farewell, two thousand eleven.

i'm always a bit reflective in january. saying goodbye to the past year, and welcome a new one with excitement, renewal and hope. this year has been a bit different thinking about moving forward. why? because moving forward means doing so without my dad. i know he'd want me to, and i know i have to, but life just isn't the same without him. i have moments every day where i break down in tears. usually in the car. usually listening to some song on the radio. or when i want to call him and then i remember i can't. ever again.

what continually gives me comfort as i look forward to the new year is knowing that i can have hope. jesus has been so near to me during this hard season, and for that i am so thankful. i continually focus on the passage found in 1 thessalonians 4:13-18 that talks about those that have gone before us... and specifically verse thirteen that says: "grieve not as those who have no hope."

so as i reflect on this past year--such a mix of blessings and hardship--i can focus on all that god has done, and the promise of what's to come. because i know there's more good stuff ahead.

here's a reflection of two thousand and eleven... picture-overload-style.

january
- my thirtieth birthday: a shopping trip with my handsome husband and a surprise party planned by him at one of my fav restaurants in dallas: eno's pizza in trendy bishop arts district. so fun.

- bella taking her first big girl bath in the real bathtub! she loved it (clearly).

february
- snow storm shut down dallas for a week! we were ecstatic! everyday was spent with our friends... we ate, went sledding, played games, games and more games, and when we got really stir crazy, we went for a trek to starbucks and walmart just down the street. hands down the most fun week of winter.

march
- girls/guys weekends. guys went camping. girls stayed in the omni hotel in las colinas. which sounds better to you??! :) we ate sushi, took crazy pictures and stayed up late eating junk food, talking and laughing. no matter how old we are, we still need girls nights.

- our first niece, sophia joyce cornwell, was born on march 15th! we were so excited to go visit her and introduce bella to her new cousin!

- nick's birthday extravaganza. just a few friends went out to--you guessed it--eno's pizza in the bishop arts district. man, we miss that place.

april
- road trip to houston for some family time! my cousins and aunt live there, and my mom&dad, and gret and jude flew down for the weekend. so.much.fun.

- final four! nick, dad and i got to go down to reliant stadium to check out all of the final four festivities. it was so special; my dad and i have loved watching march madness together for years. one of my favorite memories from this past year.

- road trip to tyler to stay with one of my longtime best friends, hannah and her sweet family!

- the obligatory "it's april; put your child in a patch of bluebonnets and take a picture" picture. couldn't help it. adorable.

- easter. service at our church, irving bible church, where the theme was "we have hope in all of our trials... because he is alive." i've been reminded of that service so many times in recent days. because he lives, we can face tomorrow.

may
- my first mother's day. nick took me to brunch at daddy jacks and we had a picnic with his family at lake grapevine. perfect day. love, love, love being a mama! especially to my sweet bella grace.

- may 19, our sweet girl turned ONE! we had a vintage garden birthday party for her; our apartment was packed with friends and family. such a special time!

- on may 28, we pulled out of dallas and headed north to our new home in maine. our friends, matt&camille and candace made the journey with us; it was a blast!

june
- bampy happy to be with both of his grandkids! he was always saying "hey, take a picture!" so here's one of those times...

- we took our friends everywhere in our new home state... saw lots of coastal scenery, quaint villages and ate lots and lots of seafood and other new england treats. such a great time!

- one of the summer's highlights: watching the mavericks beat the heat. there was lots of loud celebration noise coming from nick, dad and i on that night and the days to follow...

july
- lots and lots of pool time. it was hot; not as hot as texas, but still. h-o-t.

- fourth of july! spent it with the family, went to a band concert in the park and ended the day with smores and fireworks.

- our first house! nick&i spent lots of hot july afternoons at our new house painting and peeling wallpaper. nick always had country music blaring and we stopped many times in the middle of our work to daydream about all that was to come for us in this new home of ours.

- a highlight of many-a-summer is when the farringtons come up from georgia to visit. this summer was extra special with the babies and as we now know, our last visit with dad there. we always have so much fun, but this year was even more so.

august
- bella's dedication in our new church, the rock.

- i don't have pictures for this, but god's provision of jobs for both nick and i! yay!
- bella and i took a road trip to boston to hang with two of my best friends from high school and their kiddos. we had a blast! a trip to ikea, a girls night out for the mamas, and bella's first trip to the beach. so fun.

- nick&i took a weekend getaway for our third anniversary a little late this year. we were traveling from texas to maine on our anniversary, so we celebrated in august this year! a leisurely drive around the coast, lunch at a hole-in-the-wall seafood joint on the water, and then a stay at the lucerne inn (where we were married) including a delicious dinner and brunch the next morning. so thankful for this man that asked me to marry him.

- our last family photos together with my dad taken in my parents backyard. they turned out beautiful; so thankful we have them.

- we found out august 18th that we were pregnant with our second, emmy faith. bella made the announcement to all of our family wearing this shirt:

september
- we moved into our new house labor day weekend! lots of work, but we were so excited.
- apple picking! nick & bella's first time.

october
- road trip to see bampy in the hospital in boston... bella and jude had their first sleepover in a hotel.

- first snow: the day before halloween. the minute bella woke up, we brought her to the window. she couldn't stop looking outside.

- halloween! our sweet little strawberry.

november
- aunt jayne got to come stay for a while to help out while bampy was in the hospital. it was a huge blessing to have her company during such a hard time. bella loved getting to hang with her.

- my sweet dad went to be with jesus just a few minutes before midnight the day before thanksgiving. many precious moments spent by his bedside... so incredibly proud to be his daughter. so immensely blessed that he was my dad.

december
- 24 weeks with our sweet baby emmy on christmas eve.

- christmastime was hard, but special this year as i was reminded anew of the hope that we have in jesus. bella especially enjoyed christmas this year (although not while on santa's lap)...

thank you, lord jesus, for all the blessings of this past year... and for your grace to sustain us through the tough times. you have been with us every step of the way, and will continue leading us as we step into two thousand and twelve, anticipating all that you have in store for us.

happy new year. may it be a *blessed* one.