The Miracle of Birth

Last week I had the opportunity to witness my newest nephew being born. It was an AMAZING experience that I will remember forever! I always wanted to have a natural birth experience with little intervention but I was not so lucky. My sister in law, Melissa, invited me to be part of the labor and delivery for baby Jackson and I could not pass it up. I was so intrigued to find out what a normal delivery would be like. The coolest part was that Melissa had a home birth! Her midwife delivers a lot of babies in the Mennonite and Amish communities around Lancaster County, PA. She had an amazing ability to make everything calm during even the most intense contractions and pushing. The labor was pretty quick as Melissa started having contractions at 4:30 am and had her water broken at 6:50. Baby Jax was born at 7:30 am. I know......those of you who had 24-30 hour+ labors are extremely jealous right now. Anyway, Melissa did an awesome job and was very calm and collected.
After seeing the whole process take place I was reminded of just how miraculous and precious life is. It is an awesome reminder of how creative and powerful our God is.

Sticky Orange Fun

Today Ella Grace invited a bunch of friends from her play group over to decorate pumpkin cookies. 7 toddlers plus orange icing and lots of sugar = a delightful and fun mess!

Grandma & Grandpa Took Me to the Pumpkin Patch!

One of the great things (for us personally) about my dad's job is that he and mom get to visit Charlotte quite frequently to meet with people at Gordon Conwell's campus here.
We had a great weekend together walking on a greenway (much needed for my busy daddy), getting breakfast together, visiting the pumpkin patch, and watching the Gators lose miserably to Alabama (could not believe this).
Here are some shots from Hunter Farm (a 5th generation farm in South Charlotte)...

My Creative Sister

For those of you that know my sister you are aware of how creative and, well, awesome she is. Daphne and her husband, Ryan, are living in Cambodia for three years working for Mennonite Central Committee with local partner organizations in their community. They have set up a delightful little home for themselves and use it to host people as well as enjoy their time together as (still) newly weds.
Daphne has always been quite creative and has a wonderful way of making anything feel cozy and homey. She has just started a new blog called "The Home Away" that enables friends to share creative ideas for living simply abroad. Ideas are posted for cooking, gardening, and basic living. It's sort of like looking at a Martha Stewart Magazine....overseas edition.

Check it out at http://thehomeaway.wordpress.com

Pretty cool, huh?

Recents

I know some of you have been wondering if I fell off the face of the earth. I am not so good at keeping up with this blog...I know. :)
Hopefully with the Summer being over and the routine of Fall settling in I will do a better job.

Our Summer was incredibly busy (surprise, huh?). We enjoyed visits with family, a Heistand Family reunion (with folks on my mother's side), going to the NC mountains, an Anniversary trip to Asheville, a trip to Virginia Beach to see Auntie Jess and Temple, a Mommy and Daddy only trip to California for a green building training for Nathan, and a visit with the Harlans in West Virginia.

Miss Ella Grace is...well not so little anymore. She is almost 14 months old and is growing into her own little person...with her own personality, independence, and interests. She weighs about 23 lbs and LOVES to eat. I mean this girl can put food down! I'm not sure if she always knows when to stop. ;)
Thankfully, she has still been quite healthy since birth. We realize that this is definitely not a given and it is something we praise God for.
Ella Grace is just starting to take her first steps. She would rather crawl most places though because its way easier. :)
She LOVES to sing and dance and is quite the talker. She just loves to tell us what's on her mind and uses such inflection and intonation when she speaks. Her favorite words are "mama", "uh-oh", "hi", "baby girl", and "bobby sue". I have no idea who Bobby Sue is and where she came from but she is very popular at the Mitten house!
Ella Grace's favorite foods are edamame, yogurt, bananas, and cheerios.

We have really been itching for Fall to arrive in Charlotte as it's been sweltering in the 90's for MONTHS! We visited an apple orchard in South Carolina in hopes of welcoming in the new season. Unfortunately, it was 95 degrees but we had a great time with friends Jon, Sarah, and Claire picking apples while perspiring.
Here are a few shots from our excursion...

Happy Dada Day!

Ella Grace quite possibly has the best daddy in the whole world! Though EG was sick over the weekend, (with her first fever), we had fun celebrating our daddy guy.
It definitely makes my heart melt to watch her little face light up and her whole body jump when that daddy guy walks through the door. This must mean that he has found a very special place in her heart. <3


Some of their favorite things to do are:
to go flying ....anywhere
play pattycake
take walks
have Ella Grace crawl all over daddy
laugh
share ice cream

I am thankful for the example that Nathan is to Ella Grace and for the ways that he cares for and loves her. Happy Father's Day!!





Also, a very special Happy Father's Day to my daddy and daddy in law. Thank you for all of the love you have shown us throughout our lives! We love you soo much!!

Grandpa Hollinger
Poppy Mitten