First Sacrament

On May 6, 2012, we officially welcomed our sweet Mia into the Catholic family. Coincidentally, exactly nine years ago, on May 6, 2003, Bryan and I began our fairy tale! You can read about that here. It is exciting to me that we share that special date with our little caboose--almost like book ends for our family.

We decided to have Mia baptized in Lake Charles since that is where our family is. We wanted to share this special day with the people we love, and we knew it would just be too hard for them to come see us. We are especially grateful to Nonnie for getting this set up, and to Our Lady Queen of Heaven for allowing us to baptize our angel there even though that isn't the church we currently attend.

The ceremony was beautiful, and I am thankful for my friend, Katie, for being there for us to take some photos of this event.

Also, a very special thank you to Micha and Shawn for agreeing to be godparents to our Mia-girl.

Everything about this day was perfect...Well, almost perfect. There were a few people who are very special to us that just couldn't make it, but we all lead busy lives.

Thank yall for celebrating our joys with us! We love you (those here with us, and those with us in spirit)!

I sure do wish Pawpaw D could have been here with us, and that he could know Mia, but I know he has a front row seat to everything now that he is in Heaven. 

A Whirlwind Week

To say last week was a whirlwind would be an understatement.  Mia's first week flew by so quickly we almost missed it!  Just like her birth ;)

Mia had lots of company her first week here with us.  I don't know what she thought about it, but Bryan and I sure loved every second of it!

Her very first visitor wasn't even caught on film because, like I said before, we didn't have the camera with us.  I was so sad to not have a picture of her and Laura together, but there will me more photo ops in the future.

The big brother and sister couldn't be more in love with their new little sister!  They are just so sweet to her, it melts my heart.  Watching them love on her and seeing their little hearts so full of love and pride just makes my heart explode with happiness!

 

Mimi and Pappy weren't able to make it to the hospital the day she was born because everything happened so quickly.  They made it in around midnight, so they came up first thing the next morning. 

They are totally smitten with their new little princess.

It was so great to have Mom and Dad here with us this week.  They were such a huge help.  They did all the cleaning and cooking, which really allowed me to rest and recover.

Parrain Micha even stopped by to meet the tiny princess on his way to Keller.

Mama' and Papa' made it in Friday night.  Here are their first glimpses of their fifth grand-baby...and their caboose, too!

I think it goes without saying that everyone is so excited that Mia is finally here!  I can't wait to share more with you, but it may take a little while seeing as how it took me four days to compile this post!  Ha :)

Christmas with the Manuels

Sunday, we celebrated Christmas with Bryan's parents, brother, and our nephews.  It was such a beautiful day, so the boys decided to play football outside.  Here are a few photos from the fun.

I just love watching them play together!

He was so proud of himself for hanging with the "big boys".

Pa'pa even got in on the action! 

This is how a princess plays football :)

My silly girl!

She actually played for a few minutes...

Okay, so aren't they just the cutest!  I love when they play together!

Of course, what the kiddos were ready for was presents!  Who isn't ready for presents when they go to their grandparents house for Christmas, right?

These are four of the silliest, sweetest, cutest munchkins I know!  Love them so big :)

And this one, here...Haha!  He was hilarious!  He was so excited about everything!  It was really sweet to watch his face just light up with excitement over and over again.

Ma'Ma got them a Melissa and Doug art easel and supply kit!  So fun!!

Stay tuned for more Christmas festivities of 2011!



Feeding my Pinterest Addiction with a Photo Shoot

I have a new addiction.  It's called Pinterest.  It is one of the greatest websites ever!  It is a virtual pin board, which is basically like a "Favorites" list, only with pictures.  Here, you can find decorating, organizing, and cleaning ideas, recipes, photo ideas, clothing and jewelry ideas, holiday stuff, and so much more!

I found this picture while surfing the other day, and I knew I had to recreate it.

I thought since Bryan's mom has four grandchildren, it would be perfect!

Here is what I got:

Manuel Munchkins 2011

Dakota and Austyn have always had a special bond.  It really shows when we take pictures, because they always find a way to be together, ha!

I absolutely love the way it turned out!  I couldn't ask for better subjects :)

Gotta love those silly kiddos!!

Thanks for stopping by!  I hope you enjoyed the photos!