all things go

cute overload...

2012-01-23T09:00:00.000-06:00

i saw this baby collection from lilly marthe-ebener and about died. the clothes are adorable and the styling is just perfect. too cute for words.

best of 2011

2012-01-15T15:13:00.000-06:00

who missed me? no one? cool...so i'm (ahem) a little bit behind on all of this, i know. but i figured i would do the obligatory best of 2011 post to remember the good times, half of which i failed to blog about in the first place. so here goes...(i'll try to keep it short)

JANUARY:

- auburn won the national championship which was one of the greatest things. part of me never thought i'd see that happen.
- jack turned 1! (and he has since turned 2 as well.)

FEBRUARY:

- we visited david's grandma in st pete, florida. this was the same weekend that mark and katelyn told us they were pregnant!
- i turned 27 and did not blog about it. and apparently didn't even take a picture of it. oh well.
- we kept lil boo while his parents looked for a new place to live all the way in memphis :(

MARCH:
- liz, jd, amos and evie moved to memphis, and i plunged into a deep depression
- amos turned 1! and on his actual birthday, he became a permanent part of the wilson family!

APRIL:

- we celebrated easter with my family which was wonderful.
- it was david's turn to get old and he turned 27. sadly, his birthday was the day the tornadoes came through tuscaloosa and birmingham. (the scotch was his birthday gift...he wasn't toasting the tornadoes)

MAY:
- pierce turned 1!

- if anything else happened in may, i don't remember what it was...

JUNE:
- one of my dearest friends carol got married in nashville. it was such a fun wedding and great times with friends

- david and joel successfully smoked their first brisket (it has been the first in a wonderful tradition now. one of our favorite things to do...we love our "family dinners")

- also, we announced that we are adopting!!

JULY:
- we went to memphis for july 4th weekend.

- we took our annual trip to michigan that is probably what we look forward to most each summer. (don't you like my cheesier than cheese michigan insert in the middle, there?)

- we saw josh ritter in concert which was my favorite show i've ever been to, ever.
- caroline turned 4! i can hardly believe it.

- joel and mandy announced that they were having a baby too!

AUGUST:
- i literally have nothing. have no idea what happened.

SEPTEMBER:
- we visited david's parents in Houston!

- we threw mark and katelyn's baby shower in our courtyard, which was so much fun!

- we said goodbye to david's granny re who went to be with Jesus.

OCTOBER:
- i cut my hair!
- we welcomed sweet avory williams into the world!
- we headed back to memphis.

NOVEMBER:
- we had our incredible blessing of an adoption yard sale.
- we got to visit our friends steve and courtney in austin (who also are having a baby!)

- we spent the week of thanksgiving in houston and then we lost the iron bowl :(
- we were approved for our adoption and are now just waiting to be chosen!!

DECEMBER:
- evie girl turned 1!
- we went cruising...

- we moved into my parents house for a few days over christmas to spend time with liz and jd and the kids...so much fun.

whew! that was alot. 2011 was crazy busy (thanks to instagram for capturing most of these memories) but mostly we were reminded time and time again of God's faithfulness to us. we are so excited for 2012 and all it will hold for us and our little family!

adoption update, part 3...

2011-12-06T14:00:00.001-06:00

in other adoption news, one of david's friends bryan was on the local news with his family and their new daughter finley. such a great story of the urgency and simplicity of adoption!

pinhole press...we used this album we figured it would wear better depending on how many people looked at it.

happy monday...

2011-12-05T10:00:00.000-06:00

just another monday around here. day off. projects up to my eyeballs.

while i've been working on stuff around the house today, i've been listening to matthew mayfield's album (which is currently free on noisetrade...i highly suggest you check it out). it made me think of his video for "now you're free" which our friend, paul bryant of kinora films shot this past spring. it is beautiful. so, naturally, i wanted to share it in case you hadn't seen it yet.

hungover...

2011-11-28T18:00:00.000-06:00

in the post-holidays type way. we had a blast in texas and there will be pictures coming, but today i have been lethargic and pitiful. it has been raining and freezing since we got back, so i haven't been up to much.

today, while i was decorating for christmas i caught up on a bunch of episodes of glee. this is from an episode a few weeks ago but it was amazing, so i thought i would share.

happy iron bowl weekend...

2011-11-25T15:00:00.005-06:00

hope everyone is enjoying their friday recovering from your turkey comas by eating turkey sandwiches. settle in for your weekend of football, especially the greatest rivalry in college football - the iron bowl. it will be sad. auburn will most likely lose. but it's ok, we are still the reigning national champs for a few more weeks and it at least won't be alabama taking the title from us.

did anyone see roll tide I war eagle? i actually thought it was an interesting look at ridiculous culture. it's so funny, though, growing up an auburn fan and then student/graduate, you really do have the little brother complex, like you're never given the respect you deserve. did any of you watch it? what did you think?

war eagle!

5 whole years...

2011-11-25T09:00:00.004-06:00

i cannot believe it. are we old enough to be married for 5 years? i'm still 23, right?

well, 'tis true. today is our fifth anniversary. i am so incredibly blessed by david. last year, on our anniversary date, david told me he was ready to adopt. it will forever be burned into my memory - as we sat there at highlands bar & grill enjoying the best baked grits i've ever tasted - as one of the greatest moments of our marriage. he is my best friend. i can't wait to see him as a dad.

happy thanksgiving...

2011-11-24T09:00:00.018-06:00

// photo //

for most of my life, thanksgiving has been my favorite holiday and i take personal offense when people start celebrating christmas too early, because - c'mon people! respect the turkey. it's just such a wonderful day to be reminded of all the things we are thankful and grateful for. i will never forget on thanksgiving day 5 years ago (2 days before mine and david's wedding) my brother and sister-in-law told us they were pregnant. then, 9 months later along came caroline. and today we have 6 nieces and nephews! i am definitely thankful for that! and here are a few more things...

- the gracious work of God in my life and His continuing mercy day by day as He molds me (despite my sometimes bitter resistance) to become more like Him. seriously...thank you is not enough for that one.

- an amazing, supportive husband who wants nothing but the best for me.

- for our sweet baby we don't even know yet, and their birth parents for being willing to go through a very difficult time because they wanted to choose life for their child (and i don't mean that that we will give them a better life...i mean that they chose to allow their child to be born, to live)

- for not one but 2 incredible families that we get to call our own.

- for our community in birmingham that makes living here so spectacular. everyone should be jealous. we have the best friends in the world.

i also have certain friends that have the craziest family stories. what better time to bring out the crazy than at the holidays...anything you are particularly thankful for or perhaps a ridiculous family story?

parenthood...

2011-11-22T08:00:00.005-06:00

no, not the tv show...although, isn't it great? lately, david and i have been talking a lot about parenthood, what we would do in certain situations, how we are going to handle questions and issues that will come up with being a transracial family (we have lots and lots of discussions about this...like playing out scenarios 15 years into the future).

but the overarching theme of our discussions are how we want to raise our children to love our God more than anything. we are so thankful that in their own adoption into this very temporary ytterberg family, they will see the greater story of how we are all adopted - through Christ - into inheritance with Christ as sons of God (ephesians 1:4-6). and more than just knowing that, we would so desperately want our children to grow up with a heart for others and a desire to follow Christ in whatever he might call them to do in their lives.

so that brings us to secret church a few weeks ago, and david [platt - not husband david] said something that has stuck in my brain ever since.

"God gives children to families for his glory. The goal of biblical parenting is NOT to help your children get a great education, be a great athlete, go great dates, have a great career or make great money. the goal of biblical parenting is to help your children love a great God."

and then he said this...

"Don't forget. God commands your children to leave you in order to follow Him." (matt. 10:37)

and that has just been rolling around in my brain and my heart for weeks. his point being that God is to be first in all of our lives and our allegiance to Him supersedes that of family, friends, circumstance or convention. and at the end of the day, God has called our children's allegiance to Himself and not to us. so we can play that role of supporter, encourager, teacher in our child's life or we can be the ones they leave behind to follow Christ in obedience. it's just stuck there in my heart. i'm so thankful that God would deem to bless us with the task of raising a child to love Him. it's such a great responsibility but will be full of such great reward.

(if you've even made it this far) what are some of your favorite things about parenting? favorite conversations, songs, books, etc.

have a great weekend...

2011-11-18T15:00:00.002-06:00

hope everyone has a great weekend before thanksgiving. the bergs are headed to houston, by way of austin. we will take any excuse we can find to get over and visit our wonderful friends steve and courtney. it is not hyperbolic to say that they really are two of my favorite people on the planet. i would visit them if they lived in des moines, but the fact that they live in austin just makes it that much better.

then we are off to houston for a week of ytterberg family time! can't wait.

// photo //

also, i've been ripping off this whole "happy weekend" post from jordan ferney, who is probably one of the most creative bloggers around. just wanted to give credit where credit is due.

we have some friends going to hawaii for thanksgiving. score. so what are your fun thanksgiving week plans?

teenybopping...

2011-11-18T08:00:00.000-06:00

you better believe that tonight mandy, joanna and i will be heading to see breaking dawn, part 1. and who's that coming with us? oh, that's right. joel, robbie and david. heck yes.

as joel was saying the other day "harry potter is about the triumph of good over evil. twilight is about the importance of having a boyfriend." hilarious. and true. and i don't care.

come on. 'fess up. you know you love it...so who do you love? edward or jacob?

happy birthday joanna...

2011-11-14T11:00:00.001-06:00

today is my sweet friend joanna's birthday! joanna (or as i have lovingly nicknamed her - jojie) is SUCH a fun person. she makes me laugh pretty much all the time. she loves justin beiber (or as she calls him, "justin beaver"...because english is her second language and she says funny things like that, which is another reason i love her so much.) she is a super talented hair stylist as well as photographer and just all around pretty great girl. sorry dudes, she's taken.

jojie, i'm sad you're in phoenix and not here to hang out on your birthday, but when you come back we will party and i will buy your ticket to see breaking dawn. have fun with your family and come home soooooooon!

yard sale success...

2011-11-14T08:00:00.002-06:00

the yard sale went so well on saturday. thank you so much to all the people who donated, who came by to visit and especially those who bought stuff. we actually got to talk to some people who have adopted, who had siblings who were adopted and even one woman who gave up a child 10 years ago. they were all so encouraging and sweet. we are just so ready to have this little baby home!

hilarious story...at one point a police officer pulls up and david walks over and gets micah. all i can hear from the porch is "did you get a permit?" to which micah told us he replied, "yeah, i got one from the mayor." micah thought the guy was joking, and then he said "well, i need to see it." so micah starts to back track saying he thought it was a joke. he really didn't have a permit. the next thing i see is the cop start laughing and saying he was just messing with us. he was there to shop. julianne told him he had to buy something after that.

julianne made these super sweet onesies to sell at the yard sale. thankfully, i was able to snag one.

so i have to say a huge, gigantic, enormous thank you to julianne and micah who had the idea in the first place and who did pretty much all the work. we are so thankful that they are our friends. we love them and their two sweet babies so so much. sadly, we didn't take a picture together either so i borrowed this one so i could show their sweet faces. (photo)

have a relaxing weekend...

2011-11-11T09:00:00.001-06:00

first, i want to take a moment to say happy veteran's day to my daddy as well as my uncle alan and all those out there who have sacrificed so much for our freedom.

i hope everyone has a fantastic weekend, enjoying the beautiful weather. please come by our yard sale on SATURDAY. it will be wonderful, i promise. teaser: we're selling road house for a dollar. also, i'm just really enjoying having my husband back, safe and sound, from guatemala. hug your loved ones and thank a veteran....happy weekend!

photo

adoption fund raiser (please come!)...

2011-11-10T10:00:00.005-06:00

love is all...

2011-11-08T09:00:00.002-06:00

i happened to come across this amazing live performance of my favorite tallest man on earth song, "love is all." just thought i'd share and that is all...

happy tuesday!

it's getting colder...

2011-11-07T09:00:00.003-06:00

...and you know what that means. it's that time of year...time to start thinking about gifts for the fam. this year, i actually plan on making a lot of things. and while i was at it, i thought of a few things that i have had my eye on. some of them are ridiculous and just pretty and some are more realistic. also, i actually love that i'm getting to the age where it's harder and harder to think of things i want and i'm learning it is so much more fun to give than receive. i just can't advertise what i'm getting others...

1 - capri blue candle in volcano: my favorite candle and the jars are so pretty you can use them for all sorts of things after the candle is gone.
2 - penguin classics clothbound series: i've been collecting these for a couple of years now, but they are so pretty who can stop?
3 - coatt "love me do" morse code necklace: the perfect wear-everyday-necklace
4 - mint boden mocs: too bad they're sold out
5 - terrarium: i have decided to start incorporating more green, living things in my house and i really want to start with a terrarium
6 - anthropologie long jane loungers: for this future stay-at-home mom
7 - rebecca wilson perfume bottles: these are so ridiculous...and i don't even have the energy to do the conversion rate on £375
8 - reminder bow ring: perfect everyday ring
9 - alex monroe peacock ring: an unattainable
10 - josh ritter vinyl: the mp3's just aren't enough...and while we're at it, a new record needle would be great
11 - a painting by courtney j. garrett: courtney is a friend of mine from college who is an amazingly talented artist. i have been dying to get my hands on one of her new pieces.

yay fall!!!

2011-11-04T17:31:00.001-05:00

i know it has technically been fall for a while, but here down south, it is finally starting to feel like fall. it has been beautiful lately and the weather is perfect. this weekend we have plans to hang out because the hubs has been traveling a lot lately. we also are very excited that we are currently headed off to secret church.

hope everyone has a great weekend! i heard there is some football game going on this weekend...maybe we'll watch it. eh.

cutest little circus...

2011-11-04T17:16:00.001-05:00

so, last weekend we went to memphis to visit liz and jd and the babies. we got there around 10:00 friday night and liz was making the kids' costumes so we stayed up til 1:30 finishing them. it was so fun and just such a good time to talk to my sister. i love her so much.

anyway, i thought i would share how adorable they were in their costumes. we didn't do any halloween things while we were there, but liz made them try them on so we could see the fruits of our labor (they went out monday night). i think this may have been the greatest thing i've ever seen. amos loved it. evie did not.

the rest of the weekend was amazing and we got to visit their church, which was awesome. i may or may not have cried putting amos down for his nap on sunday knowing we would be gone before he woke up. he had his head on my shoulder and i hugged him and said "i just love you sooooooo much," and he picked up his head, grabbed my face and kissed me. he is the sweetest boy.

also this:

all hallows eve...

2011-10-31T09:00:00.000-05:00

tracy: "black and orange decorations? is this halloween or princeton parents' weekend? i don't know whether to be scared or proud of my cousin?"

liz: "it's halloween."

tracey: "proud of my cousin, it is."

- 30 rock

happy halloween, everybody. be safe.

photo credit

how much do i love this kid...

2011-10-28T09:00:00.007-05:00

we are headed to memphis this weekend and i absolutely can't wait to kiss his and evie's little faces. i am also extremely happy that this hat from last year still fits him.

ampersand...

2011-10-26T12:00:00.000-05:00

did you know...

reciters came to the end of the alphabet pronouncing "and, per se and" (that is: "and by itself [means] and"). the inefficient phrasing resulted in the fluid combination of the four words. the corrupted phrase became "ampersand."

here are some more fun ampersand facts...david would love this.

ampersand print

yay james!!!

2011-10-25T19:14:00.000-05:00

our friend (and david's old roommate) james farmer was on the today show this morning giving some advice on fall tablescapes as well as promoting his new book, a time to plant. we are so proud of you, james!!!!

2011-10-24T09:00:00.002-05:00

kisses for katie update...

2011-10-20T09:00:00.006-05:00

here is the video from katie davis speaking on sunday at brook hills. the whole message is great - i mean REALLY - but katie's interview starts at 16:30

i love the way she talks about her children and how they love Jesus so much and want to help all the people that come into their house. i pray that i can raise my children in such a devoted way!