It's been a year...

It seems hard to believe that Dawn's been gone a year. Many of you will remember my blog posts last year about my friend, Dawn, who died unexpectedly at the age of 33. It was one year ago today.

I'll never forget receiving that phone call; hearing the news knocked the wind out of me. In the last year, I've struggled to accept the reality of the death of a young wife and mother. Someone like me. Someone experiencing the same joys in her life. Her daughter, Hannah, was just 15 months old when she lost her Mom. Dawn and Robert had been married for four years. It was too soon.

In the midst of my own struggle to come to terms with losing Dawn, I pray daily for Robert and Hannah, for Dawn's parents, her sister, her brothers. I ask you to pray for them today as well. And pray for Dawn as she watches over us. My friend, Kathryn, said it best, "Dawn, we hope you're making heaven laugh today."

Grace is 16 Months Old!

I'm sure it's not possible. Where has the time gone? 16 months have passed since Grace was born...I just can't believe it. Today we pause to give thanks for our daughter who has brought such abundant joy to our lives. We love you, Grace Calleigh!


This adorable picture is of Grace playing her bodhrán (Irish drum) earlier this week. She digs it!

Today is also my nephew's 6th birthday! Happy Birthday, Josh :-) We love you and hope you have an awesome birthday!

Last, but certainly not least, it's my Aunt Barbie's birthday today too. She's also my Godmother, and I love her to bits! Birthday wishes all around :-)

Ike has come and gone...

...and we were spared. Other than a bit of a breeze, we completely dodged Ike's bullet here in Austin, and we're thankful! We didn't even get any rain. I was up off and on during the night checking on the status of the storm. At 5:30 am, I brought the dogs into the garage because the wind was really picking up, but it became clear within a few hours that we weren't going to be in the danger zone.

So we're spending the day watching the coverage of the storm and the havoc it wreaked on Galveston, the Houston area, and the Gulf Coast. Please keep everyone who has been affected by the storm in your thoughts and prayers in the days to come.

Awaiting Ike...

The eyes of Texas are on Hurricane Ike, as we await landfall within the next 5-6 hours. We've been tracking the storm all week, and the path has changed significantly. There was a time when Austin was directly in the path of the storm; now we're on the fringes. They are saying we should only get 1-2 inches of rain and winds of up to 50 mph. In comparison to early projections, this is welcome news. We plan on spending the day at home, and we'll surely be paying close attention to the weather reports.

The news, on the other hand, for those along the Gulf Coast is not good. This storm could bring widespread devastation, so please take a moment to pray for all who are in the storm's path. Pray for safety and protection and that God will watch over us all.

A fun Saturday :-)

Grace and I started our day with a nice walk and a visit to the playground. Grace had a great time playing, especially picking up and throwing the wood chips that surround the swingset and jungle gym. She also liked climbing the steps of the jungle gym, although she didn't want my help walking back down the steps. She wants to be completely independent and isn't impressed when we try to help her do anything. In fact, when I try to take her hand to help her, she looks up and "yells" at me. I can only imagine how sassy she'll be when she starts to talk more!

I took Grace to get professional pictures taken in the afternoon. It's the first time she's gotten professional pics taken since she started walking. It was quite the adventure! I dressed her in her Philadelphia Eagles cheerleading uniform, and as you can see, she looked adorable! The photographer and I had a great time, as we tried to get Grace to 1) stay in one place long enough to take her picture, and 2) show her pretty smile. I'm pleased to report that we were successful! We got some wonderful pictures of our little cheerleader :-) I can't wait until they arrive in a couple weeks!

This evening Grace and I took a road trip to Bastrop to visit my friend's grave. Grace napped all the way there and back, and I used the drive as a time for reflection. I still think about my friend, Dawn, and her family everyday. In October, it'll be a year since she passed away unexpectedly. It has made me realize just how short life is and has reminded me, time and again, of the importance of living each day to its fullest. On the way home, I pulled over to snap the picture on the right. I thought Dawn was reminding me that she's watching over all of us.

Grace is 15 Months Old!

As hard as it is for us to believe, Grace is 15 months old today! Where has the time gone? It seems as though every month goes by faster than the one before. As I'm feeling that ironic combination of happiness and sadness today that only parents understand, I've been thinking about something someone said to me this summer that has stuck with me.

"You only get one chance with your kids."

That's one of the most profound things anyone has said to me in awhile. It's such a short sentence, yet it packs a punch. I've repeated those words to myself many times lately, reminding myself that each and every day of Grace's life is a precious gift, and I need to cherish each moment with her.

As I've been reflecting on what it means to only have one chance to be a good Mom, a new song came out on the Christian radio station that brought me into a deeper understanding of that powerful statement. The song is called "One Life to Love," and the chorus goes like this:

"You only get just one time around. You only get one shot at this, one chance to find out the one thing that you don't want to miss. One day when it's all said and done, I hope you see that it was enough, this one ride, one try, one life to love."

What an awesome way to restate the old cliche of living everyday to the fullest! Let's all strive to love this one life we have and to be thankful daily for all the ways we've been blessed.

Home Sweet Home!

It was with heavy hearts that we arrived in Austin this evening after our wonderful journey to Ireland. Saying goodbye is the worst part of any trip to see family, but particularly in our case. The distance between us is so great that saying goodbye hurts even more.

We flew from Shannon to Newark (7 hours), then Newark to Austin (3.5 hours). Grace slept quite a bit on both flights, but not enough to please those sitting around us. She had moments on both flights when she cried uncontrollably. We think it may have been the change in altitude affecting her ears. Regardless of what made her unhappy, the journey home was rough on all three of us. Nineteen hours of traveling with an almost 15-month old isn't easy. In fact, it's downright exhausting. Martin and I agreed, though, that it was worth it. Our time in Ireland was so special, and we wouldn't trade it for anything, not even a carefree international flight!

The two highlights of the trip home both happened in the Newark airport. First, Grace had her first Happy Meal. She enjoyed her first taste of fast food, although we warned her that we'll be keeping the Happy Meals to a minimum, even though McD's has come out with healthier options (including milk instead of soda...YAY)! The second highlight was Grace's discovery of the moving walkway. She thoroughly enjoyed it, under our very close supervision :-)

Grace's Nana and Pop-Pop picked us up at the airport, and she was thrilled to see them and her Uncle Billy! Even though she was worn out, she still had plenty of energy to play and reacquaint herself with all her toys at home. We're all winding down now and looking forward to (hopefully) a good night's sleep. But then I'm up at 4:30 AM to take Mom, Dad, and Billy to the airport for their trip to Philly. Good night, one and all!