Hey sweet friends! It is hard for me to believe that it is already the end of March – it truly felt like this month flew by! It has been a super sweet month – in so many ways – and I can’t wait to catch y’all up on it all!
As the title of this little blog posts reads… my cup truly runneth over… and I have just been absolutely overwhelmed by the Lord’s goodness, grace, and abundance over these past couple of weeks. Through His provision of so many godly friendships (something I had been longing and praying for since coming home from Uganda and moving to Spartanburg), baby preparation (and the generosity of so many countless friends and family members... that has truly brought me to tears (of joy) on several occasions - just ask Wes and my mom haha), and the list could go on and on...
I have been so overwhelmingly humbled by seeing this aspect of God's character in a whole new way during this season - in ways I cannot truly comprehend or explain.
Psalm 36: 7-9 - "How priceless is your unfailing love, O God! People take refuge in the shadow of your wings. They feast on the abundance of your house; you give them drink from your river of delights. For with you is the fountain of life; in your light we see light."
I entered my third trimester at the beginning of March, and at both of this month’s appointments, we have been told that little buddy is growing strong and healthy in there and measuring right on track – praise the Lord! It has been so special getting to feel him kicking and moving around all throughout the day now (and especiallyyy at nighttime)! We are so unbelievable grateful for this little bundle of joy that the Lord has entrusted to us and are constantly praying over his life and all that God has in store ahead of him. My prayer is that he will be filled with the love of Christ and courage to be a bright light in this world!
Jeremiah 1:5 – “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart.”
Romans 15:13 – “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.”
And speaking again of my cup overflowing… one of my dearest local friends (and fellow boy-mama-to-be…due only 2 weeks after me!), Emily McClean, so generously gave us these precious anniversary/maternity photos (included throughout this post) as our baby shower gift the other week – and I know that we will cherish these photos of this special season forever! And such a perfect way to celebrate our second anniversary coming in just a couple of days, too!
It truly seems like just yesterday we were keeping our pregnancy a secret… and we absolutely cannot wait to meet sweet Baby Judson so very soon! And to top it all off, my big sister, Carey, just had her precious baby girl, Hannah, the other week – and we are SO over the moon with her already! I am so excited for Hannah and Judson to grow up together as the sweetest little cousin best friends!
My cup runneth over…
Speaking of babies… back in the very end of February, I got to help throw a baby sprinkle for my dear friend, Emily (yes, I know, I am friends with a lot of Emily’s, haha!) to celebrate her sweet baby boy on the way!
It has been so special getting to share this season of pregnancy with SO many friends (as you can probably tell in the photos) and we can’t wait for all of the fun memories to come with ALL the sweet babies arriving this spring and summer!
And the following two weeks, sweet Baby Judson was showered with so much love at the sweetest safari-themed drive-by shower hosted by Wes’ mom and aunts as well as at a precious baby boy shower back in Charlotte, NC hosted by my college roomies/besties – Abby and Kenz!
It has been so moving to see just how loved and covered in prayer our baby boy is already… and I truly don’t have words for how humbling it has been.
As I said at the beginning of this post… my cup runneth over…
At the end of Abby & Kenz’ baby shower, my friends decided to do a time of prayer to honor and glorify the Lord in this season and in Judson’s little life ahead of him – and this was so moving to me.
Such a powerful testament and beautiful picture of community – and I can’t get over how very blessed I am by each of these dear longtime friends and their love both over the years and for sweet baby Judson on the way!
My cup runneth over…
On another note, as y'all may have seen over on my Instagram, my sweet hubby, Wes, and I are currently down in Charleston, South Carolina for our anniversary trip slash babymoon! This has been such a sweet getaway for us already – and we are so grateful to soak up this last trip away “just us two” before Judson gets here in May!
Our anniversary is this coming Tuesday (March 30th), so it has been so special getting to spend time celebrating this weekend down in this gorgeous Charleston weather (it has been 75 to 85 degrees our entire time here!!) with yummy dining and time both out by the pool and around the city.
Wes booked us a room at the cutest little hotel out on the Charleston Harbor and we have loved every minute of our time here - it has truly been a dream! He sure does know how to spoil this pregnant mama!!
Last year, for our first anniversary, we had been planning on going on a big trip back to the Dominican (where we went on our honeymoon), but obviously the pandemic hit right around this time. It's so crazy to think that now, a whole year later, we are finally getting to do a little anniversary trip slash baby moon because we have a little one on the way! Life happens fast, friends, but it's such a fun ride!
It is so wild for me to reflect on the fact that we have almost been married for 2 whole years now! And even more wild for me to think that that I am already #31weekspregnant and that we will have our sweet baby boy joining us in just another two months or less!
And also, the 2 year anniversary of starting this sweet business, Emily Mabry Creative, is coming up too! For those of you who didn’t know this… EMC was started the week after coming home from my honeymoon and being pushed by my sweet husband to follow this dream of “helping others see beauty and joy” through all things creative. And it’s so crazy and humbling to see how it has grown and flourished since then!
I’m sure I’ll reflect even more about that in my April blog post…but all in all, so much has changed and happened over these past 2 years (a pandemic and a baby boy on the way...just to name a few!), but the faithful God behind and before it ALL has not. He has been steady and patient in giving me the courage to put myself out there and pursue this calling of a business He so clearly put on my heart - to help others see beauty in joy in creation in a way that points us all back to Him! Going along with the verse behind the business -
Philippians 4:8 – “Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable--if anything is excellent or praiseworthy--think about such things.”
And just the other day, when I was shipping some EMC orders at the post office, the lady who always helps me get them shipped out asked me about my business - which gave me the chance to tell her a little bit more about my story. Well there was no one else in line, so she just kept asking questions and we just kept on talking!
Anyhoo, it was just so humbling to get to reflect on the Lord’s goodness and faithfulness in His provision through EMC and how, when I first started it the week after Wes and I’s honeymoon, I had NO idea it would turn into what it has now. I mean...NO idea. I have vivid memories of working so many part time jobs (at coffee shops, various local gyms, etc.) because when I got home from the mission field (serving in Uganda), the Lord told me not to teach school anymore...and I had no idea why! It made no sense to me. I remember so many days of cleaning gym equipment and constantly crying out and asking God, “What are you doing?! What do you have for me to do in this life?” And He never gave me answers...but just told me to Trust Him. So I did. And it’s so so humbling to look back at those steps of obedience (in the mundane... and I mean MUNDANE), that have led to me now (almost) finishing my Master’s degree in Counseling through Liberty University and getting to have this wonderful lettering art business that has provided for our family for (almost) 2 years now and will allow me to continue providing while I transition to becoming a mommy so soon!
About two years ago now, when the Lord led me to start this fun little lettering art business, I had NO idea that we would be entering a pandemic a year later OR that I would be pregnant with a baby boy the year after that. But HE DID. And that is what gives me chills. The Lord always provides and He always shows up for His children.
The kind woman at the post office just couldn’t believe my story and ended with, “Wow...what a testimony! And I’m so glad you get to share this testimony now with so many!” Anyhoo, I share this story because I want to give credit where credit is due. And give ALL the glory to the Lord - because He is a mighty God and can do mighty mighty things when we are willing to take a risk and follow Him into the unknown - even when it may not “make sense” to anyone but us and Him. And His plans are always better than our own!
My cup runneth over…
I am truly so thankful for all the Lord has done in and through these past (almost) two years of both marriage to my best friend and following the call to pursue this small business!! And so thankful for ALL of you (almost ten thousand followers now over on my EMC Instagram page...which is INSANE) who have encouraged, supported, and cheered me on in this dream along the way - especially now as we welcome a baby boy into the world so soon. This business has blessed our family as we have pursued graduate degrees, calls to ministry (for Wes), and more. And I am so teary-eyed grateful! My cup is truly overflowing and I don’t even have the words to express it.
Thank you ALL for believing in this small business of mine, spreading the word to your loved ones, and ordering so many unique prints, custom designs, and notecards to share with you and your loves! I love what I get to do and I love getting to do these little monthly blog posts to share a little bit more about what is going on in my life, too! I love you all so dearly! Thank you for following along!
Psalm 23:5 - "You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows."
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