Today is a very special day.
Exactly one year ago today Allie was placed in our arms forever as our daughter! I can still remember being so very excited and nervous as we waited for her arrival. And I can remember the joy and love I felt for her when I held her for the very first time - no different from the first time I held my boys!
I just can't describe how special Allie is . . . how instantly we bonded and how perfectly she fits into our family. She is full of personality and is such a JOY! It is hard to believe she is 18 months old now . . . and has grown so much from the little 6 month old baby we picked up a year ago. She has thrived in our household and it has been so fun to watch her grow into a walking, talking toddler! She is a true blessing to our family and we thank God for her everyday!
Here's Allie in her first year at home with her forever family. We all love her so very much . . .
Placed in my arms forever - August 21, 2007
Pure JOY!
Very first bottle . . .
August 2007
September 2007
October 2007
November 2007
December 2007
A Year Ago Today . . .
And now . . .
Allie brings so much laughter . . .
And LOVE into our home!
She is a ray of sunshine! :)
Ending with a scripture . . .
"Every time I think of you, I thank my God. And whenever I mention you in my prayers, it makes me happy."
Philippians 1:3-4
I am so sorry that I have been such a terrible blogger lately! I have so much to share - but no time to do it! ;) But here's a quick run-down of what we've been up to . . .
*First week of school - going great so far!
*Tropical Storm - pretty much missed us totally - but did cancel school!
* Allie is cutting 6 teeth at once! She is one crabby, clingy, drooly toddler.
*Staying up way too late watching the Olympics!
*Started working out & exercising - which is a whole post in itself and is really cutting into my blogging time! ;)
All that gives me little time for the computer and blogging! In fact - there were several days last week I didn't even turn my computer on at all! *gasp* Shocking, I know! ;)
But all is well here and life is really, really good! I promise to update soon and catch up with all of you! Have a wonderful weekend!
So, so thankful for my daughter,
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57 comments:
Heather,
Wow do I feel better now that I have had my Duckworth family fix lol!! Missed you guys! I know how busy our lives can get though.
I just wanted to comment on the picture of Allie kissing daddy in the water. Heather, that is so beautiful. It made my eyes well up! Have a great weekend :)
Maureen
What a beautiful story, what a beautiful day, what a gift from heaven . . .
Wow, Cant believe it is a whole year, time goes so quickly. I have enjoyed watching Allie grow from a beautiful baby to an even more beautiful toddler!
Congratulations.
Happy one year to a beautiful family!
Happy Anniversary to Allie and the Duckworth's! Heather, that first picture of you and Allie is one of my favorites... the love in your eyes is so amazing. I also love the pic of Allie kissing her daddy in the water! Such a sweetie!
Celebrating with you! Allie is such a sweetheart and it has been fun getting to know her through your blog this past year. We have missed you this past week and it is good to know that everything is okay down there!
Love the pictures. She is growing into a beautiful little lady. We will start school on Monday and I will be starting that exercising thing again.....yep can't wait for that! But, I have to do something to keep my mind off the fact that my youngest starts school this year and my oldest will no longer be a teenager in a couple of weeks. Where did the time go?
Congrats on your first year with Miss Allie!! I have so enjoyed her pics over the past year. I love all of her little dresses, she is such a ham!! Hope school is going well, we started on Wednesday, uughhh!!
Take care,
Rita
Heather,
The picture of you holding Allie for the 1st time is one of my most favorite pictures! It melts my heart how she just grabbed onto you like that! She knew instantly that you are her mommy!
I've missed you out here in blogland!!!
Awww....Congratulations on one year! She has really grown into such a beautiful little girl. You guys are so lucky to have her in your lives.
thats great! 1 year already wow!! time goes so fast. yeah weve been getting drenched over here in orlando. its just been raining and raining for 3 days! not fun. glad you all are doing well!
-shelby
Good to read your words again. I hope these past weeks have been fun as you savored the end of summer with the boys.
Allie is unspeakably beautiful and it is totally obvious that she is the fifth little love of your and Donnie's lives. I know you feel so blessed by her, and I'm sure she feels blessed by you.
--Kelley
Happy Forever Family Day. Your family is very beautiful.
Oh, my goodness!
I love posts like yours. They bring back such wonderful memories for us!
That is so great that you all got to go on the pick up trip!!!
(recognize where you were, too!)
Happy One Year Forever Family Day!!! Wow... that year passed so quickly! Allie is absolutely a ray of sunshine! Her smile is contagious and radiates out of the computer whenever I see her!! What a special little angel you have been blessed with!!
I hope you have had a wonderful summer with your children! I have missed you!! Good for you for working out and taking time off to be with your kids!!
Love and FROG!!
She is a true angel-pie! Congratulations on your special day. I love the pics. Oh, and I love your new back-to-school look.
Darlene
P.S. I SHOULD be working out... instead of blogging!!:)
Heather,
How time flies! I can't believe it is already one year! I have enjoyed seeing Allie join your family and see her grow over the past year. She take a beautiful picture! I hope that your life settles down soon as I miss reading your beautiful and inspiring writings.
Happy Forever Family Day. The first is certainly a special day. She has changed so much. She looks like a true joy.
Glad you are doing things for yourself, but I do miss you. Glad the storm missed you. I was thinking of you.
Great to have you back!! I missed the Duckworths this week!!
Oh that was fun looking through the last year of Allie. How she's changed!! Congratulations for a wonderful year with that sweet girl.
What a wonderful anniversary! This post brings tears to my eyes - such beautiful smiles, and such great love and joy you all share. It's really cool to see Allie blossom - at times she seems quite a bit older, because she is so expressive in these pictures.
I'm so glad for all of you. Thanks for sharing this special day with your network of fans!
Happy 1 year home! She really blossoms more and more. I especially love seeing how much her hair GROWS each time you post new pictures of her. You all are so very blessed!
How in the world is it possible that it's been a whole year already?! You just went down to pick her up last week! I just can't ever get used to how fast time flies anymore! Congrats on this special day!
You never know where you're going to find words of comfort in Scripture.
Know that I'm here praying!
Nahum 1:7 The LORD is good, a strong hold in the day of trouble; and he knoweth them that trust in him.
The Prayer Bears
Heather,
Happy 'Gotcha day' Allie! Thats what we call it for our 2 girls on the day they came home with us!!! Those photos are just precious and she is one adorable little girl. She has really grown over the year and is just so sweet.
Thanks for giving me a smile today...I always love reading your posts.
Have a wonderful weekend.
God Bless,
Anna
Great pictures and a beautiful story. How blessed you are to have such a wonderful daughter. She is beautiful.
Heather,
Has it really been one year since I hugged you and Donnie??? I can't believe it. It seems like yesterday. Where did the time go?
I enjoyed seeing all the pictures of Allie...but you know my favorite one...the one with her in those little white socks and black shoes. I WANT A BABY GIRL!..LOL.
I hope to be back to blogging regularly next week. The summer has come and gone..and I just don't know how.
Give a big Hug to Allie from Jonathan!
Love and Hugs
It really is a shame how you can never make that baby girl smile! :) Your family is beautiful and I love checking up on y'all! Have a great week!
Lizz
Hey there...glad to see you back. I, too, understand about the cut back in blogging time. This is a great post though. I love the WVU outfit. I want to get a really nice wind breaker for this year...we WV'ers have got to stick together.
Such a sweet reminder of God's goodness! I've missed reading your blog and reading your comments on mine (NO guilt here - seriously! :O)
Glad your back!
((((hugs)))
Tracie
Terrible blogger here as well...just posted on our sleepover adventure tonight. She is so precious Heather...beyond words. So glad all is going well for you and look forward to seeing all the back to school pictures!!
Hi! I'm new to the blogger world and just started my own not to long ago. I've been lurking for a little while and love your updates! What a beautiful little girl and a wonderful blessing!
I think this time of year is crazy for everyone! I can't believe its been a year since your travels to meet and bring home Allie! Congratulations! She is a beautiful little lady (teething and all!). Thank you for sharing your journeys with all of us! Hope "Back to School" is treating you well, we have a couple more weeks to go until that hurdle! Your scriptures are always beautiful, I don't know how you do it but they are perfect! Take care!
Christina
wow its been a yr already? I have been following your blogging for a LONG time now. Even though we have never met I feel as if I have. love the pics. Allie isnt going to know what to do without the boys home. Well have a good weekend. I sent you an email earlier in the week asking a question too. hope to hear back from ya
Misty
Oh, how she's grown! Kids change so much in those first few years. She's precious.
There are so many things that cut into blogging time. :) I never watch TV anymore--I don't have time for both! That's a good thing though. I've been on a exercising kick myself lately. Are you sore? I am. :)
Come check out the contest at my place!
Thanks for sharing Miss Allie with all of us throughout her first year! You have a beautiful family, Heather! Hope the boys had a great first week back! What in the world is Miss Allie doing to keep herself busy until the boys get home from school?
Those photos brought such a smile to my face. You can just feel the love ~ especially in that 'first bottle' pic. All of you just gazing at your new baby girl. WOW!
Holy Cow, I haven't signed your blog in forever!! I always check it though! Wow, one year already! That flew by!I loved all the picture of Allie through this past wonderful year. She's so darn cute. Hope the boys are having a good time at school although I'm sure they want to be home with sweet Allie and of course Mamma Duck. Have a good week and enjoy your time with just Allie!
P.S. I just started my blog tonight. It's like a quick spreading case of the Wii virus, everyone is getting one.
Hello Duckworth Family. Hope the boys are having fun at school. Great pics of a year with Allie! Thinking of you guys always, love, Ellen and the kids.
http://www.caringbridge.org/ma/seanhanson
Glad to see you are back. You were missed. Love all the pics of Allie. Can't believe it's been a year already. She has grown so quickly and is such a lovely little lady. Thanks for sharing her with us. It's been such a sweet blessing to share in your journey and watch your love grow.
Heather I can't believe it's been one whole year. Time goes by so fast. The boys have grown so much, and Allie's smile is bigger. I always smile when I look at her pictures, you can see how happy she is. I love the new family picture, it's beautiful. I've missed reading your blog. Have a great week.
Carmen
Oh Heather was a wonderful post ... has it really been a year already? Oh my goodness ... and what a gloriously fun year it has been based on all the smiliing Allie photos ... she is such an angel and the smiles she brings to everyone's face is obvious ... congratulations on your one year anniversary Allie! God Bless!
Rebekah, Jaden & Baby#2 too
You guys are awesome. I love following your story. You guys need your own reality show. lol. Your the greatest. Such LOVE! God's blessings. Lin N Crew~*
The kids look fabulous. Lin~*
your baby girl has grown some much. and so have the boys. Love the new layout of the blog.
Allie is so beautiful! Congratulations on having her home for a whole year!
Heather is great to see you back! Happy 1st Anniversary w/that beautiful princess!! It has been wonderful watching that precious baby girl bloom!
PS The MAY PICTURE is just simply precious and LOVE THE AUGUST Polka dot dress Princess Allie is wearing....GORGEOUS!!!
Time just keeps on going, and fast it does....Allie is so big and it has been a blessing to watch her grow up. I am So Thankful to God for this Blessing in your lives, Babies, children have a way of making our hearts smile! We just got home a couple of days ago from Destin, and I know why you just Love Florida, it was so relaxing and the kids had the Best time, our trip was cut a day short due to the storm, none of us wanted to leave :( Alec started school today and it is definately a bittersweet time, I cried as I was leaving him today, but I thanked God that he was healthy and able to go, knowing your family and your precious Jacob sure has put my life in a whole new perspective, I'm so Grateful!
Thinking of you all and still praying everyday!
Much Love Duckworth's
Audra Deffenbaugh
God is good!!! I am so happy for your family, she is such a blessing!
Congratulations on your FOREVER A FAMILY DAY!! Love the "MAY PICTURE" of Allie, just dainty as ever!!!!
What beautiful pics, Allie is a beauty that's for sure. Hard to believe it's been a year!! All the best.
Congrats on one happy year together! Allie was the perfect addition to your family. You are sooooo blessed!
On a vacation to Orlando (from NJ), I was amazed when I saw your beautiful family having dinner at Pastamore. I came close to walking over to talk to you, but I just didn't want to intrude on your privacy. So back in NJ, I just wanted to say that your blog (and Jacob's site) have continued to be the first place I visit when I turn on the computer each day. Kylie Jae Monica's site brought me to Jacob in 2004, and my life will never been the same. I laugh and cry with each entry. Thank you for making my world a better place. Happy birthday a day early.
Heather and family,
She is a DOLL
Will you please say a prayer for Kevin and his family today as he makes his way to heaven.
http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/khoffman
What a precious blessing Allie is!
I just got back from Beth Moore's conference in San Antonio and have tried to post about that, but haven't been very good at all about visiting others' sites and commenting.
I'm so glad the hurricane missed you all. I've been thinking about your family and wondering.
God bless!
What beautiful pics!! Happy Anniversary!!
Robyn
Oh, how I remember that special, special day last year!!
Tears of Joy Heather...
What a cutie she is, and I love how she fits in so perfectly with your family.
You've been missed my sweet friend, but I'm so blessed you guys were OK, and you are busy with your beautiful family!!
Keep us in prayer with the storm heading our way!!
Blessings♥
Happy Birthday to you
Happy Birthday to you
Happy Birthday Dear Heather
Happy Birthday to you!
So sorry I didn't get a chance to post yesterday, I hope you had a Wonderful celebration with your sweet family!
I read the comment from Christina about seeing you guys at the restaurant, and I'm going to forewarn you, if I'm Ever Blessed enough to see you guys somewhere, be expecting a Big Hug from me! I still think about our trip to Disney then coming home and reading your blog and you guys were in the exact spot we had been in, I was so sad that I didn't see you there!
I think and pray for you all everyday, and I praise Him for your Blessings.
Much Love,
Audra
Oh, I just read the last 2 posts - the pictures of Jacob take my breath away and stab my heart. The pictures of Allie take my breath away and tug at my heart. I am so glad God blessed you with Allie. I am from WV so I remember that WVU outfit - precious! (Although we are die hard Marshall fans!)
I am donating right now to your cancer walk. I would have given you every penny I have to keep Jacob here. Even though we have never met, I feel a connection to your family and I love you guys!
Love from WV,
Susan
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