Birthday Recap

Baby girl sure did enjoy her first birthday party. We had both sets of grandparents, Papaw (her great grandfather), Uncle John & Aunt Pepper, Marla & Ethan, and Jodie & Avery over to celebrate with us. It was a laid back afternoon which I was thankful for because we were all exhausted from the Youth Conference that had just finished the night before.

Ella was the epitome of a cute birthday girl all day. We loved seeing her in this precious dress given to us by Brooke and Craig Caudill. In fact, I themed the entire party around it! Publix decorated the cakes to match the dress, and we had hot pink, green and white accessories.

Thanks to everyone who came, who sent love or gifts, and who just love our baby girl every day! We look forward to the next year of her life.

Simply Sassy Designs

Simply Sassy Designs is officially on the web and is THE place for all of your custom gift needs.

And just WHO needs a custom gift?

Maybe your next door neighbor's daughter who is getting married and has invited you to 2 showers already. Every new bride needs original and adorable things to adorn her new nest.

Perhaps it is the guy who works in the cubicle next to you. He and his wife are expecting a baby next month, and the office is throwing a small shower to celebrate.

Or it could be your favorite neice who just bought her first condo and desperately needs something "just right" as a housewarming gift.

God-willing, your parents are celebrating their 25th wedding anniversary. This year's not the year for a simple card, and you want something meaningful. Why not get their pictures together and partner with Simply Sassy Designs to create a lifelong memory lane in a custom-designed scrapbook?

And, as always, Christmas is only a few measley months away, and what better time to get some of that hectic shopping out of the way than BEFORE Black Friday?

Whether it's a new mom who loves to see her baby's initials on ABSOLUTELY EVERYTHING, the bride and groom who are decorating their home together, or an old friend who just needs a little something to remind her that you're thinking of her, Simply Sassy Designs is the answer to all of your gifting needs. You'll be sure to give the gift that gets all the "oooh's and aaah's"

Custom Designed:

Scrapbooks

Picture Frames

Plaques, Wall Hangings, Painted Window Panes

Baby Onesies, Bibs & Burpcloths (Monogrammable, too!)

Invitations, Announcements, & Stationary

I know what you're thinking, "Nicole, I've read enough, and I want to see it!"

Great. Check out our website:

simplysassydesigns.wordpress.com

Anniversary, Preparing for One and Other Happenings

Yesterday we celebrated our 3rd anniversary. On Monday, as I was going into B's office at the church for a meeting, I was telling the sweet lady who takes care of the front desk that we were about to be married 3 years. She said, "Oh, isn't that great?! On Thursday me and my husband will celebrate 38 years!" Wow. I look forward to celebrating our 38th anniversary together.

Life has gone by quickly since we've said "I do." 3 moves, a Masters degree, 2 new ministry positions for Brandon, and a baby...we're really on quite an adventure. And there's no one I'd rather be on this adventure with than my precious, and extremely wonderful Brandon. God truly knew best when He put the two of us together.

Also...Y'all, can you believe Ella is about to turn 1 already? Where has the time gone? I always felt like the saying, "they grow up so fast" was a cliche but now I know better! We have so thoroughly enjoyed being her parents...she is just a absolute joy to be around. I am planning a small party for family and close friends and designed this invitation:

The colors of the invitation are from a beautiful dress that Brooke and Craig Caudill gave us a couple of weeks ago that I will have Ella wear for the celebration and some 12 month pictures. It's so cute that I can't wait to put it on her, but I also want to debut it on a special occasion! Oh, the joys of having a daughter! I am also going to take the invitation to Publix where they will decorate a beautiful cake for Ella's party AS WELL AS throw in a FREE cake for her to smash.

Other happenings around the Berry household include a new ministry that I have started in our neighborhood called Boot Camp Fitness. I figured that I need to work out at least a couple days a week. We live in a big neighborhood and there are a lot of people who are home during the day. I see them when I take Ella running in the jogging stroller, but I have had a hard time getting to know them. So I decided to hit two birds with one stone. I passed out flyers, hung signs, got in with the HOA president who gave me a hearty endorsement via email and on the neighborhood newsletter and hoped that at least one person would come and take advantage of what I thought was a good opportunity to gain health and build community.

The first day we had 2 adults and one kid (who came with Mom), the next we had 9 adults! woohoo! Today we worked out our legs with 7 ladies. I'm excited about this opportunity to love on my neighbors and pray that it will be a blessing to them as well.

Thoughts on Last Week...

First of all, I just wanted to say how encouraged I am when I hear from long-lost friends and family and they know what's going on in our lives because they say they read our blog on a somewhat regular basis. That's so awesome, and I'm thankful that you would take the time to do that. If that is you, feel free to comment (you don't have to be a member of blogger to do so) on any of the posts periodically or email me here to let us know what's going on in your lives. It's sometimes funny to get in a conversation with people who know about what's happening in our lives and we know nothing about what is happening in theirs!



Anyway, that being said, I'd like to share with y'all about something that our family has been going through this last week. Some of you had seen a short-lived previous post of Ella in her "I'm gonna be a big sister!" shirt, and may be wondering why it isn't there anymore. We found out on Sunday, June 22 that we were expecting another baby...and couldn't be happier. After a few pregnancy tests, we felt like it was official.



Romans 12:15 tells us to "rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn." We have always believed in sharing both good and bad news with our friends and family because 1) we have been so blessed to be surrounded by people who love us and support us through prayer and encouragement and 2) we just want to be real...and this is a way to show ourselves to be just that...real people with real triumphs and real let-downs. We shared our rejoicing over new life and expectation for what was to come. Now we share our hopeful frustration...



On Friday, June 27 we woke up and I found out that I was bleeding pretty heavily. We called the doctor and got in to see them as soon as possible. They did ultrasounds and blood tests and later confirmed what we already suspected, that a miscarriage was happening.



We have had a mixture of emotions:



On one hand, we understand that the statistics say pregnancies spontaneously end almost half the time. We know that so many miracles have to happen to have a normal, healthy pregnancy and deliver a normal, healthy baby. On the other, we serve a God of miracles, who we believe made our bodies to reproduce normal, healthy babies. We see His hand in everything. We know that He is the author and sustainer of abundant life. We have seen how prayer changes things and how He has given us authority through Christ over things in our world. We are in the midst of learning how to have heaven on earth. Our faith has been growing to believe God for crazy things, and we've seen them happen on many occasions.



So when this happened, we were confused. We had prayed, we had believed for this baby and for a healthy pregnancy. But it wasn't what happened. In the midst of this we are confused, but we are realizing that it's not always for us to understand, but to trust. God didn't bring this about, but He knew about it and has been close to us throughout bringing comfort. Of course, we're disappointed, but we also have a residing peace inside of us. We rejoice in trials...that God would allow us to go through them so that we may be made mature and complete...not lacking anything. Like Job, we have been found worthy of a test, and pray that we make it through it bringing glory to God.

We're even more thankful for the perfect angel that graces the posts of our blog and the days of our life. In the midst of this, we are reminded what a miracle she is...a precious gift from our Heavenly Father. Let us fall more in love with You through this, Father. Let our lives be for your glory and your fame, Lord.

Berry Beach Week

We took our first official Berry family vacation with John and Pepper to Myrtle Beach, SC last week. Ella was a champ the entire trip, despite being diagnosed with an ear infection and a few other, blog-inappropriate, ailments. We all had a wonderfully relaxing and sun-filled time together hanging out on the beach, in the pool, at the all-you-can-eat buffet, and in our extra special rated condo which allowed us to visit the all-you-can-eat buffet more than once!

We started with a mini-pedicure for Miss Ella Bella. She surprisingly sat through it without much squirming. We all know it's important to have those tootsies looking nice when you're enjoying sandal weather...

Next, we put on the bikini, sunscreen and wide-brimmed hat and took to the sand and sea! Ella loved the sand, and especially liked putting it in her mouth! Here is one of her first experiences with the grainy stuff. Later, I was able to tell her all about how God's thoughts towards her outnumber the grains of sand on the seashore. We counted all the grains that were on her body...lost count at about 4...but there were probably a couple million on her alone. I think she grasped the object lesson! :)

Though we never made it out to the beach nicely dressed and picture perfect, we did end up with a cute shore-shot.

As you can see, it didn't take long for Ella to figure out what to do with all that water...splish, splash! Brandon was great with her in the water. He took her out to experience the waves, and though I was a little trepedacious about the situation (I'm not much of an ocean person anyway), it was fun to see the two of them enjoy one of his all-time favorite things together.

I can't forget about the food aspect of the trip...possibly my favorite. We love seafood, and don't even get me started about our passion about crab legs. We hit up 2 all-you-can-eat buffets (Crabby Mike's-3 out of 5 stars, and Benjamin's Original Calabash Seafood-5 out of 5 stars) and an old favorite from my previous trips to MB, Tripp's Steakhouse at Broadway on the Beach (4 out of 5 stars due to small glasses that never quenched our thirst, the 100 degree environment, and the fire alarm that went off not 30 seconds after I cut into my blue cheese encrusted filet mignon). Benjamins, by far, was the best. From the moment we walked through the parking lot, we were greeted with friendly staff and great customer service. We also had some of the best seafood...fresh fish on the grill, steaks, veggies, too much yummy fried items, coconut fried shrimp (another favorite) and, of course, all the crab legs we cared to eat. We'll just say that they don't make their money off of people like us. Brandon put down at least 11 plates that night. We counted.

Here are more fun pics of our trip:

It's official...

Sorry ladies. The votes are in and it's official. I have THE most wonderful, thoughtful and romantic husband in the WORLD.

This week has been amazing. I had my spa day on Thursday (more on that to come), and when I got home from a day at the spa, my man didn't want me to stress out over baby and dinner and cleaning and everything that comes with normal every night activities.

He stopped by the grocery store on the way home from work, walked in the door, kissed me and Ella, and then headed to the kitchen to make dinner. After a wonderful cuisine experience, he took up the dishes, cleaned the kitchen, fed, bathed and put Ella to bed and got everything ready for Friday. I headed upstairs to my new "Me" room (more on that to come, too!) and got to indulge in something I rarely have time to really concentrate on...scrapbooking, getting new ideas for layouts, watching tutorials on digital scrapbooking, and a little dreaming.

Friday: Mom and Dad came up to take care of Ella. Brandon whisked me away to the spa again for hair, makeup and new clothes. He proceeded to set things up for us for later that night at the Westin Poinsett in downtown G'vegas.

After 3 hours of cutting, coloring, primping and getting "fluffed" as the spa people called it (my hairdresser, David, called himself the official "fluffer"), they took me to the West End Field for my big Makeover reveal at the Greenville Drive game. Brandon was there, looking extremely hot in his pinstripe suit and freshly shaven face (Hallelujah!). He took pictures and hooted and hollered louder than everyone. After the big reveal, we took a trolley to the car and headed to Sassafrass...my favorite restuarant, where we had a wonderful meal. Later, we enjoyed a childless night at the hotel.

Saturday: We woke up early and had a nice breakfast downstairs. Then we walked around downtown and enjoyed the outdoor market set up on Main Street. After an hour or so of strolling through the West End, we packed up and headed home for some rest and time with my parents.

Later that afternoon, I awoke from a nap with him telling me I needed to get ready again...he had a surprise for me. We left Ella with Mom and Dad again (he had already arranged for them to spend 2 nights here babysitting) and we drove to another wonderful restaurant: City Range. On the way, he told me that we were going out to dinner, and that this had to do with my ordination that took place a couple of weeks ago, since we hadn't had time to celebrate it yet.

We got there and one by one women who have had an impact on my life (mentors, sisters, in Christ) showed up and sat down with us at the restaurant's special chef's table. Brandon had invited these women to come and speak into my life and celebrate this new realm of ministry I was stepping into.

Then he presented me with a new Bible that he had had my name put on (I've never had my name on a Bible before) and had passed around to many women whom I look up to and asked them to share a few words on the inside cover pages. These women gave me such encouragement and inspiration that I don't think I'll ever forget how special I am to God and to them.

We had the most wonderful meal, and Brandon made sure to let each woman know that he would be personally offended if they didn't get exactly what they wanted from appetizers to dessert. We laughed and cried and spoke into each other's lives with passion and hope and excitement.

There were a couple of women who were unable to make the dinner, but Brandon even went so far as to reschedule time with some of them. For instance, today after church, instead of eating in the commons area like I had planned, Brandon told me to follow him. He led me to meet up with Apostle Hope so we could have lunch together! She is such an amazing woman of God and has always been a mentor from a distance to me as I've watched her follow God wholeheartedly, support her husband, take care of her children, shepherd the flock of Redemption, and preach the paint off the walls!!! It was awesome! This may sound a little dorky, but I've even had questions written in my journal of topics I'd like to ask her or discuss if I happened upon the opportunity, so I was well prepared to make the most of this one! We had a wonderful time together and my love and respect continues to grow towards her with each interaction.

So, my precious husband takes the cake for being such a stud muffin. He has racked up some serious points lately and I just wanted to pubicly declare that I am so thankful and honored to be his wife and the mother of his child. He is absolutely perfect for me and wonderful to me. Thank you so much, babe.

Dedicated

I've always wondered about baby baptism, christening, and baby dedications at churches. I figure that if Mom and Dad are truly followers of Christ then of course they are going to commit to raising their child up in a home where He is glorified and teach the child how to walk with Him. Brandon and I dedicated Ella to the Lord when we found out we were pregnant. We had many instances where we had to reaffirm that commitment (mostly to remind ourselves) during the pregnancy when we were given possible bad news. Ever since she was born we have been careful to keep in mind that she is God's and on loan to us. We have stewardship over her life for a little while and want to make the most of it.

So I have kind of come to decide that baby dedications are more an excuse to get the family together and remind everyone that it is all of our responsibility to live godly lifestyles in front of these precious ones so that they may catch it in their heads and hearts. That being said, we had Ella dedicated at Redemption this past weekend and then had everyone over to the house for a celebration afterwards. The ceremony was nice as Pastor Tim and Pastor Heindrich both prayed over Ella and us.

Bye-Bye Rat-Tail. Ella's First Hair Cut!

We knew that we couldn't have mullet-baby forever. People were starting to stare. Thankfully, we heard of Jellybeans, a hair salon exclusively for kids that does baby's 1st haircut for a penny (as long as it's never been cut before, not even at home). They were pros at keeping Ella occupied enough to get a great cut. Check it out.

Revival and Healing-Part 2

Brandon and I decided to see for ourselves what this was all about. So we spent the day in prayer and fellowship with God asking Him to prepare our hearts for whatever He wanted to do, and then went to Charlotte's Morningstar Church to get a better idea of what was really going on.

Briefly, I would like to say that YES, there's no denying that God has been and is currently working in and through His people to bring revival. However, we both felt as if there was a tinge of man-made glory and a sense of trying to recreate what God had done in the days before. This left us both feeling a little disappointed and disillusioned. Without bashing or discrediting these people, because I feel like this movement was birthed out of a hunger for God, I will say that I was glad we went and experienced it for ourselves before wholeheartedly endorsing it. If you're interested, skeptical, hopeful, etc...go with an open heart and mind and ask God to start a revival in you.

Revival is not about about going after what God can do for us. It's not about seeing healings or miracles, though those are cool too. It's about seeing the fruit of the Spirit exhibited in and through the lives of the people who have been touched by the revival.

Love. Joy. Peace. Patience. Kindness. Goodness. Faithfulness. Gentleness.

Self-Control.

The Big Win

On Friday, Brandon and I went with about 40 other people from the youth group to the Greenville Drive baseball game. I was excited because a) I'd never been to a game, and had been wanting to experience an evening at the beautiful ball park in the West End of downtown and b) I was looking forward to more fun time getting to know the kids...every minute counts with them! They were wonderful, and I have been very impressed with how well behaved they are for the most part. Of course, they are teenagers, so there has to be a dumb move every once in a while, but that's all part of the fun, right?

So, Brandon and I were strolling through the stadium, eating all the food that is not on my eating plan and stopping every so often to chat with groups of our kids wandering to and fro. We came across a table that was set up for an upscale spa called The Spa at West End. Now, before I ever met Brandon, and especially right after I graduated college and was making good money and had very little bills to pay I would treat myself pretty often to excursions to spas such as this one. I loved having a mani or pedi, reading magazines while I had my hair highlighted every 6 weeks, and could really enjoy an hour long massage. That, of course, dwindled as I got into ministry, my salary plummeted (*which was really okay with me cause I was doing something I loved to get out of bed to do!), and then of course, when I married B. After we moved to LA and a hair cut and color was almost $200, I went an entire year without a haircut, or so much as my nails being painted by anyone but me.

Back to the stadium: so at the table sat two cool gals who told us we should sign up to get in on a drawing for a mother's day prize package. Laughingly, we both filled out an entry form with my info, and told them we better not be getting a ton of spam emails this week. They said that it was for a all-day spa treatments, and that they'd be drawing a semi-finalist soon. I thanked them in advance for picking my name, and made a big deal out of wadding it up and putting it in the basket...We'd pass them again and again, and I'd be really dramatic with the wink, wink!

Well, a funny thing happened. We were sitting with the group in the stands trying to get everyone in the stadium to do the wave, when all of the sudden I heard someone on the loudspeaker call my name. I guess I got picked! That was confirmed at the table and I was told that I had to come back the next day (they'd give me free tix) for the final drawing.

So, Saturday after a day of family reunion-ing at the river property, I dragged Brandon and Ella down the mountain to get to the baseball game. My second time there and all within 24 hours! I met up with the girls at the table and the other 4 finalists. I had to write my name down on another piece of paper. I put "Nicole Berry is the winner!". We went down on the field, and some Drive representative with a cool microphone voice drew the name out...

Nicole Berry is the winner!!!!
I seriously won! And this wasn't just some hokey prize. No sir...it's the most bomb-diggity Mother's Day hook-up ever!

My prize is worth over $800 and includes:

Custom Blend Aromatherapy Breathing Ritual
Napa Valley Grape Seed Tea Bath
Signature Scrub with Vichy Shower
Warm Stone Massage
Replenishing Facial
West End Spa Pedicure
Express Mini Manicure
Complete Hairstyle revamp including cut, color, style and products
Complete Makeup revamp including makeup lesson and special occasion makeover
Luxurious robe to take home
Spa Cuisine Lunch

They said reserve the entire day to be pampered. I'm also going to be on the news, in a press release and on their website with before and after pics and a write-up! How fun is this?

I practically fell out right there on the field. I don't think I've been that excited in a loooong time. Hopefully they can give me a picture or two of my reaction cause one of the girls took a couple of shots.

Brandon got really excited, too. For Mother's Day besides the ultra cool t-shirt he got me that I've been wanting, he also wrote in my card that on the day I go to the spa, he's shipping Ella off for the night and next day, taking me out for a romantic dinner downtown and then we're staying here!

So my Mother's Day has been a homerun and I'm so excited to share with you more details of my fun day at the spa!