Mother's Day was a great day for me, for our family. And not only because Ryan gave me a beautiful red camera and 2 precious cards. It was also wonderful because I really started to believe that motherhood IS worth it...worth the wider hips, decreased funds, larger thighs, darker under-eye circle, increased responsibility, more for others, less for me. Sacrificing yourself for someone else is sanctifying and overall, I find myself to be less selfish, less anal, more loving, more tender-hearted and overall more grown-up as a result of mothering Charlie. And those are good things.

Speaking of motherhood, I'm throwing a baby shower for an Augusta friend tomorrow. So tonight I'll be baking and washing china. I adore and take advantage of any opportunity to pull out the Lenox Pearl Platinum :). I'll be sure to document and post some pictures of the festivities.

Charlie was so excited to see the goats and chickens at a local petting zoo.

The (Nearly) Finished Product

We are missing the third (top) shelf but overall, I'm very pleased! My little sister's blurry, cheap camera just does not do it justice! :) Ryan did a great job of hanging the shelves (which we found at Lowe's; the Target shelves didn't work). The shelves ended up being a little more expensive than we'd originally thought but we love it...and we spent about 1/9 of what we'd have spent if we bought the "look" from Pottery Barn! I have wanted a china cabinet since we moved in but budget and space issues have prevented us from finding and purchasing one. But patience has its rewards - I like this setup better than any others I have seen in stores or magazines and I just can't stop looking at it. :) I'll post another (hopefully more clear) picture after we find and hang the top shelf, which needs to be more shallow and ledge-like as opposed to a shelf like the other two.

The $12 cabinet is still by favorite purchase...with a fresh coat of paint and some new knobs, it sure is a looker!

Cheers!