1st Birthday Party

So...this post is WAY overdue.  We threw Esther a 1-year-old party (a while ago), and despite the promise I made to Lee to not get carried away...I may have. Whoops.

Before the party, we had a min-celebration the actual day of lil bit's birthday.  We started with blueberry muffins for breakfast, which she ate so quickly she promptly threw them up.  That evening, we had a special birthday cupcake for the birthday girl...which she didn't hesitate to dive into.  So. Much. Fun!

The birthday party was focused on rainbows and bubbles, and since it was in July, it was all water-themed. The weather turned out cloudy and rainy...which wasn't a total disaster, since it was water-themed anyway.  I tried to do a rainbow of snacks, which we put under a tent to protect from the drizzle: 

We welcomed guests with a bubble maker...which was then turned into the favors table afterward (jars of bubbles for the kids and bubble gum balls for the adults):

We had swim diapers available for anyone who needed them, and decorated with rainbow candy!

Outside, the deck was decorated with a fantastic banner made by my sister, with "bubbles" of pictures of Esther.  That's also where we had the watermelon, cold and ready to be cut, and drinks iced for adutls and kiddos:

The yard supplied our entertainment.  Lee made some awesome pvc water spouts, decorated with sponges.  We borrowed several kiddie pools for the younger children.  Mom helped me make the sponge stars - a cheap and easy option of things to throw, put in your mouth, etc.  Lee also blew up a fun tunnel water slide, and then put together a large slip n' slide on the far end of the yard.

Esther had SO much fun, thanks to Lee's tireless efforts:

The BEST part about the entire day was how many people showed up.  My dad came up, all of Lee's family came, family, church and community friends showed up, lots of Lee's co-residents from UMC, even my bff from the coast came up to help - we felt so loved and had so much fun celebrating Esther!

The birthday cake was AMAZING, made by Teresa Sones - who also delivered the cake to us that morning!   It was delicious and perfectly decorated!

Esther dug right in without hesitation, probably thanks to her "practice" cupcake on her birthday:

 Everyone got a little wet, thanks to the games and the rain.  But I think everyone had fun, too.  We have wonderful friends who chose to celebrate this blessing of life despite the weather.

 After all our friends left, we opened gifts surrounded by family.  Esther had lots of help unwrapping:



 The best part of it all is how much fun Esther had, and how long her nap lasted that afternoon.  Happy birthday to our little sweetheart!!  (And sorry this is months late.)

First Family Vacation...to Chicago!



We took our first family vacation this week! Lee had the week off, so we visited our friends in the windy city.  The Thompsons were such generous hosts and put us up, and we got some good time with the Schmitzes too!  After driving all night (Esther did GREAT!) and starting the vaca off right with some Yolk, our first official outing was to the Aquarium.

Esther liked the fish and the turtles and especially anything that was noisy or bright.

She did not, however, like touching things...

This was the best pic of the whole group...the kids were getting HUNGRY!

 Then we went to Club Lucky for lunch, and to the Schmitzs' house for dinner.  It was so good to visit with friends who have been missing from our lives!

On Tuesday, we all went to the Children's Museum. Here's my attempt at a family pic:

There were tons of hands-on activities, so we were able to let Esther run a little wild.  There was a "snowball" pit, with soft snowballs you could throw, and build a snowman and sled through.

Theo grabbed the reigns and loved pulling Esther for a sleigh ride!

The water room was ingenius, but the raincoats didn't work...Esther got SOAKED.

But everyone had a great time!

For lunch, we went to Harry Caray's and made it home for naps all around.  Liz and David kept Esther Tuesday night for a special date.  They made reservations for us at Table 52, which was AWESOME.
Wednesday was a lazy day, where we ran a few errands and had some yummy sushi, then waited patiently for Liz and David to get back from the doctor!  One last dinner all together and a group pic:

Such a great trip!!  Special thanks to the Thompson and Schmitzs for feeding us and hosting us.  We miss them all so much - yay for road trips!!

Fall at the Walkers

    This fall has brought many changes to the Walker household.  The biggest and craziest - I quit my job at Sheldon!  After more than six years at that job, we decided to try my working at home.  I'll admit, it has been a difficult change for me.  In so many areas, this has brought major adjustment. 
    Changes bombarded me financially, emotionally, socially...even physically.  We went from one income to two to one (which was a bigger change than expected thanks to a new car and icky healthcare).  I went from being around a fun, challenging group of adults every day to staying home with my beautiful, hilarious one-year-old. I went from getting up very early and having to be somewhere, to getting up not so early and getting to make my own schedule.  I've had to learn how to manage my time better, plan meals and use coupons, work around a busy little person, and choose a good attitude.
    While my staying at home and not working a sometimes stressful job is something Lee has always been supportive of, its not something that has ever been a specific goal of mine.  All that to say, the first month (or two...ahem) was not easy.  Even hanging around with this booger all day:

    And then I was reminded of something very important: God hasn't commanded me to make a lot of money, or to climb the professional ladder, or even to be "successful" as the world defines it.  He commands me to do the best I can do at whatever I'm doing.  And he commands me to be obedient.  I know that quitting my job was the obedient thing to do, and whether I'm staying home all day, teaching my precious 2-year-olds two days a week at MDO, or cooking and cleaning - I am to do it to the absolute best of my ability.  I'm ashamed it took me so long to get it, and I'm embarassed at how often I forget it!  Esther can't believe it either...

    I am thankful for a gracious God who forgives me over and over.  And I am incredibly grateful for a husband who is patient and also very forgiving.  Finally, I'm so glad I get to be home with Esther all day and watch her learn and explore new things.  My life could not be more blessed.





Back at MC

I can't even begin to express what this girl means to me.  Casey Johns Bradshaw is such a dear friend and for so many reasons.  There's something very special about a friend who, amidst homeschooling three kiddos, singing on a worship team, supporting a hard-working hubby and cooking meals from scratch, finds time to call and chat with an old friend.  Casey is deliberate in her friendships, and it screams "I value you" to those of us who get to call her friend.  That, in addition to her compassion, thoughtfulness, loyalty and lest we forget - the fact that she was Homecoming Maid - make her a cherished friend.

 

In May, we had the wonderful chance to spend some time with the Bradshaws. Casey is one of two of "the girls" - my besties from college - who live far, far away. She's married to Jonathan and they live aaaaall the way in Knoxville, TN. Thankfully, she still has family in NOLA, and they stopped for the weekend on their way to visit! All our families got to visit, and we even walked down memory lane at MC.

 

The hubbies got some good visiting in - all are such wonderful Daddies!

Most of "the girls."

This is what memory lane looks like...full of funny stories and "remember when's"

We almost got in trouble from campus security for this...worth it!

We all had special places, where special events happened...the Bradshaws took a family picture where Jonathan proposed to Casey:

 

The Goldens took family pictures at Provine Chapel, where Karen and Chad got married:

And I couldn't get Lee to take a serious picture, but this is where we got married too!

Lee, Nora, and Liam had races around the big tree - and they are waaay faster than Lee.

Nora and I were practically BFFs by the end of the day. She even rode with US to lunch...such a sweet big sister!!

We broke another rule and played in the fountain.  The kids loved putting their feet in...except Esther, who was way too tired to play:

 

It was this, then on to a chaotic Mexican lunch...I love these people!

 

Our college years were certainly some of the best, but there's something very special about getting to watch each other grow older, have families, and become the women God has in mind.  Not to mention the fun we have laughing about the past and joking about the future!