Memories of a special lady on my birthday

(Birthday flowers sent to me from my precious husband who knows Peonies are my most favorite!)

There are some people who touch your life at a young age and you carry them in a very special place in your heart for the rest of time.

For me one of those people was Polly Hilbert. I knew Polly through church at Highland in Abilene as I was growing up. She was The precious outspoken "grandmother" of the church who dealt out hugs like they were candy. I have a picture of Polly and I together outside the church after my 5th grade graduation ceremony of some kind. I was so proud to have that picture of the two of us together, both in our summer hats. After moving back to Abilene in middle school I befriended Whitney, Polly's granddaughter and was accepted into the Hilbert family. The biggest plus of this was then getting to call Polly "Mimi" as her grandchildren did.

From a the time I was in elementary school I have looked up to Polly as a Christian Mentor. She always reminded me so much of my Grandy in the way her evangelicalism was never outshone by anything. She never met a stranger and always spoke of her saviour within the first few minutes of conversation. She loved her family fiercely and was always there for a lost soul in need. I can think of the countless times she opened her home up to a person in need. Through my friendship with Whitney I have been able to spend alot of time with Polly and have locked away several memories that will make me laugh till I die. One such memory was after Whitney and I returned from Africa, a place Polly's heart had always been invested but she was never able to go to, we had a real African meal for Polly. Along with some other friends who had been there we all dressed in our  African garb and cooked shima and greens to eat. As we were sitting at the table I am telling a story to Polly and she keeps asking me to repeat myself, So I take the hint and begin speaking rather loudly so she can hear me. She quickly grabs her ear and says "Meg, dear you don't have to yell!" Polly's quick wit and accurate analysis of the situation couldn't have been matched and the entire table fell into a roar of laughter. My last visit with Polly was in August when she told me I was having a boy... nailed it even before I knew, and that I should name him Abraham Lincoln. When Whitney told her that trip that I was pregnant she smiled politely at me and remarked about how "nice" that was. A moment later when I mentioned my husband she said "Ohh Praise the Lord I was praying for you and that Babe thinking you weren't married!"

Even though Polly was beginning to suffer from some memory loss in the end her reassuring hand grasp and precious smile always took me back to being in the 5th grade again looking up at one of Jesus' true angels on Earth.

Today as I celebrate my 28th birthday I am also grieving the loss of a true servant of Christ and Mimi whose love will be carried on forever in the legacy of her children and great-grandchildren. Last night Polly met her maker and what a beautiful reunion that would have been to witness. I can only imagine the conversations that Polly will be having this day as she is welcomed with open arms into Heaven. I am praying for Whitney, Beverly, Sam and many more who will miss her presence here on Earth and asking for peace as they walk through this journey without her.

Wedding Day 7: The Dance

When the Night has come and the land is dark

and the moon is the only light we'll see

No, I won't be afraid, oh I won't be afraid

Just as long as you stand, stand by me

 

So darling, darling Stand by Me, oh stand by me

Oh, stand, stand by me, stand by me

 

If the sky that we look upon should tumble and fall

Or the mountain should crumble to the sea

I won't cry, I won't cry, no I won't shed a tear

Just as long as you stand, stand by me

 

And darling, darling, Stand by Me

darling, darling, stand by me

Whenever your in trouble



Won't you stand by me, oh stand by me

(We both really wanted the NeedtoBreathe version of this song however we could never find a decent version of it since they only sing it at their live concerts and never recorded it. We decided to use the Phillip Phillips version instead.)

 

 

 We entered the ballroom where our guests were seated at a long table and immediately went into our first and only dance. We both had wanted to have this moment to dance together as newlyweds. Even though in the moment I was too worried about every one's eyes on me, looking awkward and feeling like the song was too long... dancing with my new husband was a moment I will never forget. The lyrics of this song very much define our relationship and commitment to one another. I still cry each time I hear it.

Wedding Day 6: The Ceremony

Our ceremony was one of the sweetest I have ever witnessed.

We chose a long time family friend, Lynn Camp, to officiate for us. His countenance reminded me so much of Grandy's. The first thing he said to me as I arrived at the front was how beautiful I looked. This was one of Grandy's trademarks in the weddings he performed and in that moment I felt like Grandy was officiating us and not Lynn.

These were two of my favorite moments from the day... After all that Nana had been through I was so proud she was able to walk down the aisle and not have to be wheeled down in a wheelchair. She looked absolutely stunning. We had found Mom some shoes with a kitten heel because she wanted a heel to go with her dress. The dress was hemmed for the heel but on the day of the wedding she wore the heels for about 30 minutes and decided that was enough of that. She ended up walking down in blue and white target flats and carrying her dress up to her waist. However her gorgeous and happy  smile made the mismatched shoes unnoticeable to anyone else.

I was walked down the aisle by my brothers. I was so grateful to have them both stand up to the challenge as we were all a little emotional about it.

I cried the whole way down overtaken with emotion by the people witnessing our union and my Groom's uncontrollable tears. He told me several times he never thought he would get married because he could never dream of someone as perfect as me for him. As we reached the front of the ceremony my mom stood to give me away.

I don't remember the words during the ceremony I just remember not being able to keep my eyes off of my beloved. He was so handsome and nervous and overtaken with emotion. We held hands as we repeated vows and it all seemed surreal.

I was so anxious for our kiss I leaned in for a second and it was perfect.

After our walk back up the aisle as husband and wife we couldn't contain our Joy and emotions and sought comfort in each other's arms as only soul mates can.

Our guests snacked on the most delicious homemade salsa and guacamole while we took family pictures. They moved throughout the outdoor patio and into an indoor lounge cocktail area where a bar was set up. Ryan and Darrah had worked to put together a slide show of Drew and I through the years for entertainment. I to this day have only seen glimpses of the slide show but loved what I saw while waiting for our entrance into the ballroom.

Happy #55

Today is a day of complete celebration!

My Beautiful and Amazing Mother is turning 55 (but don't tell her I am posting her age online)

Her birthday is an incredibly symbolic day not just because she was born this day those years ago but because she was also diagnosed with Early-Onset Alzheimer's disease 3 years ago today.

3 Years!! We didn't know what would happen in the time after her diagnosis or what 3  years would look like. These years have been full of sadness, hurt, confusion and struggle but most importantly they have been of courage and fight! She has never once let this disease stop her from trying or getting the best of her. So today is a celebration of Life of Joy and of Love!

Happy Birthday to my personal Hero, my champion, and the woman who gives me hope for another day! I love you to the moon and back Mom! Looking forward to another year full of adventure!

Wedding Day 5: The Music

I worked long and hard to find the perfect songs for our preceremony and ceremony. Songs that would convey our feelings on the day and set the mood for our guests.

For the preceremony I wanted all instrumental and after consulting with different musicians and dj's decided that due to the unknown of the weather dj would be best. I choose mostly songs from the Vitamin String Quartet for our pre ceremony hour, loving the combination of instrumental with the contemporary songs I loved.

Here is our preceremony list:

(All by Vitamin String Quartet)
Chasing Cars
Beautiful Day
Yellow
The Cave
Viva La Vida
New Slang
Us
Today


The ceremony music I cared even more about... I knew I wanted to walk down the aisle to Turning Page (Instrumental). It was dramatic and romantic and absolutely perfect. For our attendants I choose the instrumental version of the Winner Is from the Little Miss Sunshine Soundtrack. The Flower Girls walked down to a version of You are my Sunshine, an omage to my Grandy who always sang that song to me as I walked into a room. The parents walked in to Everywhere Freesia from the Meet Joe Black soundtrack.

After convincing my soon to be husband that Dave Matthew's Crash was not completely appropriate for a wedding exit song we agreed on Fresh Feeling from The Eels. Fun and uplifting lovey song to walk out too!

A brag post about my husband

Can I brag for just a minute about my wonderful husband?! I am going to anyway regardless of what you say!

No one ever said that sharing your life together was going to be easy. Blending families is a mess, dealing with his things out of place can drive me nuts but there is nothing I would trade in the world for having Drew as my partner in life.

Each day with him is an absolute Joy. I never realized that  you could actually miss someone you live during the 7 hours you are away from one another at work.... I do!

I am amazed on a daily basis at his compassion and unconditional love for me and his concern for what concerns me.

After mentioning to a visitor over Christmas how I couldn't stand our kitchen cabinets, "too much brown!" I came home from work one day to find them completely repainted with matching hardware installed. That simple gesture and change has made me smile everyday I walk into my house and he is the reason!

Drew was a devoted nurse to me throughout last weekend as I was dog sick. I remember thinking that I am so grateful I can be comfortable being my self around him every moment even when puking my guts up. His worry for my well being was etched in his handsome face the entire time.

This week after trying to still recuperate from my illness that I had passed on to Drew he stayed home on Monday. I came home expecting to need to take care of him that evening after receiving several calls about how awful he felt. Instead I came home to a house that had been completely cleaned and packed away of our Christmas decor. Even on his sick days he is finding ways to do for me. How blessed am I?!

Sometimes I feel like in the drama of our lives Drew gets overlooked, pushed to the back burner to allow more acknowledgement of Mom or what not. So I like to shine the spotlight on him every once in awhile because without him my spotlights would never come on!

Christmas & New Years 2013

What a blessing the last few weeks of the year were for us!

We had a truly amazing and selfish Christmas... we were really trying to live up the very last "kid free" Christmas but with equal anticipation of the precious gifts next year will hold.

Drew and Mom On Christmas Day.

 

 Nana's precious gift to Everett. I am so in love with this elephant!

Christmas Eve was spent at Mom and Nana's in what has become a  two year tradition of late night poker with Drew and Patrick while Mom and Nana went to bed. Christmas Day was filled with love and memories made. I was especially overwhelmed with Mom's attentiveness in giving and getting presents. Patrick and I had prepared a stocking for her to open first thing that I wasn't sure she would take the time to look through but to my delight she spent time going through every item and loving the thought put into it. We rounded out Christmas Day with a wonderful dinner and family tree surrounded by our nearest and dearest. Everett was given many precious gifts at this tree, most notably the best, fluffiest, cuddliest elephant for his nursery from Nana and an "Everett the Elf" singing puppet from Grandy. Grandy had gotten the elf years ago and loved it at Christmas, I can still hear his laughing as he swayed his head playing with it. Needless to say the Elf will have a very special place in our home for years and years to come.

 

Sending our Boy back to Dallas after an amazing 2 weeks with him!

 

The Most Handsome Baby I have ever seen! He has his dad's cheeks already!

Saturday after Christmas we went and had a 3D/4D sonogram done on Everett. I was dying to see his little face and see if we could recognize any of Drew or My features on him. The instant his precious chubby cheeked face popped up on the screen we were both gonners. Sweet Boy had been very active that morning and was not impressed with us trying to interrupt his napping. He refused to move the hand from his face and gave us frown resembling Elvis' lip when trying to get him to do so. Drew unkowningly gave me the same look days later. Mom and Patrick went with us to see the sonogram which was a very special moment to be able to share with them. We are ready to meet you little one!

Can't you just see the intensity in their faces.... Charades is no joking matter!

New Years was spent with the family at Mom and Nana's playing Heads Up and Charades... I haven't laughed that hard... ever maybe. The entire family was in on the games including Nana, Charlotte, Doss and Aunt Cindy who suprised everyone with her arrival. Let me tell you those Blanton girls still have some major competitive edge on them regardless of competing against their elderly mom and aunts and pregnant girls. We rang in the new year with a nasty virus though that caught up with me the next day sending me in for my first hospital stay ever. Severe dehydration had me in labor and delivery getting fluids for a few hours before I was able to go home and eventually pass on the bug to Drew. This first week of January hasn't been in our favor as we both have been fighting off nausea. It looks like the end is in sight however as I came home from work yesterday to find that my Prince of a Husband had packed away all our Christmas Decorations.... AMAZING! 

Now the countdown is on to getting nursery done and getting ready to meet Mr. Everett!