A Different Kind of Christmas

*I swear, this post was written in January. I'm just now getting around to throwing the photos in there and hitting Publish*

This year was Dax's first "walking" Christmas. Last year was so much fun watching him enjoy the lights, sounds, and smells of his first gift wrapped holiday. This year- oh, this year- he got to participate in the excitement of placing special ornaments on the tree (and taking them off and putting them back on... a few different times), singing nostalgic songs that make it truly feel like Christmas, baking cookies and arranging them on a special plate with a glass of cold milk, and ripping up carefully taped paper to reveal new treasures. This year Dax really 'got' Christmas. As fun as it was to get to experience all of these traditions with our boy, it was a different kind of Christmas for our families as we continue to deal with the grief of losing grandparents. Happy moments filled with joy held the weight of what it could have been; should have been. A few sad tears fell. The sadness did not last long, and we spent more time recounting happy memories and making plenty of new ones. Below are some of our favorite moments over the holiday season:

As a new year stretches before us, let's be kinder. Let's love intentionally. Let's be generous with our time and resources. Let's live our one wild and precious life.

-A

Fall Bucket List

This year I was SO excited for Fall to finally arrive. Living in the South, sometimes Fall isn't exactly on time. Sometimes she comes stumbling in, leaves all a mess, with temperatures that go from 75 and sunny to 40 and frosty in one week. And yet, every year when I get into the swing of things at school I start pulling out the hats and scarves, opening the windows to let the breeze in, lighting my apple and pumpkin scented candles, start putting out pictures from past Fall seasons, and sipping on coffee spiced with pumpkin and cinnamon. There's just something about the transition to cold that begs us to slow down and savor the time before us. I like all the seasons, but I'm especially fond of Fall.

The season started off tragically with the loss of my grandfather; a man who did not have to call me granddaughter but loved me fiercely as such. He taught me so many things; things about nature and life and how the best things in life aren't really things. Our family is grieving and devastated at his sudden loss. It's been hard to enjoy my usual Fall traditions because they seem obsolete in the midst of my grief. Nevertheless, I've committed to enjoying my one wild and precious life.

We also lost Josh's sweet grandmother Memaw earlier this year as well. Although our hearts are learning to live with the grief, we are determined to make time for memories that matter and to create a culture of adventure and joy within our little family. If you've hung around us any amount of time, you know our son Daxon oozes a spirit of fun. His smile lights up his entire face and he finds joy in the simplest of gestures. He has been incredible medicine for our pain. With his irresistible desire for fun calling me out of my sadness, I created a Fall Bucket List for this season. This year's list was pretty much just in my head, but I anticipate it becoming a tradition and editing it as our family grows and changes throughout the years.

To celebrate Fall this year, we crossed of the following from our list:

• Decorate for Fall
• Go apple picking
• Make apple crisp & apple pie
• DIY Fall crafts
• Go to a football game
• Decorate for Halloween
• Visit a pumpkin patch
• Carve a pumpkin
• Make Dax's Halloween costume
• DIY Halloween crafts
• Watch Halloween movies
• Bake Halloween cookies
• Trick or Treat
• Decorate for Thanksgiving
• Drink apple cider
• DIY Thanksgiving crafts
• Make yummy treats for Thanksgiving
• Make s'mores with a fire in the fireplace

 Photographic Evidence:

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

 

 

 

 

Click here for the recipe! I swapped pumpkin for sweet potatoes & pecans for cookie crumbles.

With only one thing left to cross off of our list, we are so excited for the Christmas season and a chance to teach Dax about Jesus & His birth! This year has certainly had its challenges, but it has also been chock full of sweet moments and God's comfort. I can't wait to share more snapshots of our holiday season and the fun memories we make as a family. 

Until then,

A

Dax Does the Beach

We got the opportunity to crash my parents' beach vacation this year. My dad was invited to a Fire Convention and invited us to tag along for a long weekend. This was the first time Dax got to experience the ocean and he loved every minute! I will let the pictures speak for themselves:

This trip kicked off a really busy, fun summer for our little family! I'm looking forward to sharing more as we ease into cooler temperatures, crispy leaves, and pumpkin everything. :)

-A

The Big O-N-E

Daxon,
Your first year was also ours. You taught us how to sacrifice, how to persevere, and more than anything, how to love with every ounce of our being. Your birth was your Mama's biggest accomplishment. You are your Daddy's pride and joy. We pray for you to grow big and strong. You do. We pray for you to be brave and full of joy. You are.

Each day you leave us in awe as we watch you explore and figure out the world around you, Keep it up, buddy. Your first year was the best of our lives. We cannot wait to see what adventures await us your second year of life as we continue raising you to love life, love people, and love God!

Thank you for capturing this day, sweet friend! (:

These are just a few of my favorite moments captured from his camping themed party! My friend Kayla is such a wonderful friend and took photos while I was running around being Mama and host. It's only been a month and a half since his party and he already seems so much more grown up. I can hardly believe it, but I'm SO excited about the summer adventures headed our way!