Photography by Aly Renee Photography 

Here it is, tomorrow marks one whole year for our baby boy. In reality this is just a date on the calendar but if you've been here before, you know it is a big deal. A (sleepless) year we've kept our first born baby alive and survived parenthood thus far. At this time last year, we were relaxing as much as we could and trying to enjoy our last (quiet) moments as two, but so anxious to meet the little person that was going to change our lives forever. Little did we know that at 4 am that night/morning would we have signs of your arrival. I was scared. I didn't know what to expect. I had plenty of experience with children before so I had thought this to be somewhat easy, but there is so much more of the unknown. It is true when they say time flies, but there are some days it seems to hold still. One moment it feels like you're always going to cling to me until I blink and you're walking across the room. In this year alone I have learned so much and personally stretched in ways I never knew I could. I am certain there will be more to absorb as the years go on, but here are some thoughts I have gathered in this time.

Photography by The Moody Romantic

Social Life

As you go through life, some friends change and some remain a constant. As a teenager that was a hard concept for me to understand because we would be best friends forever, right? Well now I see how some relationships can drift with life leading the dynamics in different directions and interests can change. That is just a small part going into the "real world" and getting married. Add in children and your social life is very much different if existent at all. Leaving the house is an event that requires thoughtful effort and when you do make it out, it seems like the time clock is constantly ticking. After awhile, it just is easier to stick to your routine (especially if you've found a groove) and stay home. Finding a balance between being a social butterfly and accepting the new lifestyle of parenthood is tough. Frankly, it sucks to miss out but then that is where your mama tribe comes in. They will have a similar schedule to you and can hang out at 10am on a weekday or text at the most random hours. However, not all of my tribe is made of moms. I'm incredibly fortunate to have friends who don't have children, but are more than willing to help at a moment's notice, eat an early dinner like senior citizens so I can come before bedtime, and lift me when I feel completely exhausted. These girls fill in the gaps where the void of my mom holds strong. They make the holidays extra special and love on him with the asian culture (it's really more comedy for us) so he doesn't have to miss out. That kind of social life is worth hanging onto. 

Building Trust

The moment I became a mother, I felt like I was given new skin. It was like all of a sudden I had so many choices to make; many that would affect him at the current moment and some that would impact him forever. It was a large undertaking so learning to trust myself in making the right decisions is still something I am currently working on, but you do begin to truly find your grit as a mother and woman. Although I knew there would be a lot of offered advice on how to raise my children, nobody stressed to me how many different opinions would come my way about everything. I have to be honest and say I question myself all the time. Even with confirmation from "professionals", I would be afraid I was harming my son. That is a silly way to feel! Let's just say this new skin I have is becoming pretty thick. He is my son and I am doing the best I know how to. That should be enough. I spent a large portion of his life doubting everything because of the criticism I would receive about his size and what I choose to feed or not to feed him. He is not perfect, I will gladly admit that, but he is exactly where he needs to be and I am proud of trusting my instinct and him for developing like he has. (I have to do a mini celebration that he's never been sick! Go Liem!)  Some days it feels like I have lost the "me" I have always been, but I can boldly say most days I feel I have grown into a stronger me. 

I have also learned to trust Liem. In the first year you are given all of these milestones to meet and charts for your child to fit in which can start to get overwhelming especially when you miss one, so then you start doing "research". I will say this right now: it goes down a dark hole of worry. The best thing I have ever done for myself is to let go and let him be. So he's started standing and I'm worried he's going to fall backwards? After a few falls, he learned to slowly lower himself down every single time. He's starting to climb down things headfirst? He learned really quickly you turn yourself around and go legs first. It's amazing to watch your baby learn and discover the world surrounding him- it's so beautiful and blows my mind. The sitting will come, the walking will come, etc. even without the propping and walker gadgets. When he is ready for the next step, he will just do it and it's just incredible to witness! This is certainly not an easy thing for me to do pre-Liem as I love to hover and worry, but this year has given me the tools to just be patient and trust!

Photography by The Moody Romantic

My Marriage

For our marriage, parenting really threw us some curveballs as a unit. If you thought newlywed life was challenging, buckle in the for the ride as new parents. Some days you are not going to be on the same page mixed with exhaustion and it just wears down the flow of the team. There are moments when you feel all alone, and there are times when leaning on each other is the only answer. This is where the 50/50 partnership ends. Some days you don't have anything left and your husband has to pick up all the slack. You guys, grace is where it's at. Without it, I am not sure I would even have a marriage. You have to know where to give in different situations because the fight is not worth it anymore and I honestly believe this fortifies the foundation of our marriage. Adam, watching you become a father and taking the journey of parenthood with you has been one of the best adventures we have ever been on. Our son is one lucky boy to have you raising him. 

Photography by Charla Storey This is Liem in PARIS! 

Heart Renovation

It has never been more apparent to me that I am a sinner. Being married may highlight a few of my flaws, but being a mother puts it all on the stage. I have seen firsthand the impact of my sin on Liem and gosh, it definitely makes you want to reevaluate your heart and pray for change. Earlier in this year, I would find myself struggling with how I was still going to have all of my cake and eat it to. I began to learn quickly that it does not go that way. Sometimes you have to give some of that cake to your baby and it's the most grateful selflessness you can offer. I may not have thought so at the time, but as you can see, hearts DO change! :)

I used to find satisfaction in busy. I had this idea that a productive day of knocking things off the list was good for the soul. When I could not achieve that goal anymore because we did not have a routine, or when we were just so exhausted from the night before, I would be so irritated with myself. Now, my heart has found pure joy in pausing and enjoying those little moments, finding excitement in the smallest things, and relishing in doing nothing but spending time together. 

Photography by The Tarnos (Yall, this itty bitty bottom!) 

When I was planning this post, I didn't really have a direction for it or know exactly what I wanted to write. There was so much feeling to express I could barely sort it out. There just aren't enough words or the right ones to accurately convey these moments and what I have learned from them. This may not have been my most eloquent post, but it sure is the most raw. Being Liem's mom has been the most humbling, heart-shaping, and captivating experience I have ever felt and I cannot be more grateful for this job. Even on the days when I feel like I have completely flopped on balancing it all, one look at him and I know all is well. As I am tired and hope for good sleep again one day, I am so inspired by the entirety of motherhood. Liem, I pray you know what a treasure you are to us. Being chosen to be your parents is a privilege we will not take for granted. Happy First Birthday, our little dumpling, cub, and bubba! 

For all of the photographers that have documented his first year of life, thank you so much from the bottom of my heart. I am forever grateful to have these beautiful photos to look back on and see how much our little boy has grown! 

Photography by Charla Storey 

Allie and Colin were married this past fall at the beautiful Bass Hall in Fort Worth, Texas. Allie came to us looking for floral design and we loved how her colorful vision came to life. This wedding is surely in one of our top favorites!

Coordination: Grit + Gold ~ Photography: Matt & Julie Weddings ~ Venue: Bass Hall

This was a special wedding because as Allie booked with us for floral design, it began to unfold how small this world really was. The company she works for happened to be one of the companies I worked with a lot when I was in the corporate world. Then I found out that her planner was Lottie with Grit + Gold, whom I've been hoping to work with in the near future and her photographer was Matt & Julie Weddings which I have gotten to become good friends with! It was just meant to be for us all to bring this day together for Allie and Colin! 

In our initial consultation, Allie had decided she was going to go with very neutral tones, blushes, and accents corals. When the wedding was getting close, she decided she needed some pop of color and I'm so glad she did. It was a refreshing dose of life as we were about to enter fall! 

In her bouquet, I used garden roses, ranunculus, cafe au lait dahlias, hellebore, fancy parrot tulips, lisanthus, scabiosa and pincushion. I also incorporated a fun texture of hops and foraged jasmine from our garden. I must say, her bouquet recipe is probably my favorite ever! 

I love the way jasmine hangs. We had to start growing our own because I absolutely love using it my designs.

The splashes of color here against the clean and modern black and white is just so lovely. Our brides have good taste! 

Hello! If you haven't been able to tell, we have been on this roll of getting these blog posts out and there is just so much good stuff to share. We will finally get back to posting our real weddings, editorials, and so much more. If you did not get a chance to catch our first post of the darling fall wedding, you can read it here. While we will be sharing more of our work on these posts, I want to take some time to tell the story of Wedfully Yours Events and how we've gotten to where we are today. Grab your favorite beverage, and get cozy! 

Although my business officially began soon after my very own wedding, the desire for weddings, events, and everything design related came for me when I was a little girl. I enjoyed setting up for pretend parties, making special invites, and hosting all sorts of events. When I watched movies that had the full, elaborate weddings executed by the fabulous wedding planners, I thought that was definitely a job I wanted when I grew up. When it was time to actually select a major in college, my parents did not find being a wedding planner amusing so I went to become a nurse. After 2 years of nursing prerequisites, I did not find that profession to be something for me, which lead me to the path of kinesiology. After being in the corporate world for a few years, I found myself engaged to my best friend and finally getting to have a little taste of my dream job. On our honeymoon, I expressed to my shiny new husband how much I wanted to make this a career and wish I could do it everyday. Well, he helped me make it happen! On that trip we made a business plan and how we would transition me from leaving the typical desk job and into owning my own business. (Side note: Having a driven, God-fearing spouse lead your marriage is the BEST)

After all the boring financial planning and employment strategy was done, then came the fun part- the business name, logo, website, etc. When we were trying to come up with my business name, it almost came to me immediately. Wedfully Yours was what I signed all of my mass emails to our wedding party and vendors. I thought I was being so clever! To my friends, I'm sure you all were excited for those emails to end because you thought you would never have to see that cheesy signature again, but sorry! Now it is plastered all over your social media feeds :) I know I wanted the look of my brand to be eye-catching, playful, and of course, very girly. At one time my favorite was glitter and now I must say I prefer a refined metallic- look how "mature" I've gotten ;)

So then we began to advertise and try to get my name out there. My first clients were my loving sorority sisters who were willing to trust me with their big day and take a chance- thank you guys! My first non friend client came from Craig's List and yes, you read that right! Fortunately she turned out to be just a lovely bride and we got along wonderfully. She really trusted my vision and it was a great experience for me! From there I was able to network and fell into a group of incredible girlbosses that had been in the industry for awhile and took me under their wings. This could be a post within itself, but our wedding industry in the DFW area is just amazing. The community is so much stronger than the competition- I've made some of my closest friends through this network! 

At the beginning my team consisted of just myself and another person. Remember when I said having a loving husband is the best? Well he was the other part of my team! He did the advertising/marketing, accounting and would help craft whatever it was I dreamed up, show up to weddings and be my assistant. Let's just say he really loved me, because he is not a fan of weddings ;) Finally we reached a point where I could bring on more help so he could stop dreading his weekends. Now our team consists of a group of hard-working gals that make stunning floral work and effortless weddings! 

First came my love for event design and the execution of a full event- the high pressure of getting everything together in a given time frame while bringing out this creative design fuelled me. Then I realized how much I loved to play with flowers and how big of a part they played in any of my design schemes. A year into wedding planning, we decided adding on floral services was a good move for the company. With all the talk of pretty event design, passion for pursuing dream careers, and playing with flowers everyday, the true purpose behind Wedfully Yours Events is this: celebrating marriages. The beautiful union of man and woman in the eyes of God and the special relationships I get to cultivate with these clients as they prepare for the best day of their lives. That's where it's at! 

Photography- Amanda Watson Photography ~ Florals + Styling- Wedfully Yours ~ Beauty- Beauty & the Blush ~Venue- Event 1013 ~ Dress- Sarah Seven 

We always love working with The Tarnos, and when they send us their brides, we know it's going to be a good wedding! Shelby is one of those brides you immediately fall in love with when you meet her. She has a comfortable and inviting personality and that is exactly the feeling we wanted to create for her wedding day. When we sat down to discuss the details and plan out the Big Day, it made me so excited to see everything come together from the lawn games to the full service coffee bar, it was set to be a night to remember.

It was just a perfect fall day to celebrate two sweet, coffee loving souls in a stunning white barn with one killer vendor team! 

Venue: White Sparrow Barn | Photographer: The Tarnos | Florals + Coordination: Wedfully Yours | Catering: Abuelos | Beauty: Beauty & the Blush | Music: Uptown Sound | Cake: Layered Bake Shop

When it came to designing her florals, Shelby had a vision but also trusted me to create something special for her. The colors to her wedding palette were a perfect mix of blush tones, cream, and a rich accent of mauves and burgundy so this made choosing flowers especially fun! 

Her bridal bouquet was a mix patience garden roses, white peony, blushing bride, ivory spray roses, privet berries (my favorite touch of texture for fall florals), rice flower, lisanthus, scabiosa, and foraged greenery. 

We kept the boutonnieres a little simpler, of white ranunculus with some little buds.

Cutest little flower girl!

The ceremony was outside, and the atmosphere was beautiful. Under a big, old tree with lanterns hanging all around, and simple touches of floral and greenery added to the wood arbor. It was perfect!

White Sparrow Barn is such an incredible venue! The white space, all the natural light...it's really a beautiful place with a wonderful ambiance. The soft coloring worked perfectly in the venue, and we worked in greenery throughout the space to add a little life. We alternated two styles of centrepieces, one featuring a lantern with some greenery touches and one with a lush floral arrangement.

Today I'm writing about a topic that I think many in my circle can relate to in our stage of life. The "B Word", otherwise known as breastfeeding. If you find this to be irrelevant to you right now, bookmark this and come back ;) We've all heard this before: "Breast is best" and with more natural care coming into the forefront, for some of us it's no question we'll attempt to breastfeed from day one. As we become new mothers, we are offered all sorts of classes teaching us how to embark this journey and learn different techniques to feed our little ones this amazing "liquid gold", but what we aren't prepared for is the real trenches. 

I've said this before, and I'll say it again: breastfeeding is the hardest thing I've ever done. It has taken a toll on me both physically and emotionally. I feel as though my mind, body, and soul has been stretched in ways I could never imagine. This may sound a bit dramatic about something that is so natural, but it is a true feeling. Before I dive any deeper, I want to be very clear that any choice a mother makes for her child is because it is what she feels is best and that is the bottom line. Nobody knows a child better than his mother. Along with that, I think it should be understood every mother and every baby is different, as this is the experience I've had with Liem and the choices I've chosen for our family. I do think the emotional impact of the topics I'm about to discuss somehow relate to us all. 

The perseverance that is required  

I'll be honest here, when I was pregnant and getting coupons and formula samples, I thought to myself, "Why would I ever need this? In fact no mom should need this if she can produce milk and should work her hardest to breastfeed her baby." Oh how I didn't know! I completely understand why any mother would make the switch and offer an alternative to breast milk. It is incredibly hard to keep going or sometimes even start! If you have chosen this route, do not beat yourself up. You're amazing for feeding and caring for your baby! It is a lot of work. For us specifically, we enlisted the help of many different professionals and therapies to get to the rhythm we have today (chiropractic care, pediatric dentist, myofascial therapy). I've wanted to quit so many times for so many different reasons. I get it now. In one of my many meltdowns throughout these past several months about whether or not I should keep going, I received some advice from a wise mom in my mommy tribe: "What is even better than the mom with the healthiest breast milk or the most nutrient dense, organic formula is a mentally sound, well-rested mother and a healthy, well-nourished marriage. That is what your baby needs most." What a perspective that was for me. 

The effect on marriage

Any progress we've made here has been made possible only with help of Adam. Yes, I may be doing the heavy load of producing and feeding, but his support and help is everything. (Special shout out to the single moms who do this on their own. You're heroes!) He gets the pump set up every morning and night, prepares the bottles if we bottle feed, manages the freezing, and sterilizes the parts. Sounds like small tasks, but they are tedious. Teamwork is key! But, of all the things we've gone through together in our marriage, this has probably been the source of our biggest quarrels. When you combine an over exhausted and stressed mom with a dad who feels helpless, it just does not add up to the marital bliss like it was before baby. Moms can be extra sensitive and no matter what he says, it's never the right thing. I say to hang in there and remember that it won't always be this way. Your baby will not demand as much from you both and you will get to love on your relationship once again. I hope to write in a future post how we've managed to weather through this storm :)

The emotional strain

I have a lot of words for this one, but to simply put it- it's emotionally exhausting. You spend all of your days calculating around the clock when to feed and/or when to pump, so on a regular basis that is what your mind is filled with. When you don't produce as well one day, you feel like you've failed at your job that day.  Think about this (especially you exclusive breastfeeding mamas): every single ounce your baby has gained and his success in development is because of what your body has made to feed him. Isn't that so amazing, but also a lot of pressure at once? And then there's the peanut gallery. You have been working so hard to eat enough of the right things, making sure you produce plenty and everyone has some kind of commentary on your progress. Some are well meaning yet still judgmental, and some oblivious to how it affects us as moms. These opinions wear down our confidence as a mother and the choices we've made for our family and can be simply deflating. When did being a mother require so much defense and explanation? We are the ones spending all of our time with our babies and we're the ones doing all of the research, discussion, and seeking out resources for information and knowledge. It would just make sense for us to be trusted and supported in our instincts. 

The physical strain

The great thing about breastfeeding is that you do burn a lot of calories, but this is not what causes the physical strain. As long as you continue to breastfeed, your body still doesn't look like it did before pregnancy. Things are still fuller than they used to be and because you're trying to eat so much to produce, the baby weight just doesn't "fall off" as easily. Fashion also takes a backseat. Those cute rompers and dresses you used to wear have to wait because if you cannot easily lift it up or pull down for him to access, you'll end up sitting in a bridal suite during one of your weddings pumping in just your panties because you thought you'd wear a cute dress to work. (No, that never happened to me...) Another physical strain is if you're in a social setting, you are closed off to people during feeding or pumping sessions because you don't want to be exposed or make anyone uncomfortable. Unless you're in Europe. It's all free and natural there! 

With all of this said (and I know it's a lot), however far you get in your journey, it is worth it. Breastfeeding is such a beautiful bond we as mothers get to have with our babies and truly a blessing God has given to us to be able to provide. Nobody else gets to experience this but us! I write all of these grievances to express the struggles of breastfeeding, but I hope to encourage other mothers who are in the thick of it as well. When you become a mother, your heart and soul undergoes an incredibly large change. You gain this sixth sense for your children that nobody will ever understand but yourself. You are the one that gets to make the decisions and have the power to guide and raise your children into the person you want him to be. Of all of this, the most mind blowing thing is you also get to change your mind on your terms along the way as you are learning and stretching. Try not to let anyone rob you of enjoying motherhood and cloud it with worry or stress you're doing something wrong. Remember that you know your baby best and you're doing an unbelievable job. Hugs!  

Photography by The Moody Romantic