big friends & little friends

a perfect afternoon

 

i just love spring time in texas! we headed to a little bluebonnet field close to home and snapped some pictures of the bird.

texas teether found here

a half birthday

we (my husband and i) both celebrated our 26th birthday, and our sweet little girl turned 6 months. so we decided to have a little family photo session.and the start of a new family tradition - celebrating half birthdays!

the art of letting go

as i see the date of my last post, all i can whisper is grace, and gently remind myself that i have been living.

three months have come and gone so quickly, that i wouldn't even know where to begin in telling the story of those days. they are beautiful layers of love, strength, grace, and beauty. of nurturing a soul. days and nights spent with my family.

late night talks with my husband. long, beautiful walks with my daughter. breakfast dates with girl friends. reconnecting with my best friend from high school and meeting her daughter for the first time. zumba with my mom (and sharing a meal at our favorite cafe). meditating over coffee. trying new recipes.play dates with the cutest babies. serving in our community. meeting neighbors. listening to stories. discovering new music that sparrow loves. digging deep. watching my baby grow daily.researching the perfect co-op. laughing, clapping, and dancing. working on my garden.praying in hotel parking lots, for women who are in sexual bondage. discovering my passion for writing again. staying out way too late. ignoring chores.

experiencing God's goodness. fullness. His unfailing love.

there is so much life for us, if we just open ourselves up and learn to let go. that is something i am learning, the art of letting go. to release all of the expectations that i place upon my shoulders. a weight that i was never meant to carry. to allow my whole being, my whole heart to simply be. that is something, that i am not always good at. but, i want to be.

i have had many adventures.

i have gone hiking on some of the most beautiful mountains.
i have been to many musical festivals. and danced in the rain.
i have swam in the coldest ocean.
i have gone fishing.
i have seen a pink dolphin.
i have snowboarded in banff, canada.
i have gotten to ride horses. even while pregnant.
i have crowd surfed.
i have been to peru.
i have wished upon falling stars.
i have taught art to 300 hundred middle schoolers in lima.
i have been to machu pichu. and witnessed many americans seeking healing from a famous shaman.
i have gone canoeing on the amazon river. and almost lost my life.
i have swam with sea lions.
i have been para sailing over st.john.
i have volunteered in an orphanage in india. witnessed tremendous courage and sacrifice. and my heart fell for 200 beautiful souls.
i have been camping in the woods.
i have experienced an eco-tour, including hiking, kayaking, and snorkeling with the most colorful fish and massive sting rays.
i have worked with disabled children in mexico who were abandoned by their parents.
i have stayed in xilitla - a remote mountain village, met people with such beauty, and encountered the magical place known as las pozas - extraordinary surreal architecture designed by artist edward james.
i have sailed all across lake taxoma. and even met ross perot.
i have been to st.thomas. and ate the best ceasar salad i have ever had.
i have (and continue to) help girls come out of sex trafficking.
i have lived with many beautiful girls and had too many dance parties to count.
i have made the best homemade ice cream in georgia with my nana.
i have been a waitress, proffesional ice cream scooper, and personal stylist.
i have moved out on my own to pursue my dreams.
i have designed murals, kitchen backsplashes, and even worked in an art gallery in dallas.
i have been a  photographer for a dance company.
i have worked for my dream company-anthropologie.
i have zip-lined through forests.
i have done graffati on trains.
i have stayed in a hostel in chicago.
i have gone ice skating over a frozen lake. in canada.
i have stood by my best friend as she commited herself to the man of her dreams.
i have been cliff jumping.
i have traveled by train. alone. and with friends.
i have road-tripped to california with one of my best friends.
i have married the love of my life. the man i met when i was 16.

and now, i have sparrow. the best adventure yet.

Fabric and Art Supplies Swap

i love swaps of all kinds (especially the clothing kind!), i think it is the best way to recycle your things. this weekend we loaded our baby bird up and headed to ft. worth so mama could do some swapping with other crafty ladies. it also gave me the push i needed to purge through some of my own craft  and art (and office)supplies that have been gathering dust (stuff that i have had since my first semester in art school, um like 5 years ago, embarrassing, but i am a pack rat in the worst kind of way). i also discovered where all of our sciccors have been hiding and a whole stach of steam and seam, score!

So i traded in paint brushes, water color paint, fabric that i was bored of, and anything that i had two of  like glue guns, rulers, ect...

and walked away with some new stationary stamps, new fabric that is so beautiful i just want to hang it on my wall, and a whole lot of wood! i absolutely love painting on and making things out of wood. (i am in the process of painting it and making something really cool, so a DIY post will be happening soon)!

here is a little peek into our day!

on mama:

dress: forever 21

belt: anthropologie

shoes: urban outfitters

feather earrings: homemade

on sparrow:

onesie: carters

sparrow loves: one month old

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here is a new monthly feature that i will be writing for the blog called: Sparrow Loves! each month i will write an update about the little things that she loves doing and of course all of the new things that she is learning.

sparrow loves music, some of her favorites are bob dylan, avett brothers, and her very own lullaby's written and played by her papa.

sparrow loves to take warm baths, sometimes when she is unconsolable a warm bath is the only thing that will calm her down.

sparrow loves to be outside and take walks with mama, her eyes get big with wonder as she takes in all of the sights. this is another trick up our sleeve when she gets fussy, as soon as we step outside she will stop crying.

sparrow loves to be kissed by mama and papa. everytime we kiss her on the cheeks or lips, she will give us the biggest gummiest smile i have ever seen. it melts my heart everytime.

sparrow loves tummy time! i only do a few minutes a day - but this girl is already so strong, she holds her head up and looks around and tries to scoot all over the place.

and of course, sparrow loves cuddles from her mama and papa.

i will probably say this every single month, but i can hardly believe she is already a month old. i know not everybody likes the newborn stage, but both me and chris absolutely love it, i sometimes wish there was a little pause button to help me remember all the little moments. It's been a month since i have given birth to a baby! it's so hard to remember what life was like before her (and i don't even want to imagine life without her). i am so thankful for this little gift from God.

on sparrow:
love bug shirt: thrifted
cloth diaper: thirsties
leg warmers: target, gift from grandma