{ONE}

Who knew that my heart could grow so much in a year? It was already bursting at the seams when we found out we were pregnant on Valentines Day in 2012.

Then it swelled even more when we found out our babe was a girl in April.  

October 16, 2012 was the happiest day of our lives when we welcomed sweet Caroline Reese into our family. 

The last 12 months have been SO fun.  I can hardly get enough smiles, laughs, new milestones, cute outfits, and kisses.  It still amazes me how much growth and learning takes place in a year.  Our tiny newborn is now a petite ONE year old. She is full of personality and FUN. She is sweet and smart. I love her more every day.

We have had a lot of excitement over the last few weeks... our girl's first birthday party, first birthday, Halloween, moving, Thanksgiving, and in just a few days- Christmas.  We've jumped on a couple of planes in there too- one with just the husband to Vegas, and just this past weekend as a family to Austin,TX. Caroline has a mouth full of teeth, is learning new words daily, and just took her first steps this week {as an "almost" 14 month old.} I have much to catch up on, but I wanted to start with highlighting my girl's first year. She brings us so much joy and I thank God for her daily.

Caroline's First Birthday Party

We celebrated Caroline's first birthday the weekend before her actual birthday in Benton.  It was a {small} gathering with family and close friends. It was supposed to be small, but we have a lot of family and close friends!  I went with a gold/pink theme and simple.  I had dreams of a huge bash and even considered (and purchased) supplies for 2 parties- one in Benton and one in Fayetteville- but with everything we had going on, decided one party was plenty for a one year old.  At first I hated not having our closest friends in Fayetteville there to celebrate, but in the end I'm so glad we kept it small- ish and had our families there.

 The fabric and monogram are from Caroline's nursery. The high chair was Adam's when he was a child.

 Our favorite desert... strawberry cake made by a lady in our home town. It is to DIE for! C loved it too! A friend made the cookies and cake pops.  I kept it easy with food- pizza and salad.

Mommy and baby

Poppa and C

One of my childhood best friends and her niece

C and Cece

My uncle and cousins

C's Poppa took us on a hayride

C and her Benton buddies. I love these girls and their mom's SO much!

Happy Birthday, sweet Caroline!

First Birthday

Caroline turned one on October 16th. She woke up to a birthday banner and presents!

I took the day off of work, C skipped her morning nap and we met a friend at the Little Gym. It was Caroline's first time and she LOVED it!

Miss Becca came over after lunch and brought some goodies including this super cute coffee filter wreath! She is so talented!

We had a nap and then headed to take family pictures.  I could not be happier with how they turned out... especially since it was FREEZING outside. Here are a few of my favorites...

After pictures we headed to our favorite Mexican place for dinner and cake. We had such a fun day with our sweet girl.  I can't believe I have a ONE year old!

Happy 80th Birthday Meme!

My sweet grandmother turned 80 on June 7th. For her birthday, my aunt Lisa took her to New York City! They were there over her birthday and the Friday after we had a surprise birthday party for her with her closest friends and family.

The adorable cake! My cousin knows a couple that makes/decorates cakes as their ministry. The most you ever pay is $30 and they accept donations on top of that. So neat! We of course had a NYC themed bday party!

Meme being surprised!

Meme with my cousin Tiffany and I.

I hope I am as beautiful as my Meme one day. She is one of my favorite people. She is also the only living grandparent I have- she is one of my treasures!

Several people from our "old" church at Mablevale came to party. We set up a photo booth and everyone had a pretty good time dressing up and being silly.

Especially these two. Mr. Bob and Mr. Bill. Two of the funniest guys you'll ever meet. I've known them since I can remember.

Meme with 3 of her kids... sadly uncle Steve had to work! We missed him!

Meme with all of her grandchildren and great grands. (sadly Adam couldn't make it.) This time next year she will have another great grand to add to this picture!

I hope you had a great birthday, Meme! We enjoyed celebrating with you and look forward to many more birthdays!