November Sponsors Giveaway Winners!

Today the winner of the November Sponsors Giveaway has been announced at Cinsarah! 

Were you the lucky winner!??! Check your email! 

Fun Date Ideas with Datevitation - Review and Giveaway!

It's Black Friday on Mommy's First Year! 

Today I'm sharing with you about a fun product called Datevitation - a custom gift book of coupons for your loved one. It would make the perfect Christmas gift for your...husband,wife, boyfriend, girlfriend, parent, or child! 

What's more...this custom gift book is the gift that keeps on giving with lots of fun date ideas! 

I don't know about you, but sometimes its hard to come up with gift ideas for my loved ones, or maybe it's even hard to think of only ONE gift because you could come up with so many ideas. 

Well, Datevitation would be the perfect gift! 

I know it's going to be perfect for my hubby whose love language is quality time! 

Datevitation.com is actually the web's first online platform to create a custom love coupon book. Unlike the pre-packaged love coupon books on the market, you get to be the one to custom pick the dates and even customize the text to your liking! Once you are done customizing your book {right down to adding your own faces!}, Datevitation will then print it out and ship it to you. It will arrive right at your door in this fun packaging! 

So how do you make one, you ask? 

Well, let me walk you through it! 

Go to www.datevitation.com and click on 'make your book'.

To ensure the book is designed to your gender needs, you will be able to select if you are a man/woman/boy/girl and who you are giving the gift too. This will give the correct bodies for the pictures on your coupons. 

You will then get to select a cover. There are over 100 cover options for you to choose from to suit any occasion...from birthdays to holidays to congratulations and just because, you will be sure to find what you are looking for! 

Next is the best part! You won't want to miss this step! 

Be sure to upload a picture of each person's face!! 

This will make your coupon book EXTRA special and personal as it will show you and your loved one doing the activity stated on the coupon. 

How fun is that!??! 

As a side note, if you are a girl with short hair, you may have to pick your hair from the men's options...or choose something a little longer. Other than that, this part is my favorite part of the coupon book! 

Next you get to pick your dates. 

The standard coupon book contains 5 date coupons for $25 but you can add additional date coupon pages for $1 each. 

As I mentioned above, these coupon books are good for ANY loved one! It's perfect for a boyfriend, girlfriend or spouse, but it's also great for kids and parents! Datevitation has recently added over 200 new activity illustrations specifically designed for families. 

And again, don't forget to add your own face :) Your kids will love this! 

But if you are making a coupon book for your sweetie, there are some "adult only" options too! From sweet and innocent to a little more hot and steamy too. No lack of creativity here! 

This also is great if you are in a date night "rut" with your love {or even your child} as their library offers over 500 date ideas! 

As I was making my book for my hubby {sorry love, I just ruined the surprise} I found some fun, new and exciting things for us! 

Finally, to finish up your book you can customize the phrases to go with each date. But, if you are unsure of what to say, lacking creativity, or even just in a hurry, each date comes with a phrase already! You can even keep part of the phrase and add in some of your own words. I liked that! You even can choose a statement from a handful of options for the intro page (kind of like in a card) or you can write your own message or request a blank page to hand write the message at home. 

I'm so excited to give my custom book to my hubby for Christmas! I think he is going to LOVE it! 

I'm even more excited to do some of our date ideas on the coupons! 

Since I made my own book already, I do have a tip for you as I kept getting frustrated as I was in a hurry and user error was slowing me down. 

As you are working on your book, be sure to always scroll to the bottom of the screen {or the top} and click 'save & continue' on the right. 

If you navigate back and forth with just the top tabs you keep losing your work {such as your added faces and changed text and date ideas}.

Now, before you run off to order your own custom coupon book, 

Datevitation is offering you, yes YOU, my lucky Mommy's First Year readers 

a special promo code! 

Books normally start at just $25, so it makes for a thoughtful yet economical gift. But as a special treat for you, my lucky readers, you can use the code 'MOMMY10' for $10 off your purchase PLUS free shipping!! That's a total value of $13.50 meaning you could get your loved one a one-of-a-kind gift for Christmas starting at just $15! 

The order cut-off date for guaranteed delivery by Christmas is December 13th so make sure to get your order in before then!

You even have a chance to WIN a free book! 

Enter below via Rafflecopter for a chance to win. 

The giveaway will end on December 6th. Datevitation will select a winner via Rafflecopter within 24 hours and email the winner a promo code for their free book as well as redemption instructions. 

I hope you have as much fun making your book as I did and that your loved ones love it too! 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

**I received a custom gift book free of charge for the purpose of this review,

but all opinions are 100% my own. **

Ad Spot Giveaway!!

Hello Friends! 

This month I've had the opportunity to sponsor a favorite blog of mine, Cinsarah! If you don't already follow her, you MUST check her out by clicking {here}.

Cindy and some of her sponsors {including me} are teaming up to bring you a giveaway! 

There are 3 ad spots up for grab, including one from Mommy's First Year, as well as a $20 shop credit at Blessed Design Studio! 

I'm giving away a 1 month ad spot - The Baxter. With this ad you will get a 200x200 px ad in the sidebar to draw my readers to your own blog or business. You also will have the opportunity to write a guest post at Mommy's First Year , do a giveaway, or have me write a post about YOU! 

To read more about the other prizes up for grabs, head on over to Cinsarah and be sure to enter through Rafflecopter below!

Winners will be announced THIS Friday on Cinsarah. So hurry...ENTER NOW! 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

The Thankful Project Day 20 : Something About My Husband

Welcome to day 20 of The Thankful Project. Today's prompt is: Something About Your Significant Other or Best Friend. To learn more about The Thankful Project, find the list of prompts and join in the fun, click {here}.

I'm linking up with Kenzie at Chasing Happy for this post. 

On June 11, 2011, I met my husband and on August 18, 2012 we were married. Yep. You read right! I've only known my husband for just over 29 months! That's barely 2 years! 

Crazy how much our lives have changed in that short time. 

We got engaged. 

Got Married. 

Had a baby. 

Just did a complete 180 of what single life looked like and the lives we 'thought' we were living! 

During this time its crazy how much more I have gotten to know my husband. How different he is from the person that I 'knew' that day we met and even that day we got engaged and then got married! 

My husband is quite the man. 

He cares about being involved as a father. 

He wants to give Christian a bottle from time to time. 

He wants to change diapers, give baths, calm Christian when he is fussy. 

He even wants to help pick out Christian's clothes. 

And he is very particular about some things... 

like... having nothing {and I mean NOTHING} on the kitchen counters. No knife block, no spices, no kitchen appliances or utensils {you know, just the normal kitchen counter things...}

He hates clutter. 

But hey, I have my crazy things too...

like... instead of hating clutter, I'm actually a bit of a hoarder. So I guess its a good thing that I married an anti clutter freak or you just might have seen me on the next episode of Hoarders! 

Anyway, back to my husband and what I am thankful for about him. 

There is seriously so much about my husband that I am thankful for 

{despite all his little quirky habits/traits that can drive me crazy}

I'm thankful for who my husband is.

His persistence, dedication, and intentionality 

When he says he is going to do something, I know he is going to do it and with full commitment. He may have stumbled over the "faithful" part in our vows on our wedding day {ha ha ha}, but he is the most faithful and committed man. I see that not just in our relationship, but in everything he does. He pushes us to communicate and be intentional in pursuing our continued relationship as husband and wife. 

Who he is as a father to our son. 

This man is the best daddy I could ever ask for for my kids. He is fun, playful, loving and INVOLVED. He changes just as many diapers and spends just as much time calming our little guy as I do {minus the time he is at work and then its all me}. But that doesn't keep him from helping out at home and immediately spending time with me and Christian as soon as he gets home from work. In fact, a lot of our squabbles are now about who got to put Christian to bed, feed him dinner, or give him a bath! This man loves our little boy more than words can express and I'm so glad Christian gets to call him Daddy! 

I could go on and on for days about this man. He's the best. Just this morning after I was up a ton with Christian in the night because our little guy has a cold, Jim let me sleep late and took over with Christian. Not only that, but he folded all the laundry AND did the dishes. 

I know. He is the BEST. But he's mine! You can't have him! 

I'm so lucky to be doing life as a family of 3 with this man! 

I LOVE YOU!

What is something about your significant other or best friend 

that you are thankful for? 

The Thankful Project Day 18: A Choice.

Welcome to day 18 of The Thankful Project. Today's prompt is: A Choice. To learn more about The Thankful Project, find the list of prompts and join in the fun, click {here}.

I'm linking up with Kenzie at Chasing Happy for this post. 

Actually, this is yesterday's prompt...I'm a day late. But if you remember right, I said I wouldn't be posting every day, so I guess this is when you're getting it!

Choices.

Do you like them?

It seems the older I get, the more choices I have to make. Making choices is not something I'm necessarily thankful for as I'm SUPER indecisive!! But one choice that I've made and I'm so thankful that I did, is the choice to be part of Christian Community.

When my husband and I first joined our church, we were only dating. We were young {actually we still are young} and wanted to be a part of a couples group. Unfortunately Fortunately enough for us, our church didn't have a young couples group. I say "fortunately" because this meant we got to start our own group! Since we were only dating, it seemed weird for us to join a couples group of seasoned married people. Looking back, I know they would have been great mentors for us, but I'm so glad that we decided to form our own group.

God really has formed this group and we are so lucky to be part of it!

It's been just over 2 years now since we decided to start our own group and it's been a long journey. Actually, it took several months from the time we decided to "start" our group for dating, engaged, and newlywed couples before we even had a group! Being that we were only dating, we didn't fit into a lot of the couples that were looking to join groups. Instead of forming our own group, we actually formed 2 other groups first! Neither of which we were invited to be part of...sheesh! *all part of God's plan*

Finally, in January 2011, we had our first small group! We hosted it at Jim's house and were so nervous that no one would show up! We actually only were meeting with 2 other couples at the time...both were just dating. Eventually a married couple joined our group, Jim and I got engaged, one of the other couples got engaged, and another couple broke up. Over the past 2 years, though, our group has really grown and changed.

I am so blessed by them! 

We now have 6 couples {that's a total of 12 people!!} with 2 more prospective couples joining! I can't even put into words the blessing that this has been for us. It means so much to have couple friends who are in the same season of life and who love the Lord. It's also been really fun to all "grow" together. We are not only learning more about God and each other, but we are also growing through seasons. Jim and I are now married with a baby, another couple just celebrated their one year wedding anniversary, 2 other couples just welcomed little ones, and we hope to soon see another couple get engaged...soon :)

These people have become our best friends.

They are the people we hang out with on the weekends.

The people we share our joys and our hurts and concerns with so they can lift us up in prayer.

The people we talk about our kids with and learn about parenting with.

The people we laugh with and learn about God from.

We do life together.
And that is what I think God designed community to be. 

Acts 2:42
"All the believers devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching, and to fellowship, and to sharing in meals (including the Lord's Supper), and to prayer."

I thank God every day for providing us with this amazing community.

What choice are you thankful for? Are you thankful for choices? Are you part of a "community"? If not, I highly recommend you find your people! 
Don't be afraid to step out. I know you will be glad you did! 

And now it occurs to me that we don't even have a group picture! We need to make that happen! 

Thanksgiving Crafts for Your Little Ones! Guest Post at Top Notch Mom...

Hello Friends! WOW! It's been a week since I've blogged! I've missed you...yet I haven't! Sorry!

Being a mommy is a full time job. I don't know why I let myself believe otherwise. Playing with and caring for Christian takes up all of my time and even when he naps I have a house to take care of and meals to make.

With that said, I'm working to find better balance as a mommy. It's hard right!??!

But being a mommy is also oh so FUN!

I've had the privilege of being on the side bar over at Top Notch Mom this month! And today I'm sharing a fun Thanksgiving craft to make with your little one!

If you don't already follow Top Notch Mom, you NEED to check her out! Seriously. She has me wanting to bake and cook all.day.long! She has some of the BEST recipes! Now...about that balance and finding time to try them....

Anyway... 

One of the super fun parts of having a little one is getting to experience holidays and seasons together! From Apple Orchards to Pumpkin Patches, pumpkin carving and Trick or Treating, its all just so much more fun and exciting! 

Christian has gotten to celebrate the 4th of July and Halloween and now will soon be celebrating Thanksgiving! 

Even though he is still pretty little and not able to do much, I still love making seasonal crafts with him. With Thanksgiving right around the corner, we of course had to do something! 

Have you seen all of the fun Thanksgiving things on Pinterest? 

Here are some of my favorites! 

via

via

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via

via

via

Using all of the above for inspiration, Christian and I set to work! 

Check out my post over at Top Notch Mom to see what we created! 

HAPPY THANKSGIVING! 

The Thankful Project Day 12: Our House

Welcome to day 4 of The Thankful Project. Today's prompt is: An Experience. To learn more about The Thankful Project, find the list of prompts and join in the fun, click {here}.

I'm linking up with Kenzie at Chasing Happy for this post. 

If you're following along with The Thankful Project, you're probably thinking how is a house an opportunity?? After all, today's prompt is to write about "An Opportunity" that you are thankful for.

Well, I guess I've decided to stray from the prompts. Gasp!!

I'm loving the concept of The Thankful Project, but I'm also very thankful for some things that weren't listed in the prompts and I want to share about those too.

So today I'm thankful for our house.

I'm thankful that still being somewhat of newlyweds, we have our own place. We don't live in someone's basement or with our parents. We own a townhouse. It is ours. We can paint and change things up and its fully our place.

Being a townhouse, we are also part of an association and have to pay monthly dues, but we don't have to ever worry about making repairs to the outside of our house, doing the landscaping, or removing the snow. All of our time at home can be spent together in fun. Not that raking leaves isn't fun...I actually wish we got to do that!

But this is about being thankful...

I'm also so thankful that our townhouse is a nice little 2 bedroom. Because of its perfect size I can clean the entire house, top to bottom, in only 1 hour! Meaning our house is cleaned every week on Thursday. Love that! Especially as a new mom with little time its nice to know that I can always squeeze in time to do all the cleaning, even mopping! And mopping and vacuuming is going to only become more important as our active little guy starts to be on the move!

I'm also thankful that our bedroom is so close to Christian's. I still remember that first night he slept in his own room...okay, we slept in there with him the first night. I guess I mean the 2nd night then...
On the 2nd night of him sleeping in his own room he was still close enough that I usually hear his moaning from his room before it even comes across on the baby monitor as cries. I'm thankful that he isn't on a completely different floor than us and is so close.

I'm also thankful that the size of our house limits what we keep. It helps me prioritize and reduce clutter because I am a true hoarder at heart. I see things for what they can become...even if that never becomes a reality. It almost saddens me to throw away paper towel tubes because I know they could one day make such fun crafts for a preschooler. But I digress.

I love our little house. I love that its ours and its clean and its cozy and organized. And I am so thankful that my hubby did such a great job picking it out before he even met me!

What are you thankful for today? 
Is there an opportunity that you are thankful for? 
Or something else? I'd love to hear about it! 

The Thankful Project Day 10: A Memory

Welcome to day 4 of The Thankful Project. Today's prompt is: An Experience. To learn more about The Thankful Project, find the list of prompts and join in the fun, click {here}.

I'm linking up with Kenzie at Chasing Happy for this post. 

Maybe this is more of a place than a memory, but it's the memories that I have at this place that I am so thankful for.

The Ice Rink at Rockefeller Center in New York City. 

This had always been a place that held magic for me. Maybe it was the association with Christmas, but still. I dreamed of one day ice skating at this rink. Now, I'm no professional skater or anything like that, but I do love to ice skate. As I would day dream about someday getting married and going on a honeymoon, the ice rink would always be part of these dreams.

I wanted to go to New York City for my honeymoon someday.

I wanted to see the beautiful Christmas tree all lit up in Rockefeller Center and skate at the ice rink hand in hand with my love. I also wanted to get all dressed up and go to the New York City Ballet and see The Nutcracker. To some extent, I guess I figured the only way I would probably ever get to do something like this would be to go there for my honeymoon. So that was the plan. 

Then I met Jim.

Jim grew up in Upstate New York. He invited me home with him to meet his family the Thanksgiving after we started dating. And guess what!?! Since we would be fairly close to New York City he suggested we take a trip there during our visit to New York. I was beyond thrilled, especially when he said we would even be able to go ice skating at Rockefeller Center!!! I still remember standing in his kitchen {now our kitchen} making dinner as he googled things for us to do in New York City and found out that the ice rink would be open when we would be there!!

Little did I know, getting to visit the ice rink and go skating would be just the tip of the ice berg!

Jim and I had been talking about getting married. We knew that we were each "the one" and that God was leading us towards marriage. But I was fully under the impression that Jim was planning to propose at Christmas {2011}. So as we were ice skating and they asked the skaters to clear the ice, I was not even on to what was going on when they started to play our song.

That's right. Jim and I were skating all alone in the middle of the Rockefeller Center Ice Rink while they played "Wanted" by Hunter Hayes. When we finally made our way to the center of the ice rink {after several protests from me to leave the rink} it finally dawned on me what was happening...
Jim was proposing!!!!

It couldn't have been a more perfect proposal. 
The Ultimate Proposal. 

In fact it was actually filmed by The Ultimate Proposal and aired on Yahoo.  So {with a few edits} we have the whole proposal on video! And following the proposal we also had a {rainy} horse drawn carriage ride through Central Park.

Oh. And The Ultimate Proposal flew our family and one of my best friends in to share the day with us!

If you are curious and want to see the video {click here}.
For even more of the story {click here}

Fast forward about a year {Christmas 2012}. Jim and I had been married for 4 months and were expecting a baby in May!

This year we would be spending Christmas in New York. Sooo once again we decided to take a little trip {Baby Moon} to reminisce about our engagement the year before. After we boarded the plane to New York, Jim handed me a card with some clues in it. It was a surprise! We were going to be getting an ultrasound done at Goldenview Ultrasound in New York City!

At first I was cautious and concerned. Was this place reputable and safe? Duh! My husband is a pro researcher, so of course he had found us a great place and gotten us a super good deal! Our medical ultrasound wasn't supposed to be until January 2nd, but we had wanted to know the sex of our baby for Christmas and we were going to get to find out!

That night, we went to our appointment. Our baby was a little shy at first and kept his legs crossed so we couldn't see the goods right away. But after a little jumping and shaking him around, he uncrossed his legs and voila!

But we didn't find out right then and there. No, no, no. We had to do something more exciting than that. Instead, we had the ultrasound tech write the sex on the back of a Rockefeller Center post card that we had brought with us and also asked her to include a picture that showed us the sex (as well as our millions of other amazing pictures). We then took the postcard and pictures in an envelope to the Ice Rink.

And there we stood, facing the rink where our lives had started an amazing journey together just over a year ago. Slowly, we pulled out the post card...

It's a BOY!! 
We were having a baby boy! 

Such a magical moment and a beautiful memory.

To read the full recap of our Gender Reveal and Baby Moon {click here}

I'm so thankful for these memories and especially for my husband going the extra mile to make these special memories for us. I can't wait to some day go back and skate as a family with our little boy, Christian James, and tell him all about our story and how we found out he would be a boy!

What memory are you thankful for? 

The Thankful Project Day 7: A Job

Welcome to day 4 of The Thankful Project. Today's prompt is: An Experience. To learn more about The Thankful Project, find the list of prompts and join in the fun, click {here}.

I'm linking up with Kenzie at Chasing Happy for this post. 

The job that I am most thankful for actually isn't even a job that I have had.
Instead, its my husband's job.

I am thankful for the job that my husband has at Best Buy Corporate. 

My husband has worked at Best Buy for 10 years now. He has actually worked his way up to where he is from the very bottom. Just over 10 years ago, he started working at Best Buy as a Seasonal Employee. Little did he know that this would eventually become his career. His role has changed over time and he has had several promotions to be where he is today now working at the Corporate Office.

My husband loves his job. He looks forward to going to work every day and enjoys the difference that he is able to make there. The work that he does impacts all Best Buy stores and employees...which is a lot of stores and people! And even more, he is GREAT at what he does.

I'm so thankful that my husband is able to use his gifts in his everyday work. I'm even more thankful for all that Best Buy has done to shape my husband into the man and the worker that he is today.

But even more than all of this, I am thankful for my husband's job because it allows me to fulfill my dreams of being a stay at home mom. I would have said this is the job that I am thankful for, but I don't being a stay at home mom isn't a "job". It's a way of life.

I don't get vacation days or sick days or any days off.

Lunch breaks are non-existent.

Pay is low and days are long.

I do get "nap times"...for now.

But the benefits of being with our little boy every day and getting his every smile and being able to snuggle away his every tear is the best thing I could ever ask for.

And for that I am so thankful.

What job have you had or do you have that you are thankful for? 

Mommy Brain?

Sometimes I think I'm losing my mind. And then I realize maybe I lost it long ago. Maybe while I was pregnant? Or maybe pregnancy grain just becomes mommy brain. Maybe pregnancy brain and mommy brain has just provided me with an excuse. Either way I'm forgetful.

Like the time that I steamed the carrots without the water and ruined our pot. Oops.

Or the time multiple times that I have "forgotten" my cell phone at home only to later find it in my back pocket of my pants... Or in the diaper bag.

Don't even get me started on forgetting things for the diaper bag.

How about the time I forgot to replace the spare outfit and Christian had an explosive poopy diaper that leaked all the way up his back and almost onto my pants? 

Ya. My white pants. 

And his white baseball romper. 

Streaked with mustard yellow runny baby poop.

 On the day of class photos for our new mama class. 

Yep. That happened. 

And Christian ended up wearing his friend Fritz's orange onesie...while I was wearing a red shirt. So much for coordinating in the pic! Can you say new mama right here?!? {THANK YOU so much to the mama friends who have had my back!!}

Or what about entirely forgetting the diaper bag?? Luckily that hasn't happened. Yet.

Now...just to make sure I don't forget Christian and bring Baxter with me instead. 

Wait...Christian??? 

BAXTER! Get out of the Jumperoo! 

Oh no! Christian must still be in the car!!!! 

Just kidding :) Did you really believe me??? 

Do you ever feel like you are losing your mind? Or that you've already lost it? What things do you forget? How do you stay on top of the little things? 

The Thankful Project: Day 4: An Experience

Welcome to day 4 of The Thankful Project. Today's prompt is: An Experience. To learn more about The Thankful Project, find the list of prompts and join in the fun, click {here}.

I'm linking up with Kenzie at Chasing Happy for this post. 

Wow. As I reflect, I'm realizing that I've really been blessed with a lot of great experiences for which I am thankful. 

I'm thankful for the opportunity I had to grow up in a small town, knowing pretty much everyone. 

I'm thankful that I was able to spend 6 weeks of my life living in Australia, learning how to share the Gospel. 

I'm thankful that I was able to experience pregnancy - a life growing inside of me. 

And even more, I'm thankful for the experience of motherhood. 

But today, for this post, I'm going to write about my experience in Seminary. 

My time in Seminary wasn't just an "experience". It was a FULL year of my life. A full year that I spent begging God to give me a different story. A different plan for my life. It was a hard year. 

But it was the best year. I grew so much in that one year. And that one year really prepared me for the life that I'm living now as a wife and mother. 

First off, let me just say if you know an amazing Pastor, THANK THEM! Be thankful for them and appreciate the time that they spent in Seminary. Seminary is hard. Before Seminary I thought that Pastors just read the Bible and "heard" from God all day. But "reading the Bible" is so much more than just reading. Getting in depth in the word requires a lot of historical contextual knowledge and understanding of another language. The Bible wasn't written in English after all and translations don't always give the full picture. A word in Greek can mean one thing in one context and a completely different thing in another context. 

Anyway, being a Pastor and studying in Seminary really requires your brain. It pushes your limits, both spiritually and emotionally as you struggle through learning things that you "thought" you knew. 

The Seminary Program which I was attending was actually for Marriage and Family Therapy. I loved my program. It was Biblically sound and encouraged me to explore what I believed and who I was in light of those beliefs. Even more, it encouraged me to explore my own family and who and what had made me the person that I had become. 

Through that year I struggled with a lot. My struggles were not just with the demands of a Graduate Program, although those struggles were definitely big enough. Who knew you were actually supposed to do the readings in Grad School!?!? I never read in college.... Oops. 

Beyond the struggles of balance and finding time to live life and love God and still complete my program successfully, I was also struggling with a lot spiritually and personally. What had I been believing about God my whole life and why? And what about my beliefs about men???

Yep. I learned a lot about my beliefs about men in Seminary. 

Up until my classes in Seminary, I had maybe had 1 or 2 male teachers...Elementary School through College. I was also raised mainly by my mom and grandma so my experiences with men were quite small...and somewhat negative. I viewed men as "incapable" and "in need of a woman's help". 

It wasn't long before my Seminary experience started poking at these thoughts of mine. I didn't trust my male teachers. Since I was doing a Marriage and Family Therapy Program, attending therapy yourself was highly encouraged {almost a requirement}. But let's be real, classes were digging up so much junk in my life that I probably needed the therapy to survive that year! 

It wasn't just the therapy that year, but it was also what I learned about myself and about God that really changed who I was...who I am today. It was this experience that prepared me for meeting the man who would become my husband. Helped me develop skills to learn to have a healthy relationship with him. 

It was even this experience that lead me to Minnesota. If I hadn't come to Minnesota, I know that I wouldn't have met my husband and I wouldn't have my baby boy. And for all of that, I am thankful for that lousy year that I experienced in Seminary and I would do it again in a heart beat. 

What experience have you had that you are thankful for? 

The Thankful Project

via 

I can't believe that October is over and November is here. 

Every year it seems it becomes more and more tempting to start thinking about Christmas earlier and earlier. Black Friday sales have even been creeping right into Thanksgiving Day! 

Well, this year with a 5 month old I have really been trying to not get ahead of myself with my desire to run out and go Christmas shopping. {There may already be a Christmas present hiding in our closet...} 

I want Christian to really be able to understand the real meaning of Christmas - To be just as excited about celebrating the birth of Jesus as he is about Santa coming. 

In doing that, I'm not going to jump ahead of things. I'm going to enjoy each season as they come. 

Halloween has come and gone. 

Now its time to get ready for Thanksgiving. Thankfulness is something that I really want to build into our lives daily, but this year I'm joining in with Kenzie at Chasing Happy for The Thankful Project. 

I wasn't ambitious enough to take on the 31 Day Challenge in October with The Nester. 

Maybe next year. 

The Thankful Project comes with a list of 28 days of writing prompts. 

{Visit Chasing Happy to find the list of prompts}

I'll be writing posts in response to prompts from the above list and then will be linking up with Chasing Happy. 

Will you join us? 

I'm not committing to writing every day like with the Nester's 31 Day Challenge. But I'm going to intentionally focus on being Thankful in November. 

Don't you have much to be thankful for? 

Christian's First Halloween

Happy Halloween! 

I think its safe to say Christian had a pretty fun Halloween! 

We started it off last week with a baby Halloween Party.

Complete with Musical story time and a fall photo! 

Then on Halloween day we of course had to make a craft! 

Little Ghosty Feets :) 

BOO! 

Later that night we got our little lion all dressed up and took some pictures 

before heading out "trick or treating". 

Isn't he just the cutest, cuddliest lion you've ever seen? 

"Trick or Treating" involved going to a handful of our couple friend's {from our small group} houses. Only the first one who stopped at actually turned out to be home. 

But this was the only one Christian wanted to see :) 

Isn't Nora the cutest little lady bug!?! 

Now, can you guess who is 5 months and who is 9 months!??! If it wasn't for Christian's leaning sitting up, he is nearly as big as this girl already!! Such a big boy! 

Baby Halloween Train! 

Such a fun visit we had! And Christian got some baby mum - mum treats! Yummy! Thanks, Nora! 

What did you do for Halloween?