Today marks 11 whole months with our angel baby boy,
and man, life has truly never been sweeter or more fun!!
Like I always say, these truly are the days!
Sweet baby Judson, you truly are the joy of our lives!
You are so strong these days –
crawling on your hands and knees everywhere, pulling up on everything, and love to practice standing on your own, too!
You love to laugh (especially at your puppy dog bestie, Red!) and you have the sweetest little voice these days that your daddy and I are absolutely in love with!
You love to eat food – of all kinds haha – and are the easiest and most flexible baby!
You have such a sweet, precious, loving, silly, and playful spirit and are still mommy’s little snuggly cuddle bug, too (the Lord knew I needed a cuddly baby hehe)!!
In addition to your two teeth on the bottom, you now have four teeth on the top that are coming in and you loveeee to scrunch your nose when you smile, clap, and giggle these days (to show them off, ofcourse!), and it is the cutest thing ever!
You are so full of life and have such a LIGHT about you already!
It is crazy to think that you will be turning ONE in just one month… but man, it has been one full year and the absolute time of our lives –
I can fully attest to what people always say –
it truly does just keep getting better and better!
Watching your adorable personality come out more and more each day is such a gift and it is honestly such a joy watching you grow into exactly who God has created you to be!
This month was filled with so many special memories - you got to attend your very first wedding (#babysfirstwedding), got to experience all of the gorgeous azaleas blooming all over our yard, dressed for your first Master’s week, got to meet the Easter bunny for the first time, experienced your very first Easter (#babysfirsteaster), got to go to your first Spartanburg CRIT (a huge bike race event in our little downtown), and so much more!!
You are definitely our little adventurer and such a party animal – so easy to take with us any and everywhere!
It has been so fun just having you “along for the ride” with all of the fun spring events already!
You are loving all of these beautiful “feels like summer” days we have been having recently and we already can’t wait to make so many special summer memories with you ahead (including your first birthday hehe – already planning your party and can’t wait to spend your actual birthday down at the beach)!
Becoming a mommy is – hands down – the best thing that ever happened to me, and watching Wes be a daddy has made me fall even more in love with him every single day!
Thank you for showing us a whole new kind of love, sweet Baby J, and being the sweetest baby we could’ve ever dreamed of!
And speaking of love… this past month was such a special month for Wes and I, too, because we got to celebrate our “engagement-versary” (on March 29th), our 3-year wedding anniversary the day after (March 30th), and Wes’ birthday (on April 1st)!
So sweet to reflect on our “engagement-versary” that, four years ago, I said my very “best yes” to the man of my dreams (after only knowing him for 7 months) on the front steps of the same little white church where we first met at a little dance in the courtyard and got married exactly a year later!
Hands-down, the best decision I have ever made, and Wes is the answer to every single one of my prayers – and living proof that God is always listening because He gave me the husband (and daddy now to our sweet boy) that I always dreamed of (and more)!!
He pursued me halfway across the world while I was overseas in Uganda during our engagement season and has been the number one cheerleader of this sweet business, Emily Mabry Creative, since the week after our honeymoon when he encouraged me to go for it!!
And the next day, getting to celebrate three whole years of marriage to the man of my dreams and love of my life! I still feel like the absolute luckiest girl in the whole wide world and am so grateful for this beautiful life we are building together with our sweet baby Judson (our best anniversary gift yet!) now, too!
Like I mentioned in my last blog post, we celebrated our anniversary (the week before) down at the beach (my happy place!) and witnessed the most glorious sunset over the marsh… that I still have not gotten over!! Thank you, Lord, for your love, for three years of marriage to the love of my life, for our precious baby boy, and for letting us see glimpses of your glory all around us!
I love getting to chase after Jesus with you – and this year we have become parents, you have transitioned into full time college ministry at the church, and we have seen the provision and faithfulness of the lord like never before!
I am constantly amazed by the way you selflessly lead, love, and serve our family day in and day out in a way that always points and leads us back to Him, and for that I am eternally grateful! You are the very best thing that ever happened to me, John Wesley Mabry! As I always say, I’d follow you anywhere! You are setting the best example for our little boy and are everything I how Judson grows up to be like one day!
Happy third anniversary and here’s to forever and ever, my love!!
And to top it all off, we got to celebrate Wes’ birthday just two days later! Like I said, alllll the celebrations!! Like I always say, with your birthday being just after our wedding anniversary, I love always getting to be your “best birthday present” every year! And now this year, you have another gift in sweet baby Judson, too! Happiest of birthdays, my love – we love you so much!!
On his birthday, we got to spend the most beautiful and relaxing day in downtown Greenville to celebrate both Wes’ birthday and graduation my big grad school exam (woohoo)!!
Judson was loving the warm spring weather and getting to wear his adorable little sandals!
This was such a fun week full of so much love, joy, and celebration for all that God has done and is still doing!! We know he is just getting started and we are expectant and excited to see what He has in store ahead! Walking in His promises and seeking His joy and light along the journey – so grateful!
Sweet baby Judson went to his very first wedding earlier this month and he danced and partied all night (literally - we didn’t leave the wedding until the very very end after 9:00)!!
As you can see in these adorable photos of him with his little disco “party stick,” he was lovinggg it!!
We definitely have a little party animal on our hands!! #babysfirstwedding
And the day after the wedding was such a sweet spring Sunday -
getting to show baby Judson the blooming azaleas all over our yard that afternoon,
and then getting to go visit his “RaRa & Papa Jack’s House” (Wes’ parents) out in the country and celebrate Wes’ bday!!
Thankful for family and beautiful weather this time of year!
This is forever my favorite time of year at our home,
as the gorgeous azaleas are in full bloom all over our yard -
and I get to pick new ones to fill our home with daily!!
So sweet getting to experience it all again this year through sweet baby Judson’s eyes for the very first time!
And forever thankful for the sweet sweet man who lived in this home before us and the beautiful flowers he planted all those years ago that we get to benefit from every spring season -
feels like such a gift and “hug” from Jesus every single year!
Speaking of azaleas… we got to dress baby Judson in his adorable Master’s onesie to ring in Master’s Week at our house!
You’re a dream boat, sweet baby J,
and have your mommy and daddy’s wholeeeee heart!!
Oh how we love you and your sweet melt-your-heart blue-eyed self so!!!
Got dressed in his adorable Easter outfit to celebrate his very first Palm Sunday – and he was such a handsome little bunny rabbit!!
The boys watching the Master's Golf tournament and Judson showing off his "pulling up" skills!
If you haven’t already, click here to see the most ADORABLE giggling video of Judson in the bathtub – laughing up a storm at his puppy bestie, Red, and just having a grand ol’ time!
This memory will go down in history as one of the sweetest moments of his entire first year!! He truly is the happiest baby and nightly bathtime with my boys will forever be my favorite memories!
Really counting my Easter blessings this year for baby Judson’s very first Easter!
It was the most “egg”-cellent and beautiful weather for a little Easter egg dying fun with my boys before heading to the Good Friday service at church!
And the next day, some- “bunny” sure did love getting to meet the Easter bunny out at Hobo Hollar Farms!
Easter morning sweetness for sweet baby Judson’s very first Easter!!
Some “bunny” was super excited to see what the Easter bunny brought before heading to church to celebrate and praise “hallelujah” (Judson’s favorite new word - click here to see the adorable video) our wonderful Savior, Jesus Christ!!
He is risen, friends!! Happy happy Easter from our little family to yours!!
We had the most wonderful Easter full of worshipping our Risen Savior and spending the afternoon in Charlotte with family! He is risen, indeed, and we are thankful for so many blessings this year for sweet baby Judson’s very first Easter and good, good gifts from above that can only come from Him!!
“He is not here; he has risen, just as he said.” // Matthew 28:6
And this past weekend, we got to take baby Judson to his very first Spartanburg CRIT (an annual bike race in our little downtown – it’s a huge event!)
and he loved getting to watch all of the bikes speeding on by!!
I will never get over the GIFT it is getting to be your mommy, my sweet baby Judson!!
We sure are loving this “feels like summer” weather these days and spending lots and lots of time outside on walks or hanging out in the backyard!
Sweet friends, I don’t know about you, but I don’t want to waste a single breath or minute during my short time here on earth -
and my prayer is to make the most of these precious moments with the people I love the most!!
We are living in the “here and now” for a reason (like I talked about in my recent #saturdayreflections post ) and,
like my sweet friend Kristen said so beautifully the other day, that’s why they call the present the PRESENT - because it is a gift!!
She shared this quote that I thought was soooo beautiful -
“Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, but today is a gift. That’s why we call it the present!”
“This is the day that the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.” // Psalm 118:24
And onto an EMC tidbit, I can’t believe that this past month marked THREE whole years since I took the biggest leap of faith and started EMC from the ground up... and y’all, it is so incredibly humbling that there are now over 12,000 of y’all (over on my Instagram account!) following along over on this special creative page where I get to share so much of my heart and passion!
Starting this lettering art business the week after our honeymoon and watching it transform (& multiply!!) right before my eyes has been humbling and amazing all at the same time, & God gets ALL the glory! Never in my wildest dreams did I see it turning into what it is now. It is such a fun creative outlet for me to share my love of creativity & lettering art, while also a place for me to share the light, love, beauty, & joy of the Lord with so so many! God gives us dreams for a reason, & it is so beautiful to watch them unfold as we trust Him and walk the path He has for us!
And especially now, as I get to daily run this special business from home with sweet baby Judson, there are not enough words to explain how much this business has blessed our little family - as we follow God’s leading for us and all that He has called us to with ministry (for Wes), parenthood, and chasing the dreams He has so clearly placed upon our hearts!
I am so thankful for my “happy little corner of the internet,” as I’ve had lots of friends and customers refer to EMC as.
But seriously, there are no words to describe how much I love getting to create happy and encouraging lettering art that sparks beauty and joy in the lives of others!
My hope and prayer, now and always, is that EMC will be a welcoming and encouraging space that points people closer to Jesus - because I am simply a creative inspired by the true Creator, God!
He is the one behind, before, and ahead of all I do and I am so grateful to get to steward this sweet business of mine for His glory alone!If you haven’t already, head on over to @emilymabrycreative over on Instagram to see all the fun things I’ve been up to! I’d love to have you following along, too!! And make sure to get your graduation season and Mother’s Day orders in while you still can, too!!
And for those of you who are new around here to the EMC Blog, you can also find me and “shop with me” over on the LIKEtoKNOW.it app. So, if you haven’t already, make sure to download the app and “follow” me there (I put instructions over on my LIKEtoKNOW.it story highlight over on my personal Instagram page @emilyjoannemabry) - where I’m sharing all my favorite lifestyle products, baby items (and cute clothes, of course!), mommy items, and finds!!
You can download the app and follow me here:
I have also added “links” in the captions below (and throughout this blog post!) where you can click and it will take you to be able to “shop” that specific photo & what you see!!
Now onto some more sweet photo memories over this past month with our sweet baby Judson… precious memories and moments that I hope and pray I will always remember
My cutie little tag-along baby bear earlier this month (when it was still chilly weather)!
Just the happiest and smiliest baby I ever did see!
Saying "night night" to "Dada" before he left to go umpire some baseball games (which he does often throughout the fall and spring seasons)!
Woke up to anniversary cards, flowers, and coffee from my love for our three-year anniversary (and adorable baby feet too, hehe)!
We went to Cribb's Kitchen for a fun little anniversary lunch (since Wes had to work that evening)!
We loved getting to celebrate "Dada" and surprise him on his birthday morning!
And we got to spend the day in downtown Greenville after I passed my big grad school exam, too! Lots and lots to celebrate!!
Teaching Judson how to "pat pat" his bestie, Red. So adorable!
The weekend of our friends' wedding, Judson got to stay in a hotel room for the very first time! Tooooo cute!
Baby Judson looked SO adorable in his bowtie outfit for his very first wedding!
Baby Judson has loved getting to see all of the blooming flowers this spring!
Trip to the Hobo Hollar farmer's market to get our first bucket of strawberries!
Judson is a huge strawberry fan!!
Watching the rain coming down! April showers bring May flowers!!
My little rainy day snuggle bug!
My favorite running buddy!
Looking so cute in his Master's onesie for Master's Week!
Went on a fun picnic to our favorite local spot!
Judson loves to be outside - just like his mama!
Judson loves his little Peter Rabbit stuffed animal!
And ofcourse I got some goodies for baby Judson's Easter basket while we were there!
The cutest text I woke up to one Saturday when Wes let me sleep in. The boys were in the kitchen having fun haha!
Another day, another jog!!
Helping mommy pack up lots of EMC orders!!
Walking with my sweet boys!
Wes and red in Wes' grandpa's old red truck - just the best!
Sweet weekend mornings with my boys!
We had so much fun dying easter eggs for baby Judson's first Easter!!
Judson loved getting to meet the Easter bunny!
Hanging with Nana on Easter day!
And "Auntie MOJO," too!
Fun Groucho's date with the boys when Wes got off work!
We sure do love our little city!
What a cutie!!
Walking with our friends Emily and baby Tucker!
Someone was pulling up and at 'em (literally!!) and so excited to wake up and see his puppy bestie, Red!
Backyard hammocking in this past weekend's gorgeous "feels like summer" weather! Nothing better!
Having oh so much fun playing in the baby pool in the 80 degree weather!!
We had so much fun celebrating my best friend, Emily's, baby Wyatt at his first birthday party!!
He was reallyy wanting my icecream and it was adorable haha!
Loving all of the luscious greenery on our walks now!
Baby pool time before dinner!
And with the beautiful weather, we are loving eating outside on the back patio!
Baby J lovess to drink out of my water bottle these days and it's the cutest thing ever!
Dinnertime shenanigans with Judson and his bestie, Red. Click here to watch the cutest video and hear Judson's adorable little voice!
Such a fun time walking with our friends Kristen and Brewer!
So thankful for this mommy friend and all that she means to me!
And finally… Judson’s eleven-month-old photos! Such a GIFT that we have been given the past 11 precious months to love on you and watch you grow!
It truly does just keep on getting better and better with you, sweet baby boy, and we are so blessed by your joyful, silly, cuddly, curious, happy (so so happy), tender, playful, fun, easygoing, and loving personality! You bring light, joy, and laughter everywhere you go, our sweet blue-eyed angel baby boy! And oh, how we love you so!!
Thank you, Jesus, for blessing us with another month filled with so much laughter, fun, and joy with our sweet baby Judson! I am forever grateful for these precious days, moments, and memories – and never taking a single one for granted! These truly are the days!