7 Quick Takes {no. 39}On Moms & Motherhood...and a giveaway winner!

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Happy Mother's Day to all the moms out there! Moms, grandmas, great-grandmas, godmothers, spiritual mothers - there are many forms motherhood can take. While it is my first Mother's Day with our sweet Peter, my first Mother's Day was last year when my heart was aching for our Thomas Gianna. Know that whether your babies are in your arms or in heaven, whether you are blessed with many children or longing for them, you are in my thoughts and prayers this Mother's Day. May God bless each and every one of you. Sweet Momma Mary, pray for us.

{Madonna of the Streets}

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Motherhood continues to be quite the adventure. These are sacred days, of that I am certain. Peter is smiling so much more lately, and there is just nothing else quite like it. I can't wait to hear his laugh! His sleep patterns still have us puzzled, but we just take each day (and night) as it comes. It's all very much worth it, of course. My heart has never known such a love. I am so thankful for the gift of being Peter's mom.

{11 days old}

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My parents and my in-laws came to visit us just after Peter was born. It was a very special time for me. Words cannot express what it was like to see my own mother holding my son. What a beautiful gift from God. I am so, so grateful to have a mother who has shown me His love my whole life long.

Happy Mother's Day, Momma.

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Last year I hosted a Marian linkup, and I wanted to share the link with you here. There are some great reads for this Mother's Day weekend, and in this month of May.

{CLICK HERE}

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I have to share a couple of great motherhood posts I've read lately:

I so admire the writing of Laura at Mothering Spirit. She wrote a gorgeous piece on motherhood in the first year of a baby's life. It captures so many of my current experiences as a new mom. It's a wonderful read. Don't miss it.

If you're looking for some more momma sweetness, read this letter my friend Kathryn wrote to her one-year-old daughter, Gianna. It's just beautiful. And then you simply must check out Gianna's first birthday party, because it's one of the most fabulous I've ever seen. Kathryn knows how to celebrate!

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If you're in need of a last minute Mother's Day gift, be sure to click on over to my etsy shop to check out my downloadable prints. One of them might make a lovely gift for someone you love. Just download, print, and frame (or don't!) for a perfect little piece that will bless and encourage.

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Last but not least, the giveaway winner! Thanks so much to each of you lovely ladies who entered. The winner is...Vicki! Congratulations! Be sure to check your e-mail for your prize. 

Linking up my takes with Kelly - thanks for hosting us!

Wishing you a beautiful weekend...

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7 Quick Takes {no. 38}New Mom edition & a GIVEAWAY!

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Well, friends, it's my first seven quick takes as a new momma. You can count on some updates, some pictures of my sweet boy, and a little giveaway of this print at the end.

Thank you so much for being here as I try to get back into the swing of blogging a bit more regularly. I really miss this community!

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First of all: I am soooo far behind on all my blog reading. What are the best posts you've read lately? What have I missed from you? Fill me in!

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In case you missed it, I shared Peter's birth story on the blog earlier this week. Though it admittedly took me several days and many nap times to finish, I really enjoyed writing it all out to commemorate this most momentous occasion in our lives.

For those of you who read about and are praying for our boy's ASD - thank you. We received good news at his checkup yesterday! The hole is now half the size it was at birth, and the doctor anticipates it may close completely on its own. Either way, he should be able to live a healthy life. So many answered prayers! Please join us in praising God for his goodness and in praying for his heart's complete healing. We appreciate it more than I can say.

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Life as a mom is...well...so hard to put into words. It's truly something that no one can prepare you to experience. All at once it is the hardest thing I've ever done and the most wonderful. Those first few weeks were brutal. Especially the sleep deprivation combined with postpartum hormones combined with the steep learning curve of first-time parenthood. YIKES. Eight weeks in I feel like things are finally starting to even out a little bit. The warm spring weather is a welcome change, too. I find it's always nice to get outside, even just for a bit.

I can hardly believe just how fast Peter is growing and changing. Case in point:

4 days old.

1 month old.

Just shy of 2 months old.

Ahh! It's already going by too quickly. My prayer is that I am able to be really present and savor every second. Goodness, do I love that boy.

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Amidst all the craziness of life as a new mom, I did manage to put together a little celebration for the feast day of one of my favorite saints, St. Gianna Beretta Molla. You may have seen on instagram that we celebrated with an Italian dinner & dessert, which included bruschetta, spaghetti & meatballs, the best cannolis, and gelato. Yum! 

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And speaking of liturgical celebrations - happy Easter! So glad the Easter season is still going strong so I can say that to you all without being completely belated. Peter's first Easter was a special day. We dressed him up in his Sunday best, and he slept like a little angel through the Easter Mass. 

Once we got home from Mass he was ready to eat (as pictured below), and also promptly had a blowout and spit up all over his Easter outfit. At least he waited for us to take some pictures!

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Last, but certainly not least - a little Mother's Day giveaway for you!

I am giving away a "Blessed is she who believed" downloadable printable in the color of your choosing {available in pink, eggplant, crimson or black} from my etsy shop, {with joy calligraphy}. This 8x10" printable would make a lovely gift for the special mother(s) in your life {think: mom, grandma, mother-in-law, godmother, one for you, etc.!}. Download may be printed up to three times. This giveaway is open through the end of Thursday, May 7, 2015 and the winner will be announced and receive their prize on Friday, May 8, 2015. Good luck, dear readers!!


a Rafflecopter giveaway

Linking up my takes with many more lovely bloggers! Thanks for hosting us, Kelly.

And thanks again for being here. Wishing you a beautiful May weekend!

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When We Welcomed You to the World{Peter's Birth Story}

My darling Peter,

You are quietly napping in your crib as I type this. Every day I am in awe of your little life, and what a miraculous gift you are. I want to write down the story of how you came into this world. I hope that one day, when you are grown up (though Momma doesn't want to think about that just yet), you will read this and smile.

March 1st was a cold, and very snowy Sunday. That evening your Dad & I had just watched the Downton Abbey season finale. (How kind of you to let us watch!) I went to bed for the night while Daddy stayed up to read, both of us completely unaware of how our life was about to change forever. A little after midnight I woke up with a start, rather surprised. I had a (very wet) feeling that my water had broken. Daddy called our doctor who told us to head in to the hospital.

Seeing as it was over two weeks before your due date (March 18), we were not exactly prepared! I had started packing a hospital bag, but by no means was it finished. Thankfully I had made a list of the other things I wanted to bring. I started trying to gather the things on the list, and to my surprise, was able to remain relatively calm. Your Daddy on the other hand, was just so excited he couldn't think clearly! We worked as a team to get out the door as quickly as possible.

Dad drove us safely through the snow to the hospital in Manhattan. We texted your grandparents, aunts, and uncle to let them know you were on your way. When we arrived, we headed straight for the sixth floor, where the Labor & Delivery Unit was located. Once we settled into a room, they checked me and I was only one centimeter dilated - I had a long way to go! They gave Momma a medicine called pitocin to move things along, and it worked. Very well. I waited several hours to get an epidural, as I was told if I got it too soon it could slow down the labor, and I didn't want that! You better believe I won't wait so long for an epidural if there is a next time. Momma was trying to be brave and tough, but when the nurse told her some patients requested their epidural after one unit of pitocin and that I had already had eighteen units, I no longer felt the need to wait. Oh, what sweet & welcome relief! For me, and for your daddy, who was an absolute champion of support for me throughout the entire labor and delivery process. He is the best - you know that, right?

Before you were born, Momma and Daddy had prayed for all the nurses and doctors we would encounter at the hospital. God answered our prayers one hundredfold. As soon as my main nurse introduced herself I knew that God had sent her. Her name was Catherine. My confirmation saint is St. Catherine of Alexandria. I just don't believe that was coincidence. Don't you love when God does that sort of thing?

After the epidural, the nurses encouraged me to try to save up my energy for pushing, as it could take a few hours they warned. I tried to mentally prepare myself for the experience. After laboring most of the day, our doctor arrived to help deliver you. When he went to examine me, your head was already so low that he could see it! Once a contraction came, I started pushing, and only one more contraction later, at 4:09 p.m. on March 2, 2015, you were in my arms! I couldn't believe it! Oh, the tears of joy and relief I cried, sweet boy. Words can't express just how happy I was to meet you. Before long your Daddy got to hold you, too. What a precious, precious moment for us.

While you were still with us in the delivery room, you weren't able to let out very many strong cries. I never imagined I would actually desire to hear you scream and scream. A pediatric doctor came to look at you a couple times, but they said you would be okay before taking you to the nursery for a bath. Your Dad and I were missing you as soon as you were swept away. A little while later our nurse Catherine came back and told us some news we never wanted to hear: you had been admitted to the NICU. Momma cried again, this time tears of fear and sadness. I wanted so badly to have you back in my arms. A very kind doctor came to talk to us and took Daddy down to visit you, since I was still recovering. I was so relieved when he came back and told me you should be okay, but that they needed to keep an extra close eye on you.

As soon as I was able, I rode in a wheelchair to visit you in the NICU. What an emotional experience to see you there, my sweet boy. You were hooked up to so many cords and they were keeping you warm in a little incubator box. Oh, how I prayed for your well-being and healing. Our NICU journey was predicted to be 48 hours, but ended up being three days long. The second day you were there, a cardiologist found your ASD - atrial septal defect. No mother ever wants to hear that their precious baby has a hole in his heart, no matter how small. I cried again (I did a lot of crying for several weeks after your birth!), but the doctors told us not to worry (impossible), and that they would check your heart again in two months. We have your checkup tomorrow. We have been praying for Jesus to heal your heart every day. My greatest comfort is that I know He loves you even more than your Daddy and I do, which is more than I even knew was possible.

When we finally got to bring you home from the hospital, I experienced so many different feelings. I felt scared of being in charge of you after you had been monitored so closely by the medical team in the NICU. I felt utterly exhausted from a complete lack of sleep, what with our middle-of-the-night and all-through-the-day feeding sessions. My emotions were absolutely all over the place with my postpartum hormones. But above all, I was happy, and I was grateful. I'll never forget standing outside our apartment wearing flip flops in the snow (because yes, there was another blizzard, and my feet were so swollen I couldn't get my feet in any other shoes), and I just wept. I thanked God over and over for keeping you safe and for allowing us the gift of bringing you home with us. Our family was finally home. The three of us together, just as we belonged.

You had quite an eventful entrance into this world, baby. In the eight short weeks you've been out here with us, you have brought us - and so many others - more joy than we ever could have imagined. I can't wait to see what the Lord has in store for your precious life.

We love you, Peter Matthew. So very much.
Momma & Daddy

5 Favorites {no. 12} & WWRW - First Trimester edition

Today marks sixteen weeks with this sweet blessing in my belly. So I wanted to share five of my favorite things - must haves, I might say - that helped me through that dear first trimester.

{1} Camelbak water bottle // Momma's gotta have that H2O! Having a water bottle helps me stay more hydrated. I also use my fitbit app to keep track of how many ounces a day I'm drinking (and I needed a lot of ounces that first trimester in Texas!).

{2} PsiBands // These not-super-fashionable bands were a lifesaver for me with the nausea and all-day sickness I experienced for several weeks. Totally worth it.

{3} Tums // Heavens to Betsy, hello, heartburn! Oh my goodness, friends. I had horrible heartburn during the first trimester. It didn't matter what I ate. And may I just say, heartburn is not a nice thing to have in combination with anxiety. Yikes. But these Tums did the trick! Something tells me I may be needing these later on, too...

{4} Rainbow Light prenatal vitamins // These vitamins are awesome. They have not given me nausea a single time. And they're really not too bad to swallow either. Winning at all the things!

{5} A Catholic Mother's Companion to Pregnancy // This book has been such a blessing. Each chapter is a different week of pregnancy with information, prayers, and a mystery of the rosary for the week. It's truly a beautiful way to "walk with Mary from conception to baptism," as the subtitle of the book says. Highly recommended. Would make a great gift for a newly pregnant momma, too.

What were your key pregnancy survival items? Let me know! I'd love to hear from you!

Linking up with Mary Kate for five favorites and Jessica for WWRW.

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On Mothers and Mary{Mondays in May: Honoring Mary series}

First of all, a day-late Happy Mother's Day to my beautiful mother and mother-in-law (or mother-in-love, as I prefer). I am so blessed to have a mother whom I so dearly love and admire. She is a champion of support for me to this day, and I am so grateful God chose her for me. Michael's mom is a gift to me, too - not only in the love she has shown me, but in the wonderful man she raised who is now my dear husband. What a blessing! Thank you, Lord, for mothers. 

{wedding photography by A Thousand Words Photography}

Yesterday was also my first Mother's Day. My sweet baby is already in heaven with our Lord. I found myself wishing our Thomas Gianna was still growing in my womb. I was filled with so much sadness. Michael made it a special day for me, which was very sweet. We both have great hope that one day we might be able to celebrate Mother's Day with a child - or, God-willing - children.

Mary, our Lord's mother, knows all too well the sadness of losing a child. I find myself turning to her, and asking her to intercede for me. I love this image of Our Lady of Sorrows, her eyes heavenward.

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Our Lady of Sorrows, pray for us.

When in your life have you turned to Mary?

I hope you will join me for the Marian linkup I am hosting beginning May 26!

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