Category Archives: Motherhood

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“a portrait of Ezra, once a week…every week, in 2015.”
My favorite little birthday present. He certainly made my day!

Ezra Turns THREE!

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I can’t believe that our baby boy is THREE!

Ezra is such a little sweet heart.

He is joyful.

He loves people.

He is compassionate.

These are just a few of the qualities that I love about him….and it’s these qualities that I am intentional about encouraging and fostering, daily.

This past week as we were riding bikes he shouted “I PROMISE, MOM.”
I replied….”you promise, what?” And in the sweetest voice he said “I promise to take care of you, mommy.”

I melted. Right then and there.

The verse we prayed over Ezra this past year was Isaiah 55:12. As I dug deeper into the verse this year, I believe this is a life verse for him. This verse tells of the future that God has for Ezra. God is planning for Ezra to be happy forever. He is planning for him to live in peace forever. And He is planning that good and beautiful things in His creation be preserved for his exhilaration forever and ever. How beautiful is this?! Ezra’s love for the outdoors and nature will be eternal. Not just something in this life here on earth, but in Eternity.

“For you will go out with joy And be led forth with peace; The mountains and the hills will break fourth into shouts of joy before you, And all the trees of the field will clap their hands.” –Isaiah 55:12

Happy Birthday, sweet Ezra. You are loved and honored, always.
xoxo,
momma & daddy

Outdoor Adventure Birthday Party/ / / / / / / / the process & details

We celebrated Ezra at my in-laws home with a few close family and friends. The hardest part about this years party planning was keeping it small. And sticking to it. With all that we had going on this summer- it was tempting to not do any parties at all, but my saving grace was allowing myself to not over-do-it and to keep things small.

My goal this year was to keep it simple. Of course I allowed myself to dream a few detail ideas, but nothing overboard. I wanted to enjoy the process and more importantly, enjoy the day.

Last years theme was Little Explorer and this year was Outdoor Adventure. He’s such a boy, wild at heart and loves to be outdoors, playing. So…thats what we did!

We set up three stations: Finger Painting, Fishing & Splashing [kiddie pool and water balloons]. This kept the kids busy between dinner, cupcakes and presents. The wooden arrows were from Target and I just hand painted the words of each play station and hung to the fence.

The painting station also served as a party gift for each little one to take home with them. I bought small square canvases [from Michaels] and with a black sharpie marker….I drew a teepee on the front, by hand. The kids painted the teepees……and the mommas got to take home a little piece of art for the wall!

The menu was simple: Hot Dogs [Montana raised Bison & Beef], Homemade Potato Salad, BBQ Chips & Fresh Berries. Im forever thankful to my dear friend Hollie who always saves the day with the most amazing yet simple recipes.

**more photos from our little mans party can also be found on 100 Layer Cake-let! Thanks for the feature!

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“a portrait of Ezra, once a week…every week, in 2015.”
Our little worker bee, always helping daddy with house projects!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, ZONDERKIDZ BEGINNERS BIBLE!

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It truly is an honor to join in on the 25th year celebration of Zonderkidz Beginners Bible Series. What a blessing and privilege it is to have access to such great tools as we raise up our little arrows, pointing them towards the target, which is Jesus.

It’s easy to take a freedom that we’ve always known….for granted. But seriously, think about it….this freedom of ours isn’t a legal freedom for everyone in other parts of the world. Zondervan is a world leading Bible publisher and provider of Christian publications and they’ve been committed to this vision from their very beginning. These resources are for us…..as we teach our children about Jesus.

I love so many things about this Beginners Bible series. From the board books to activity coloring books. These are perfect for Ezra, at this toddler stage that we are in. The Book of Prayers [which is a board book] is one of my favorites! This melts my heart!!

So, we honor and celebrate Zondervan & ZonderKidz for the investment they are making on our lives and future generations. Check out their website for all sorts of helpful resources as we pour into our families.

IMG_3913IMG_3920zonderkidz beginners bibleIMG_3945IMG_3946Ezra really loves to pray over our dinner each night. He always prays for mommy, daddy, his family, friends and “people everywhere.”
IMG_3955IMG_3962THANKFULNESS is something we’ve been talking with Ezra about lately. I love the way that Ezra thanks Jesus for EVERYTHING! He’s reminding me to be thankful for all the little things in life….like the trees, the roads we drive on, our car, the clouds, the blue sky, our house ect….
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**A monthly collaboration between K&V and Zondervan Book Publishers.

 

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IMG_3663“a portrait of Ezra, once a week…every week, in 2015.”
He had his very own smash cake, but opted for the cupcake instead!