Sleepy Girl

Sarah fought her nap today. She cried until I went up and got her, and she refused to be cuddled and comforted back to sleep. I decided to feed her lunch and try again in an hour. I turned around to make some corn for us, and this is what I turned back to:

How precious is that? :)

Farley Birthday!

Sarah turned 1 today! We capped off Birthday Weekend with some more cupcakes and ice cream at Tim's parents' house today. Mawmaw and Pawpaw and 2 of Sarah's cousins were able to join us. Enjoy the pictures! Be sure to scroll down for pictures from yesterday's festivities if you have not seen those yet.
Opening presents with lots of help from Daddy. Princess Sarah's rule: All presents must be played with immediately upon being unwrapped.

Holding her new animals

Playing with Cousin Drew

Mmmmm! Monkey cupcakes!

Sarah likes chocolate frosting better than red. Smart girl! :)

And she's a big fan of ice cream.

With cousins Drew and Hailey

DeArmon Birthday (scroll down for earlier post)

We celebrated Sarah's first birthday with the DeArmon family today. Jeremy, Julie and Ben were able to come in for the day, Grandma D was able to join us, as were Super Dawn (who does not want to be called "Miss" or "Aunt" and is therefore "Super" by default) and my parents. Not too many words in this post - enjoy the pictures! More will be posted on Facebook after the Farley celebration.

She did not enjoy this crown. :)

Elmo cupcakes!

Mmmmm! She had been eyeing these cupcakes all day yesterday! Finally she got to try one.

Classic. This is her pose 8-10 times a day. So glad she found her nose.

Red frosting was an excellent choice. Good job, Mommy!

Playing with Cousin Ben

Opening gifts! Check out her eyes - this was a big box. :)

Oh look - a box!

Ribbons are fun.

Her loot:

Happy Birthday Weekend Sarah!

This time last year, I was lying in a hospital bed, naively believing I would be holding a new baby sometime that day. I was dreaming about whether this would be a boy or a girl...thinking it would be so much fun to have a boy, but secretly hoping for a girl.

Now this year, I watch my little girl play with her toys, and I wonder how life could possibly get any better than this. I love to watch her learn and grow, and I am so thankful and blessed to have her in my life! Being a mom is the best job in the world, and I am lucky enough to be able to do that full-time at the moment. I can honestly say I am enjoying every minute of it.

Happy birthday Sarah! I look forward to spending the rest of the weekend watching you open gifts and eat cake and ice cream for the first time. You are a joy, and I love you more than I ever knew was possible! (Refer to Tim's blog for a first-time Daddy's perspective.)

Stay-at-home Mom again!

My job assignment at Ohio State was completed this past Thursday. I really enjoyed my time there. Everything about the job was positive. At the same time, I am excited to be back at my parents' house with the knowledge that we do not have to travel every weekend and I do not have to be at work every day! I am enjoying spening time with Sarah and finding an at-home routine again.

Tim has two speaking engagements this month. Please keep him (us) in your prayers, especially as this means travelling during the snowy season. We are excited about these opportunities and look forward to seeing what God has in store!

I stole an idea from Tim this week: Listening through the Bible. I read along as I listen to the Bible being read on my iPod. I have already had several occasions where the reader emphasizes things differently than I would have in my own reading, and it is interesting. There have been a few "hmmm" moments, and I really enjoy this.

We have several inches of snow outside, and it has been coming down consistently since I woke up around 7:00. I am thankful for our nice neighbor who owns a snowblower and uses it not only on his own driveway and sidewalks, but also on those of his neighbors. What a tremendous blessing and help that is!