Happy Very First Birthday!

Just to warn you, I may be a rambling, emotional, chatterbox throughout this looooong post, but it is my only daughter's VERY FIRST BIRTHDAY and I can blog if I want to. (Can't you just hear that last part to the tune of "It's My Party and I'll Cry if I want to"?) lol

Anywho -


Today, March 26, 2009, we celebrate the first birthday of our only daughter, Ann Elise Martin.


To My Daughter,


As I write this letter to you, you sleep in the highchair next to me with a purple paci in that sweet little toothless mouth of yours, your pink heart bib cocked sideways around your sweet little rolled neck, in your turquoise shirt with the cutest pink pants hiked up to your knees and those sweet, kissable, size three bare feet dangling just a few inches shy of the foot rest, oh how I love those sweet little toes, at this very moment your hair is glistening in the kitchen light from having wiped your cheese stained hands through your hair, your precious green eyes are hidden behind your beautiful, long eyelashes that are closed ever so lightly and fluttering from time to time as you dream. I wonder what you must be dreaming of. Prince Charming perhaps.

You, my darling daughter, were prayed for for many years before you were ever conceived. Our desire to have another child was slowly turning into heartache as the months turned to years without a baby. I prayed and cried and often felt angry at God for putting this desire in my heart but leaving my arms empty. Looking back I can now understand a little better. God was preparing my heart for more. I grew closer to God during our struggle to conceive you and even more during the months of carrying you. God had the perfect plan in place for when you would come into our family...His plan. As you were growing inside of me, so very close to my heart, you helped me not only survive some of the hardest moments of my life but gave me hope, strength, and peace about all the not-so-peaceful things going on around me. Again, God's perfect timing.


You light up a room when you smile and you smile most all the time. You especially love your two big brothers. Anytime they come within sight you get so ecstatic and so do they. You are such a beautiful combination of Matthew and Corbin. You have shown them that God does answer prayers for they prayed for a baby sister and here you are.


You are already such a girly-girl. You are instantly attracted to anything pink, purple, shiny or shoes. You love, love, love to wear Mommy's necklaces. You love, love, love to wear squeaky shoes. And you love, love, love to steal Daddy's night time yogurt snack. (And Daddy loves, loves, loves to share it you.)


You are so independent and determined in everything you do. You have such a little temper when you don't get your way, which isn't often because you most often get your way.


You, my darling daughter, are the final piece to make our family whole. Both Daddy and I love you so very, very much and we thank God for our family every single day. As we close the first chapter of your life we await with such excitement on what this next chapter will tell and the many more to follow.

All my love,
Mommy





Now, for your viewing pleasure....PICTURES! Yea. Don't you just love pictures?

It's hard to believe you went from this...

...to this...

...to this.

Our Little Princess


What I meant to say was...
Our Little Miss Piggy

I just got chills.

One day in the not so distant future Ann
Elise will be wearing a wedding veil.

Not Me! Monday!

Welcome to Not Me! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama. You can head over to her blog to read what she and everyone else have not been doing this week.

This is my first time to participate in this so hang on, it's going to be a bumpy ride.

I did not post this Not Me! Monday! on Tuesday...I certainly did not.

I did not send my infant daughter to daycare without her paci today. How awful would that have been? I absolutely did not.

I have not spent all night piddling on the computer...nope, not me.

I did not spend way too much money at the ob-gyn just to find out that "it just goes along with your IUD". Not me again.

I did not just type the ob-gyn statement because that would be extremely personal and more information than you want to know....NOT ME, I swear.

My house most certainly does not look like a tornado came through...twice...No sir.

I did not clean out our refrigerator last week to find a bowl of salad left over from who knows when and it did not smell bad, no way.

I did not question the last time we had salad because we have salad so often...Eeek, no I am a good mama and I give my children salad all the time.

Wow, it's kind of fun to let out a few of those "Did I really do that?" Maybe I will get better at these posts and maybe I will remember to post it on Mondays and maybe you will join in on the fun.

Happy Tuesday...I mean Monday...Okay, Tuesday.

March Madness

To help jump start Spring Break (and March Madness) we took to the boys to see the Harlem Globe Trotters last night. We had a blast! We even waited in the ever so not-short line to get Big Easy's autograph on our newly acquired second mortgage, I mean official Harlem Globe Trotters basketballs. We left Leecie to get spoiled with Pop & Granny. I don't really know what magic potion Granny mixed up for Leecie, but she sacked out before we made it home WITHOUT a bottle and slept all night. Anyway, the boys are going fishing tomorrow with Daddy and Papaw but unless Matthew remembers his camera there will be NO pictures. Guys, or at least my guy, is just not that into pictures. Maybe they will have a funny story or two to share with Mommy while I am stuck at work.

HGT entering the court.

Boy do they know how to put on a show.

The Martin Crew minus one Leecie-Bob.My two Globe Trotter wanna-bes. Oh, and they are sporting our second mortgage for your viewing pleasure. Leecie-Bob and Bandie (poor frightened Bandie)

Happy Saint Patrick's Day

So, I know what you are thinking...how adorable my children are. You must be GREEN with envy I'm sure. :) Sorry I couldn't resist. Just thought I would share a little of the "holiday?" spirit. Hope you didn't get pinched today.

I want more and I want it now!

Ann Elise got a little taste of Daddy's yogurt and that was all it took to make it her new favorite snack. She ate up all of Daddy's and screamed for more. If you didn't know better you would swear she had not had a bite to eat all day because our little girl showed her lady like manners and actually licked the container. Yikes! Now she is giving her Daddy all kinds of lovin' so he has promised her she can share his yogurt with him every night. Anybody know how much Yoplait stock is going for?

This is sooooo good.

What do you mean it's all gone? I told you there was more...

So I'm a little late...it still counts

Sorry I'm a week late with this post but I have been feeling a little under the weather this week. Anyway, Matt and I celebrated 11 years of marriage last Saturday, March 7th. And what an 11 years it has been, some good, some not bad but not so good and some absolutely amazing. We have grown so much over the years and we are more in love today than the day we wed. Matt is such an amazing husband and father. He is most definitely the love of my life. I thank God daily for the wonderful blessing of Matt. My Love I can't wait to spend the rest of my life with you here and throughout eternity. I love you.

Sweet Baby Girl Cora

I happened upon a blog about a family who has just lost their sweet baby girl, Cora. I encourage you to check out their blog and read about their story of joy, heartache and faith. And for those of you who can bear it, watch The Cora Video, just be sure you have a box of tissues handy.
I pray that every time I feel frustration coming on from the boys fighting or AE crying for her paci for the umpteenth time I will think of Cora, smile, and be reminded of how very blessed I am to have my children surrounding me.

Baby it's cold outside!

What better way to start your day than with snow everywhere? Isn't God amazing? I got the pleasure of attending a Women's Conference this weekend with Rita Sweatt as the guest speaker (love her!) and we ended the conference by focusing on how you can find shelter, refuge, joy, strength, peace and love under God's wing. So when I awoke to everything COVERED in snow this morning (in Mississippi), I was awe struck and reminded of how God can cover us with His wing just as He COVERED everything around us with this beautiful snow. It is so humbling to see how big God is. Only God, and not global warming Al Gore, could create such an environment. Anyway, I pray that you will find joy as you take in the beauty of this Lord's Day.

Happy Birthday Kaylen --- Since you got snow for your eighth birthday you won't be receiving any other presents. HA! Just kidding. We love you Katie-Bug and hope you have a great day!

Enough pictures Mom. We want to play! After all, we don't see snow every day...or even every year.