My Birthday Party!

Hello Friends!

It has been ages!
I know my birthday was three weeks ago but I still feel like it was yesterday. I think it is because it was the last thing that I did before I became so sick and time has just stopped for me. I still get so happy looking through these photos! It was a wonderful day.

I thought it was just going to be Mom, Dad, Haley and Mike (Haley's boyfriend) at my little party but my entire family and a couple of friends came! What a surprise! I had no idea it was going to be a full house!

My Mom and sister did a beautiful job decorating.
It was a very special day.

The Drink Station
We had delicious punch. I love punch! My Mom has started making a sangria punch (minus the alcohol) and it is fantastic! She cut up fruit and had it floating in the top of the punch jar. It was very pretty.

All of the flowers that she used were from our front yard.

Party Food! 
Everything is homemade except for the cupcakes. We love party foods! My Mom went above and beyond. Truly!
 

The food quickly disappeared!

This is one of my favorite photos from the day. I was trying to be "artsy" with my camera. I like how all the dishes are empty and the cupcakes catch your eye in the background. :)

My cupcakes. They were quite delicious!

Here I am in my new birthday outfit. I love my new polka-dot Gap scarf! I had these shoes too but they hated my feet and I couldn't walk in them! Fortunately, I just wore them in the house so I returned them ASAP!

My entire family!

And I always make everyone take a silly photo too! Because they are just fun! This is one has my two friends that came as well. Darrah (next to Patrick) and Beth (next to Haley).

It was a wonderful day! I can't say that enough!!

I can't wait to make a scrapbook page with all these great photos! I am really pleased with our family photo. I think it turned out really well.

I am glad that I could finally share these with you all! 

Happy Birthday Daddy!

Dear Dad,

Today is your birthday. Today is the day where it is all about you. And I suppose that you do deserve this one day because you make every other day all about "your girls"!

You go to work everyday while it is still dark and usually you don't come home until it is dark. You work so hard to take care of us. I am so thankful that you didn't mind working hard so that Mom could stay at home to take care of us. You have made it so that we always have had everything we needed and wanted.

You knew my cheers at the football games by heart. You knew where I was in the dance line up so that you could video me perfectly. You yelled louder than anyone else when they would call my name out for the top ten in beauty pageants. 

There is no doubt that your love for me really does reach the sky.

I hope that I make you proud. I hope that when you see things that you love about me, that you realize they came from you. 

You are so loving and you always think the best of people. You will go above and beyond to help someone. You know how to make and fix anything! I don't know how you learned to to all that you can do.

You have set the bar very high, Dad. When it comes time for me to choose someone to spend my life with, he has A LOT to live up to. You have shown me how much love a man should have and show to his family.

I Love You!

source

My Birthday Party

I love excuses to have a party!

So, my birthday party was this past Saturday. It was just my parents and my aunt as well as my sister and her boyfriend (who wore a pink shirt just for me! ha!) It was so much fun. My Mom did a great job getting it together. She throws some amazing parties!

Me & with my Parents

Haley and Mike arriving with dinner.

My birthday banner that I made. I was really pleased with how it turned out. The Lorina lemonade that was delicious and my presents.

My room all decorated. It was such a pretty day!

My table setting. We had cupcakes, indivual bundt cakes and strawberries.

It was a very happy day. My Mom worked so hard to make is special for me. We laughed a lot and they gave me some lovely gifts perfect for spring.

It was a happy day.

Last Week in Pictures

Last week was a really good week. I felt better than I have in months and I was able to do a few things and see a couple of friends. I was a bad blogger last week! haha!

Monday

My lovely package wrapping goodies arrive from The Gilded Bee. You should visit her blog too. She has such pretty things!

Tuesday

Holly got a haircut and posed for pictures. She is so photogenic. I can't get over how totally cute this little puppy is. I am so in love with her.

Wednesday

 

My friend Jerica came over and visited for a little bit. She brought me some wonderful organic bath goodies! I was quite envious of her necklace! ;)

 

 

Thursday

 

Another visit with a friend! (See, I told you it was a great week!) My best friend Becca came by with her son, Jay. Isn't he a doll?! Laterwe went to dinner and had sushi.

 

 

Friday
Friday was puppy class but I was exhausted and didn't go. Mom took Holly to class for me and I stayed home and slept almost all day. Later that night I did make Martha Stewart tissue paper flowers. I found a kit at TJ-Maxx for $4!! Can't beat that!

Saturday was the day of my birthday party and it was so fun and so beautiful! I can't wait to post about it tomorrow.

I can't wait to catch up on everyone's blogs!

Birthdays and the Passage of Time

I am sure you are tired of me talking about it but my birthday is tomorrow and (big gulp) I will be 27. I am most certainly aware of the time that has passed-birthdays have a way of doing that to us. I feel silly that I get upset as each birthday approaches but it never fails, despite my excitement there is an overwhelming sadness that I have to fight back. Your birthday is concrete and unflinching, unforgiving you might say. It is a date that comes each year, the same time and same place and that day remind of what we have-or have not-accomplished in the past year. A birthday marks one year that has flown away into the sunset. I can never get this past year back, let alone the last 10 years. I can never go back and I can never capture those lost moments and lost opportunities. ; Those feelings of 'less' creep into my mind and heart as my birthday approaches. 27? Really? What is there to show for it? How can I just loose a decade of my life so fast and so cruelly?

But as I said, I do fight for the excitement and celebration of my life. (And despite the bad days, I have a wonderful life!) I am reminded each birthday that there is a new beginning and new possiblities for the upcoming year. I am reminded every day of the love and blessings that I have been given. My birthday this year will be a day to spend with the people I love the most and see that love in action.

I guess this year I might not celebrate what I did do last year but I can celebrate and hope for what I can do this year.

So, here is to the upcoming weekend's celebration with cupcakes and Lorina Lemonade! :)

photo from here

Hi Friends.

Well, you would think that I had packed my bags and moved away. I haven't been online in over a week. (Well I have been online a couple of times but I haven't been to my blog or visited any of you!) Boo for that.

I haven't packed my bags and been on some fabulous trip...that would be nice. Instead, I have been in pajamas for a million days and curled up in my bed. Headaches are just a terrible thing to have, you know?! So, I have been watching lots of movies and listening to my iPod. I even listened to a couple of really good books that I bought from iTunes. I miss reading a good book but these days, reading makes me so tired and gives me a headache. So, I have opted to listen to books instead. If you haven't  read Sarah's Key, you must. It is soooo good. Sooo good!

And Holly is as cute as ever. See for yourself. She is the best little companion.

And my sweet friend, Kat sent me my birthday present!! She is the sweetest friend. You all must go visit her blog because it is just heavenly!

She sent me a handkerchief (because she knows I love them!) with Paris scenes on it, a lovely necklace that she made herself and the sweetest smelling sachet that I stuck under my pillow. My bed smells so woderful now!

Speaking of my birthday...my family and I were orginally going to celebrate this Saturday. I have been having my birthday at home for several years now because I always seem to feel bad on birthday. I don't mind at all because everyone goes out of their way to make it a super special day. So this year, I am planning on having cupcakes and Lorina lemonade...need I say more?! :) Anyway, we were going to have my party on Saturday but we have had to re-schedule because I am going to have a nerve block done on Thrusday (to hopefully stop these headaches!) and they usually make me feel pretty bad. So, I am super happy to be having the block done but a little disappointed that my party will be delayed. Oh well, there are worse things that could happen!

photo credits:here and here

Well, since I don't have a lot anything going on. How about a fun Q & A! Maybe this way we can get to know each other a little better. I hope to hear from you all!

Have a great week, everyone!

1. What is your name & where are you from?
Hello! I'm Heather and I am from Birmingham, AL.

2. Do you have any brothers or sisters?
I have one sister, Haley. She is 23 and a nurse. I love my Hay! :)

3. Do you have a favorite book?
My favorite book is The Hiding Place Corrie ten Boom and Doctor Zhivago by Boris Pasternak. The movie is amazing but the book is too! You just have to get through the first 70 pages and it is the BEST book!

4. A favorite movie?
I love the movie Dancing with Wolves and also like The other Sister.

5. Since I have talked about birthdays in this post, do you have a favorite birthday memory?
My favorite birthday memory is from my 7th birthday. My Mom was great at coming up with "birthday themes"! She combined my sister's birthday (her birthday is in June) and we celebrated in May. We had tons and tons of kids over and we played old games like wheel barrel race, dropping the pins in a bottle, sack races...all sorts of fun games that none of us had played before. Our color theme was red and brown. We wore red shirts and red bandannas. We had bales of hay to sit on and open presents and big brown paper sacks that made the happy birthday banner. Mom even made our invitations out of little brown paper sacks. She was ahead of her time. ;)

6. Favorite blog(s)that you like to visit?
Kat's blog (Secret of a Butterfly) and Fiona's blog (fee-amore), Alli's blog (Hooray Design) and Breezy's Blog (A bowl of moss & pebbles).
I also enjoy A Field Journal, Gitz and Enjoying the Small Things.

And really, the list could go on and on!

Okay, it's your turn. You can leave the answers in the comment section or do a blog post and leave me the link...whatever you want!

Happy Birthday Dad.

"There's something like a line of gold thread running through a man's words when he talks to his daughter, and gradually over the years it gets to be long enough for you to pick up in your hands and weave into a cloth that feels like love itself." ~John Gregory Brown

Dear Daddy, I am so happy to be yours. I am so happy that God gave us to each other. Your are the perfect Dad for everything our family has been through. I love you so much. I love that you like to watch movies with me and read my US Weekly magazines and play 20 questions with me.

I remember so many wonderful things about my childhood. I remember you buidling me a spaceship out of leggos for class and making its boosters out of toilet tissue rollers. I remember you learning to love Barbie & Ken too. I remember our tea party in the kitchen. I remember loving going to White Water with you and riding all the big slides and I wasn't afraid because my Daddy was there. I remember when you randomly decided that everyone would eat dinner in my room with me when I didn't feel good.  (And lets face it, that was a big deal for you because you are so crazy abou eating at the kitchen table!) So, you went and got the card table and everyone ate pasta together in my bedroom!

Most importantly you have taught me what to look for in a husband. You have loved me so much and taught me that I am worth that love. I am worth waiting for and loving. I have seen you go to work before the sun is up and come home long after the moon as appeared in the great big sky. You selflessly give of yourself everyday and put us first everyday, all day.

You love your girls! You are the best "pageant dad" there ever was! What would I have done without you and your video gear?! You loved tutus and tap shoes. You know how to dry our hair and put curlers in it.

I love you so much. I hope you feel just a little bit of the love that I feel from you every day!

Love you so, so, so very much!  HAPPY Birthday!

Happy Birthday Kat!

Happy Birthday dearest, Kat! I am sorry this is late! I hope you had a wonderful birthday! Much love!

Please visit Kat's wonderful blog by clicking here.

Happy Birthday Kat! by *Heather Thomas featuring Monsoon accessories

Weekend Review. The Ups and the Downs. (But I like to focus on the Ups!)

Friday was my Mom's birthday. We had a really nice evening together. First we had dinner from Outback. (My Dad brought it home to eat so that I would have enough energy to go to the movies later.) By the way, Outback is a great meal to eat at home. it travels well and you save a little money because you don't buy drinks, tip, etc.

The Thomas Family

Terry, Cathy, Heather, Haley & Sophie

Then we all went to see The Blind Side. If you haven't seen the trailer for it, click here, to see it on Youtube. It is a wonderful movie; funny, heartwarming and clean! :) Very family friendly. It was just fantastic! Anyone would love it! I recommend that you go see it.  And if you are in the South, I can pretty much guarantee that your football coach (either current or former) will make an appearance. The audience stood and clapped at the end of the movie...that is how good it was! Okay, enough Blind Side plugging!

Celebrating my Mom's birthday was defintely the "up" of my weekend. We got home and settled down. My sister had to work this weekend at the hospital. So, she got into bed and then my Mom and Aunt (who lives with us) decided to decorate my aunt's Christmas tree in her bedroom. I was sitting in the chair talking to them and the next thing I know, Mom and Ginger are on either side of my talking to me and Mom is taking my blood pressure. Ugh! I had fainted sitting in the chair! How terrific is that?!

So this weekend has been pretty bad. I fainted again last night. I have been having trouble remembering a few seconds leading up to the fainting episodes, so I don't really remember "knowing" that I was about to faint but apparently I did because I was able to get down on the floor before I fainted. So that was good.

I have been puzzled over the last few weeks as to why I have been fainting so much on the weekends?? I really didn't understand. What was going on from Friday to Sunday that was different? Then it hit me last night. Everyone is home on the weekend and with five people living here, our home stays pretty "busy" during that time. I finally figured out that I am up more -by up, I mean propped up on the couch or in a chair-and my body gets overly stimulated by conversation, the television, trying to eat with my family, etc. So now I know why my fainting seems to pick up on the weekends. A small mystery solved.

I have felt really bad today. A lot of nausea and headaches. I have been in the bed today listening to my iPod. (God bless the Apple company for that invention! I don't know what I would do without it!) But, even though I have had bad couple of days, I enjoyed spending a great night with my family on Friday.

My Mom and I are leaving Saturday and heading to Reston, Virginia (outside of Washington DC) to see my specialist. My uncle (my mom's brother) is coming with us to help drive and keep us company. I love Steve! He is more like a brother to me than an uncle and he has gone with us to the doctor several times before. He can get off work a little bit easier than my Dad and it works out really well. I thank you all for your prayers on the upcoming trip. I thank you all for your love and support during this time.

"For where two or three come together in My Name, I will be there with them." Matthew 18:20

as high as the sky. as deep as the ocean.

“A mother is the truest friend we have, when trials heavy and sudden, fall upon us; when adversity takes the place of prosperity; when friends who rejoice with us in our sunshine desert us; when trouble thickens around us, still will she cling to us, and endeavor by her kind precepts and counsels to dissipate the clouds of darkness, and cause peace to return to our hearts."   ~Washington Irving

happy birthday mother. all my love. by *Heather Thomas on Polyvore.com

Today is my sweet Mother’s 54th Birthday. I didn’t even hesitate to put her age because I have never seen her care about aging. She seems to enjoy each year –and each new wrinkle-as they come! She doesn’t seem to care that she has wrinkles or she is starting to get gray hair. In fact, I think she only recently bought her first “wrinkle serum” for her eyes and she has never colored her hair! I can brag about my Mom because well, she is my Mom and she is pretty dang fantastic! However my sweet Mother will not be so sweet once she finds out that I wrote an entire post about her and included a photo of her!
My Mom (and Dad!) are God’s shining examples in my life of what true, absolute and unconditional love really is. My Mom is my hero in everyway and most certainly my earthly role model. My parents tried for 7 years to have a baby. Those years, while struggling with infertility, were so difficult for them. They were especially difficult on my Mom because all she ever wanted to be was a Mother. My Mother is so gracious and so wise, she praises God for the time that she waited to have a child. She realized early on that God’s time is the perfect time. She is quick to say that she would not be the Mother she is today if she had not waited and wanted a baby for so long.

The relationship with my Mother is indescribable. We know what each other are thinking, with just a look. We know one another’s hearts. When I first got sick, people didn’t believe that I was really sick. People actually believed that I was “pretending” so that I could get attention. Being the loving and wise Mother that she is, my Mother knew better and fought for me every inch of the way and has continued to fight for me everyday for over 10 years. She chose me over doubt. She chose me over the easy way out.

She is my Mother, my caregiver, my mentor, role model and my best friend. Mom, if you get a chance to read this today, I love you more than words could ever say. Everything that I want to be is what you showed me was beautiful. Thank you for loving me. I love you as high as the sky and as deep as the ocean.