweet pictures from Mother's Day weekend!! As always, I'm so thankful for my friend Jocie sharing her talent with us and taking these shots! Peter's sister mentioned taking some family photos since the whole family would be in town and of course I was on board. I think everyone knows how much I love pictures around here... I can't help it. I love how these turned out and I'm so thankful for this family of ours!

Four Generations!!

This is definitely one of my favorites!!! The way he loves his Gigi makes my heart so happy.

I really don't know what I'd do without her, so, so thankful!

Mother's Day 2016.

This Mother's Day was chaotic, loud and fun; which usually describes any events when all the Eliya brothers and sisters are together, but now we add in six boys all under the age of three and a half and its crazy. We had a cookout at our house after church and then we went downtown to get some gelato and let the boys run off some energy. It was a really good idea and the weather was incredible. A perfect way to end the day with everyone!

toe biting from Gigi and cheek kisses from Momma!

I'm super excited about the photos that we had taken in our back yard on Saturday but we will have to wait patiently for Jocie to edit them. I got some peeks at them and they all looked so great... a big post will happen once we have those back! 

Hope you all had a wonderful Mother's Day weekend!!!

& for fun, here is last years Mother's Day, technically my first!!

Mother's Day 2015.

A few weeks ago I had that moment. The "holy cow, I'm pregnant" moment. The feeling of becoming a mother instead of just feeling like I've eaten too many burritos. It felt real! Total honesty, I was sitting on the toilet for my early morning visit to the bathroom (thanks, Solomon for pushing on my bladder all night!) and I was still half asleep but obviously awake. I had this thought in my head like it was something I just learned, something I haven't known to be true for the past several months......

I'm going to be a mom.

I'm going to have a human being. A perfect mix between myself and my favorite person. My own little baby. What the heck?!?

It was so bizarre and surreal but beautiful. I feel these changes every day and I see my belly growing. I know that I'm going to love this baby with every single part of me because he will be a part of me forever. I will carry and sustain this child until they enter the world and then I will continue to take care and love him as much as I possibly can. I'm going to be a mom. I am a mom.  

I loved that we took pictures in front of my grandpa's rose bush!!

I miss him so much and I wish he could meet baby Solomon.

& even a Momma ducky celebrating with her babes!! 

Celebrating this Mother's Day was something special. I feel the weight of the day now but not only the weight of happiness. I feel the crushing sadness for those women that want to be mothers. I know some of these women, I love these women, and it hurts. I can't imagine the amount of weight that they feel on such a special day. I never want my excitement and joy to over shadow the amount of love that I feel for the women that are going through this struggle. I am thankful for the blessing that we have but I know that God has a plan for all of His children and sometimes His plan is hard, but the one thing that I know about His love and His plans is this, He will only give you what you can handle with His loving support and guidance. That is true. I hope you all had a wonderful weekend and a beautiful Mother's day with those special women you love!  

An Early Gift.

Over the weekend I took my mom out for dinner and drinks before the ultimate, early Mother’s Day gift ever. A night with John Legend. And yes, he is even dreamier in person, ladies! I knew we would be going to the show from the moment my mom heard he was coming to town. Seeing him live was definitely on her bucket list and I was happy to help and treat her to a little night out for her gift this year. I personally love gifts that create memories instead of a material gift, I’m pretty sure I get that from her. So, we went to dinner downtown and then enjoyed our night with John. The way he sang Bridge Over Troubled Water was probably the best thing my ears have ever heard. Every note that he sang was perfection. And the way he plays that piano… so talented, that man. 

we had dinner at Genevieves which is attached to the Peace Center and it was so wonderful.

Oh, & I also chopped my hair off!!!

I want to kick myself for not bringing my camera for the show since I didn't get the best photos, but the night was so much fun. Plus it was nice to sit back and enjoy it without having any distractions. In conclusion, we had a blast & I’m so glad that I could celebrate Mother’s Day with that sweet Momma of mine! 

A new kind of Mother's Day

On Sunday we celebrated Mother’s Day a new way and I really loved it. Peter and I cooked lunch for both of our Moms and my brother. He grilled the steaks, I made the sides and we all sat down at the dining room table to enjoy it as a family. I had every intention of taking pictures to remember the moment but I only got these two shots….

Cooking the food. That’s it. We were talking and laughing and eating so much that I didn’t even think of taking a picture. I kind of wanted to smack myself but then again I don’t want to take away from these new moments by constantly pausing to take a picture. Sometimes it’s best to just enjoy the meal and enjoy the company.

It was nice to tell stories and share memories with this new family of mine. I’ve always felt extremely blessed to have a Mom that is also one of my best friends. Someone who I can share things with and just enjoy life with but this year is so exciting to have a new Mom in my life. She has been in my life for a while now but this Mother’s Day felt different to me. It was exciting to think of the years ahead and know that we will always celebrate this special day together because she will be a part of my life forever. Whenever I’ve thought of my future Mother-in-law I always hoped she would be someone who I could look up to and truly connect with and from the moment I met Peter’s Mom I knew that was possible. Getting married is already so exciting but gaining a wonderful Mom in the process is like icing on the cake. The Lord is so sweet!!

Mother’s Day was a great day and I am so thankful to have two women to celebrate now. I love you both so much!

Making wine..... and drinking it.

Last year for Mother’s Day I bought my mom a night of fun with a wine making class. In typical Mom/Daughter fashion we waited till the LivingSocial was almost expired to use it because that’s just how we do things. I’m so glad we had a little night of fun, just the two of us! The group that we attended the class with was so much fun and we had a great time. Grapes and Grains is such a fun place and the owners of the store really do a great job at making you feel at home when you are there. We started the night learning the 3 stages of making wine and we also enjoyed drinking all the different blends of wine that Grapes and Grains has to offer. It was delicious! After some fun with wine we switched to the beer side of the store for a little more tasting. The beer was definitely my favorite part so I was happy to end the night on a high note.

Wonderful way to start the weekend on a Friday night!! The rest of the weekend was just as wonderful even though it was raining the entire time. It didn't bother me too much since all the rain gave me an excuse to wear my Hunters. It's the little things, ya know?

Letter to Mom!

Mom,

I wish I could explain in words how thankful I am to have you in my life. I know I say it often but it is so wonderful to have a mom that is also a best friend. You were my first friend and I love that we got to grow up together. ;) As I grow older I realize more every day how deep your love is for not only me but for our family and friends. We are all so lucky to have you in our life.

I’m also thankful for the many things that you have taught me the past 25 years. Some of my favorites are….

How to give awesome, tight squeezing hugs.

How to appreciate the small things.

How to enjoy a glass of wine…. And how to put bottles in a bag.

How to cook some awesome pasta.

The importance of pictures.

Planning is always a must.

….even if it means looking at menus before going to a restaurant so you will know what you want to eat.

How to clean when you are irritated… and how when you aren’t irritated music will make all the difference.

Understanding the need of twizzlers for a roadtrip.

The deep love of Mexican food and how it’s perfectly reasonable to want it every day.

All of these are things that I love about you and I’m glad that they have rubbed off on me! Over the past few years I have thought and said things and instantly made me feel like you were talking for me… haha, when this happens I can’t help but smile. And one of my most favorite things is when we either laugh or say something in a conversation and it’s so similar I wonder if I did anything at all.

So thanks, Mom!!! Thanks for loving me, thanks for birthing me… even if it took over a day of labor; I apologize for being stubborn from the beginning. I apologize for usually waiting till the last minute on anything that should take longer than 15 minutes to complete. Please forgive me for my snoozing, over sleeping mornings. And I forgive you for popping me on the head with that wooden brush when I rolled my eyes at you as a teenager. Thanks to you I always think twice before I roll my eyes and that’s what Moms are for, right??

I hope you had a wonderful Mother’s Day… you deserve it!

Love you so much!!!