Kaitlyn Turns One!

My daughter turned one this past Sunday! I really can't believe an entire year has gone by since she was born, especially since I still feel like the labor pains are fresh in my mind.  Hopefully one of these days I will start to forget that, yikes!  Anyway, this past year has been one of the most difficult of my life, but also one of the best and most joyful of my life.  I am so thankful that God brought this little girl into our lives.  Her personality comes out in new ways every day it seems, and she really is such a joy.  Here is a picture of the day she was born:

I can't believe how tiny she was! I remember just being floored by how awesome God is after experiencing childbirth.  It truly is a testament to our Creator. 

Anyway, back to the birthday.  I ended up getting sick and we had to cancel her party but we still had family over for a little celebration. My good friend Kaitlyn (whom I will now refer to as Kpo to avoid any further name confusion) volunteered to make a cake for the party, so she came by with her husband to deliver the cake.  She ended up making a monkey cake that turned out awesome! It was made from all natural ingredients and was free of any artificial food dyes. Everyone thought it was delicious.

She made a little cupcake for Kaitlyn to smash into as well. It took her a few minutes to dig in but once she tasted the icing, she was hooked!

I also got a good shot of her in her high chair eating lunch before her cake, I thought it was pretty funny.

 I might have to start strapping her in a little better.  After lunch and cake we opened some awesome presents from uncles and grandparents including a sandbox and a little chair!

 

She got a pretty cool ladybug book from her uncle Will, my brother.

 

All in all, I would say it was a pretty awesome birthday. Thanks to everyone who contributed! If you live in the area check out Kpo's website, Cypress and Myrtle for more info on her cakes and other goodies.

Gardening!

Spring is finally here and it feels great outside! I love it! I have been working outside a lot lately with this amazing weather and I am getting so pumped about the garden this year.  Last year we started with very high hopes for our first garden, but after Kaitlyn was born things got a little out of hand.  We had a HUGE garden and while we were busy indoors with a newborn, weeds started growing and the once beautiful garden quickly turned in to Jumanji. It was pretty bad.  I won't tarnish the page with a picture.

This year we took a new approach.  After tilling things up we laid down a ton of landscape fabric and pinned it down really well. When my seedlings got big enough I just cut a hole in the fabric and planted them.  I think this will make it a lot easier to maintain. I still weed a little around each individual plant but it is very manageable.

Here is a picture of what it all looks like:

I am pretty proud to say that I started everything from seed this year. I took care of those seedlings like they were my little babies and they turned out pretty awesome. Here are some close-ups of what I have planted.

Tomatoes

Cucumber

Pepper plant (I planted both assorted bell peppers and jalapenos)

Nice lookin' row of radishes

Kale

Zucchini

Squash

A very tiny start to a pomegranate on my tree!

Oregano

Basil and Thyme

Lots of lettuce

Parsley and cilanto

Blackberry bush

Grapevines

Anyway, I'm pretty excited about it. Trying to eat healthy and unprocessed food can get expensive so I am hoping to offset some of our food expenses with the garden.  Plus, nothing beats produce fresh from the garden, it's good to know where your food comes from!

Under the Weather

It has been a very long week in the Mills household. Kaitlyn was sick with an ear infection followed by a bout with Roseola so she was pretty miserable. Poor baby.

 To top it off I have been having some back issues that kept me in bed for pretty much all of Wednesday. We were pretty pathetic. It didn't help that the sun didn't seem to come out once all week, blah. I found myself getting really down at times this week, I was pretty exhausted caring for a sick child and the weather didn't help brighten my mood. I find it so hard when I have had a week like this to choose joy. What I really want to do is just crawl in bed, watch 7th Heaven on my laptop (yes, really), eat ice cream, and wait for a better day. I find my bad mood rubbing off on those around me and it just makes for a pretty miserable situation for everyone involved. When I am in the depths of feeling sorry for myself I just start along this pathway of thinking that I deserve to be in a bad mood and no one really understands what I'm going through. It is really hard for me to believe that I can choose to feel joyful. I guess its times like these that knowing scripture and clinging to it can really make a difference. For example, 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 says "Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus." That verse really hit home for me because I see it as a command. It is so easy for me to start thinking that my present circumstances are unique and I am somehow justified in feeling sorry for myself and being in a bad mood. But I do have a choice. In light of what Christ did on the cross my present "sufferings" seem so petty. It's so hard for me to have that mindset, its really like exercise for me, it seems like such hard work to just TRY to be joyful despite my circumstances sometimes. Maybe as God continues to teach me this, it will become easier. I hope so.

I do hope this weather improves very soon, something like this would be nice:

I Have it Sorted

Yep that's me, I always think I have it sorted. Just like Peter in Prince Caspian, I always think I can do things on my own without anyone's help or advice.  And yet it never seems to work out that way.  Things always come crashing down and usually end in tears (mine).  My husband could tell you plenty of stories to back this up, I am such a mess!  Thankfully I serve a God who continues to show me grace despite my persistent attempts to do things on my own.  He has to gently remind me time and time again that I need Him desperately, that I don't "have it sorted" and that I need to daily turn back to the cross and remember what Jesus did for me there.  So there you go, that's why I titled the blog the way I did.  I'm sure there will be many future posts that will serve as examples of my tendency to think I can do things on my own...

But a little more about me.  I have an awesome husband, Jon, to whom I have been married for about 3 years.

I am a stay at home mom to an almost 1 year old little girl named Kaitlyn.  Shes pretty cute.

 I have great parents who live nearby, which I love for a plethora of reasons.

 I have 2 little brothers, one that lives in Raleigh and one that lives in Richmond. 

 I love being outside and doing anything related to being outside, gardening, camping, climbing, the list goes on.  I love my church and my friends and I love Jesus.  Oh and I love food. Duh.