Baby Love

Lilah is two days away from eight months and is busy exploring her surroundings. Her favorite toys are those things that aren't toys...the things she shouldn't play with at all...empty cups, my car keys, any kind of paper!!!, and on and on. She's been slow to learn to crawl but she's finally getting the hang of it:



She's pulling up on things and standing with support:



Look mom! I can do it with only one hand! (My heart rate spikes:)



She has found that there are all kinds of exciting things to find on table tops (like tinkerbell pez dispensers):



She's still pint sized but growing at a steady rate. Just this week she has started wearing her 6/9 month clothes.
She says bye-bye (buh-bye) occasionally but I'm unsure if there is a connect between word and meaning.
Every now and then (when I'm lucky) she'll lean in and give me a big opened-mouth "MUAH". Her kisses are so sweet!

I know, I know, every momma thinks her baby is the cutest but just look at those big baby blues (and lashes!):



And that sweet smile:



I could just eat her little cupcake head up!

Happy Gotcha Day!

Today our family celebrated two years. It's really hard to believe it hasn't always been. All morning yesterday (our official day) while at work, I kept watching the clock thinking about that morning two year ago. Thinking about how I was in the middle of painting the ceiling (of all things) when the phone rang and changed all of our lives forever. Thinking how the faceless, nameless "two little girls sitting down here who need a place to go" are the same beautiful girls resting upstairs now. My children.
They are my kids. Plain and simple. And just like it may be hard to imagine that your child would ever have been in the custody of DHR, sitting at desks all day waiting for a place to go, with clothes too large, wompy hair-cuts and bruises where they don't belong...it's also hard for me now to imagine that that was once my children. But it was.
This may make me sound like a looney toon, but I can remember after Lilah was born I would catch myself thinking, "Was she adopted or were they?" I know this sounds crazy but it's true. I had just pushed a child out of my body but I couldn't differentiate one from another. It's the same. No matter how they came to me, they are all the same in my heart and mind.
I've learned alot over the last two years. It hasn't been the glorified version that maybe we all expect parenting to be. It's been the real version. It's taught me alot about myself. My true colors. Jonathan and I are learning as we go and always striving to be the best parents we can be. These girls (all three of them) are what I have always desired from life. I can only hope that Lilah will grow up to be as sweet and loving as her sisters are.
They have shown me what life is all about. They make me laugh alot. They've made me want to pull my hair out at times. They fill our house with chaos and noise and love. Most of all, they show me over and over again what God's love must look like. They are so quick to accept, so quick to forgive, and so willing and eager to love and be loved.
My prayers today are of thanksgiving but also for the families and children both in our nation and throughout the world who are waiting and praying and searching for one another. What a blessing adoption is!

Christmas 2009 was much fun!

We hung out with family:


Ate lots of good food:


Played with the kids' new toys:


Spent time together:





Looked cute:


I mean really cute:


Met new cousins (who we can't wait to play with again!):


Opened lots of presents from Santa (and family):


While daddy and Lilah watched from the sidelines:


We also talked about the birth of a Savior, of course. I hope your holidays were merry and bright!

Still Alive

We did survive the holidays...I just haven't been back around here yet. I'll be back soon with a brief Christmas in photos and then we'll get back to regular scheduled programming. Here's a few until then...

Maintaining

Are ya'll surviving out there? 7 more days until Christmas! We went to a Christmas party two days ago (childless) and I ate almost to the point of being rude. I'm not one to skip a meal but I've learned that eating becomes secondary during the holidays when you have three...so when given the opportunity, I jumped!
I feel like my load is small potatoes though when I got the chance to have my weekly chat with a sweet friend from church who just had #7 AND home schools (four different grades right now!). That always puts things into proper perspective for me.
In all reality, things are chugging right along here. Somehow my oldest two wound up this year in ballet/tumbling, cheerleading, choir, Wednesday night Bible study (JAM), AND Daisys. I'm not sure exactly how this happened as our original rule was one activity (not including Wednesday night church activities). Oh well. I'm looking forward to the break over the holidays!
So much is going on...

programs...


parties...


firsts...


still battling this...

(God love her. It's all her mother's fault. I know what I need to do but I can't do it. I asked my mom if she would mind just letting her cry this Friday when she spends the night. She replied, "Absolutely not. I'm not doing your dirty work for you." Sigh. I can't do it either. Just look at that face! Tell me you wouldn't run to her aid, snuggle her up, and maybe even nurse her if she whimpered in the night!)

We are READY for Christmas in every way. Big girl tells me something new it seems every time I ask what she wants for Christmas. Maybe I should stop asking:) JD gets his wisdom teeth out on the 23rd. Nothing like waiting until the last minute to use up your insurance for the year. This is the life we lead folks:)

This post is everywhere but so is my mind:)

***p.s. We are so grateful for the family and friends who have asked us to let them watch our children for small increments of time. What a blessing!***

Santa's coming!

And we're finally ready! We had a set back last week that brought our world crashing to a halt. I won't give details but just know that of the insignificant things that can turn your world upside down, this has been the biggest one thus far in our family's life. We're past it now though, up and running...all healthy and thriving and ready for Christmas!



The big girls' biggest wishes:
Sam- a nativity set. Yes, my almost eight-year-old will be getting a little people nativity set for Christmas and I'm just fine with that. We'll also be taking her and her sisters to the live nativity tomorrow night. She's into it folks!
Lizzie- checkers. She's had a really hard time naming specific things she wants but she told me that she asked Santa for checkers. I'm willing to bet he went out that very day to make her Christmas wish come true.



Lilah would like some bottom teeth and to sleep through the night again (every night preferably). She would also like to crawl if it's not too much to ask.

I've been plugging along in my Disciple Bible Study. It's an amazing study if you ever get the chance to take it. I have previously had an embarrassingly small amount of knowledge as it pertains to the Old Testament and though I could take Disciple I three more times before I was solid in the OT, I have learned so much. It's been tough, you know...equating the God of the OT with the Savior that I am largely familiar with. It's been a struggle in my mind making them one and the same. As we finish up with the OT portion of our study and look forward to entering the New Testament, I can't help but look at Christmas in a whole new light. Never before have I been so ready for the birth of our Savior.

A child, a child, sleeping in the night He will bring us goodness and light...

My Dear Lilah Girl,

In one week you will be six months old. SIX MONTHS! Half a year! Time has never gone by so fast. You are such a joy...a wiggling, giggling, little joy. We are buddies, you and me. Very soon I will have to play the mother role and direct you from right and wrong but for now we play and smile at each other and all is well.

Now for what I really want to say: The sleep thing. In general you've done well. Great in fact until we took you off your cradle and into the flat surface of your pack 'n play. It's been a fight for a few months but you have gone over a week sleeping through the night again in the pack 'n play. Aunt Jaime asked me over Thanksgiving why I didn't want you in your crib and I explained to her that I did (!). I just didn't want to put you in there until you were sleeping through the night. After all, it's much easier to just reach over in the middle of the night than to get up and walk to your room to rescue you.
What I realize though is that that Aunt Jaime is one smart cookie. I think she realized something I did not because now that your through the night again and ready to go to your room it's hard for me to let you go (and daddy is no help either...he'd let you move in our room permanently if it were up to him). At first my argument (with myself) was that you would go in the crib after my work weekend so that I would be assured good sleep. But now that the work weekend is over, anxiety is high about putting you in your crib. It's only a few feet but it seems so far away!

Tonight you will go though because you are ready. Even though I'm not, you are. With this tiny letting go, I am suddenly aware of all the letting go I will have to do in your life. Today it's the crib and one day it will be college.

Forgive me, baby girl, if in between I hold on a little too tightly.

Love, mom