The Practice

This summer Noah and I are working on a few things. We are practicing holding the bottle and then drinking from a sippy cup. This will make mealtime at school in the fall much easier. It is slow going.

"Mom, where do you want me to hold it?"

"How can I hold the bottle when I need to look at the camera?"

"Maybe I can do both"

"I really want that formula"


"I really like it best when you hold it mom. Thanks! "



Then there is Charlie. Always ready to help out at mealtimes.


He is on clean up.


Mmmm. That was good.

There are some things that Noah does like to practice.



And that is flying.


And sitting on Daddy's head !
Thanks to MiMi for documenting all our practicing. It is obvious that Noah loves the camera!!

The Happy Moments

On Sundays Adam works the weekend editor shift for the paper. He goes in around 2 and comes home around 11. When he first started this a year or so ago I liked it. It was summer and I enjoyed his time off on Friday. Our weekends together were extended. Then school started back and then we had a baby and my attitude towards the Sunday Editor changed. Our weekends together were shortened. But there is an upside to everything. After Noah goes down on Sundays and the house has been picked up and things ready to go for the coming week I have three hours completely to myself with no demands to what to do with them. Work is done. No one is around. Nothing is on TV. Its just me and Charlie. This past Sunday night I enjoyed a true Julia Roberts/Pretty Woman moment. Well not the pretty or being paid for you know.... but the total abandonment and relaxation that a woman gets from a good bubble bath and music. I took my glass of wine, and iPod and sank into my big bathtub and sang to Leonna Lewis "Bleeding Love" as loud as I wanted to my hearts content. It made me feel really happy. I know that is silly but it did. It relieved the weeks stress in just a few verses. Then I thought about how I feel when a toy or Charlie or a cloud or a funny face makes Noah laugh and full of joy. And I thought how happy it makes me. And then I thought how happy it makes God when his children find joy and happiness in simple things like singing in a bathtub, an unexpected comment on a post, pictures of friends new children, a phone call or card from an old friend, making a stranger smile, a verse of scripture or the beauty of his creation. And then I started thinking about how much more joy he must get from his children making each other happy. And it reminded me of the old phrase "Practice daily random acts of kindness". I wish I did that more. Sometimes I get too busy just trying to get through the day that I forget my purpose to love others and bring glory to God. And sometimes I'm too busy to experience the happy moments I am presented with. So I hope that everyone who reads this experiences joy today whether it be from a song, beauty around you, kindness of a stranger, a bubble bath, an unexpected kiss, a big hug, time to watch your favorite show, a deep and meaningful conversation, a baby's smile and laugh or a green light on your way home. And then I hope you pass that joy or happiness to others around you!

The New Posts

I am using a new program, Picasa to edit photos. And I am having trouble adding pictures from it. I have figured out how to make a post straight from the program but not how to add pictures to a post. So I had to make three posts out of what I would have done as one big one. So below are three new posts about the zoo, Noah's new face and our pool adventures! Sorry to bombard you with three at once and now a fourth to explain. But if anyone uses Picasa and can help me I would appreciate it!

The Pool Friends

Noah and I have been going to the Clear Creek Colony pool with our friends Grace, John Barrett and Sadie. Grace is a friend of mine from Sunday School at Calvary. She and her husband Clint teach the class. Grace and Clint our also Auburn graduates so we bonded with them immediately! When we started in the class there was only one couple expecting the first child of the class. Grace and Clint were second with John Barrett and now there are seventeen children under the age of three. Round two is in full swing. Grace makes motherhood look effortless and beautiful. I enjoy our friendship very much! Taking the kids to the pool this summer has been great fun. Grace makes it all look easy and I am learning from her laid back example. I look forward to Noah being a little older so he can play more with Sadie and John Barrett.

This is Sadie. She is full of energy and never meets a stranger. She had more fun at the pool eating dirt from a flower pot than swimming with us!

This is John Barrett. He is a little camera shy. He is such a sweet and respectful two year old. I hope Noah turns out like JB.

And this of course is Noah all wrapped up and protected from the sun!

The Zoo

Noah and I had the pleasure of going to the zoo with my sweet friend Shea and her adorable daughter Savannah. Shea is a college friend of my wonderful Laura. Laura has always said that Shea and I share a lot in common and would be good friends if we lived in the same place at the same time. Since having children Shea and I have shared concerns, thoughts and suggestions through email and the blog. I have enjoyed our friendship and was excited about getting together at the zoo. I tried to keep my expectations at what Noah would get out of the zoo at a low. I was way more excited than he was. He loved the people and the ground more than the animals. He did enjoy staring at the birds in one exhibit. He had a love hate relationship with the train. He loved watching things go by and the breeze but hated the bell, shouting all aboard and yelling in the tunnel. Shea was sweet to take this picture of us by the giraffe. I told her I am probably forcing giaraffes on Noah. He had one toy giraffe that he just loves and since I've gotten him a few more. So I've kind of decided for him that giraffes are his favorite animal. I'm sure he'll set me straight later. I really enjoyed our trip with Shea and Savannah and hope we can go again another day!

The Face

Noah is making the most adorable new face these days. It started in frustration over getting his face cleaned at meal times. But now he knows I think it is adorable and he does it a lot. I am sure there are cuter faces to come but this is my entertainment these days!

The Seventh Month Birthday

Noah turned seven months on Monday. It is hard to think that seven months have already flown by. Last night Adam and I went to see some friends of our who just had their first baby. We got to the hospital just after she had delivered and waited around with the family to get to welcome little Hays into the world. I just kept thinking about how not long ago that was us. (Slightly different circumstances, Hays was not rushed off to the NICU thank goodness!) I watched the joy on the new parents' faces and the amazement as they looked at the little miracle they created, grew and were now holding. I watched their family members share their joy. It was a beautiful moment that reminded me of how amazing birth is. How amazing is God??? I remember holding Noah (in a very drugged state) on my chest before they whisked him away. How sweet and tiny he was. And then bam! It's seven months later and you have an even more adorable baby than the day he first arrived (if its possible) who went from such an innocent beautiful newborn to a funny, curious little boy! Noah is always moving. He won't stay where you put him. He climbs and squirms and falls over, rolls around. He wants so bad to get places but can't quite figure out how. He is always talking. Screaming to test his voice, babbling or his new one growling. These seven months have been amazing, hard but worth every minute. The best part has been the love. I never thought I could love Adam more. But I do. I am surprised by the strength of my love for Noah. By how much love our families have for him. And I have certainly fallen deeper in love with God who blessed us in his own timing with such amazing gift.

Noah is spending time at Nana's so I can't interview him on his seventh month on earth. So I thought I'd add the second part to Noah falling off the saddle for Aunt Robin. She will enjoy the sequel. He really loved the fact his head was under the blanket.

The First Father's Day

Growing up I was a complete Daddy's girl. There is no denying on either of our parts that I had my Daddy wrapped around my finger. I still do a little bit. My father is a hardworking, quiet, thoughtful, God fearing, quirky, playful, amazing man. I look up to him for wisdom, advice and guidance. I adored the way he loved my mother and growing up with their marriage as an example, my future husband had big shoes to fill. In fact my Dad set a high standard for my expectations in relationships and I was searching for someone with my Dad's qualities. One night after an Auburn football game a bunch of friends went to grab something to eat. Basically I had finagled my way into an invite because I had a little crush on Adam. I made sure I walked with him to Subway and stood with him in line. When we were getting drinks he got coke without any ice. Something I had seen my father do a thousand times. I got excited. I asked him, "Why didn't you get any ice?" And his reply, "Why put ice in something that is already cold?" My fathers exact words. And I knew that instant. I will marry this man. He will be the father of my children. Psycho, but ended up being true.Adam has met and exceeded my little girl expectations laid down by my father. He is everything I could have dreamed of and more. Sure, he's not perfect no one is. He spoils me, helps me, comforts me, inspires me, guides me, and he thinks I'm cute. But more than the things he does for me are the things he does for Noah. He adores our little man. He does diaper duty, gets up with him to do the first feeding at 6:30, gives him a bath, plays with him, prays for him, researches everything about baby development, takes him to the doctor, and dreams about the future... playing catch and most importantly watching Star Wars together. Adam is a great father and his love for Noah is rivaled only by his love for me. I couldn't ask for more. As Adam grows as a father and as we add more kids to the mix I know he will be the kind of example of God loving, people respecting, outreaching, family adoring, the right thing doing man for Noah that his own father was and is for Adam. I am so thankful for the legacy of fatherhood that Adam had growing up. And that Noah will have. Happy Father's Day Adam, Puddin, and Papa!! I love you all!

The Not So Wordless Wednesday: Cowboy Style

I know that wordless Wednesday are supposed to just be photos. But I'm a talker and I can't do it! This Wednesday has a theme: Cowboy. MiMi and Aunt Robin had recently given Noah some cowboy outfits and I tried to capture them in photos. But Noah is a busy boy!!












We eventually gave up on the pictures and tried video instead!




And I can't resist adding another video about Noah waking up from his naps. Sometimes he sleeps so well in his morning nap that I have to wake him up or he won't sleep at night. I can already tell he's gonna be a hard when to get out of bed and ready for school!




And then one more....
When we decided to get a dog we went with a golden retriever because of how good they are with kids. We were essentially picking out Noah's best friend before we knew there was a Noah. It is fun to see them develop a relationship. Charlie is patient but he can't wait til Noah is running around and petting him instead of pulling his hair :) Noah thinks Charlie is great and laughs at him a lot and gets excited when he's around. This video shows how excited Noah gets about his Charlie !




That's the end of the not so wordless Wednesday!

The Biter Bicuits

We are working on Noah's highchair manners. We want the kind of baby that people at the next table say, "Wow what a well behaved child" We try to get him to keep his hands in his lap or on the tray. And we are working on teaching him to communicate using signs for all done, more, please and thank you. We know he is a ways away from being able to do these things but we are working on it. We also want to sit together at the table at the end of a long day and enjoy the meal together. Not one of us at a time while the other feeds, cleans, or plays with Noah. So we feed him as dinner finishes up cooking and then we eat while he talks to us or plays in his highchair. Noah is progressing with solids well. He has tried all the varieties of stage two foods and eats them all (except for meats, he did not like those so we are holding off) Noah has two teeth and possibly two more any day now and he chomps with them. It had been suggested in some of our reading to give him dissolveable finger foods while we eat to practice hand eye coordination and self feeding. So yesterday I bought some biter biscuits. Noah likes them almost as much as his hands. And they sure do make a big fun mess! But he is busy and we can eat as a family! Here is a video of Noah and his biter biscuit.

The Pool

Noah had his first experiences at the Clear Creek Colony Pool this week. On Wednesday my friend Grace and her two children John Barrett and Sadie went to the pool for the first time. And on Saturday we took Adam to the pool. Noah is cool and relaxed about the pool. He like to kick and splash. Sometimes he'll stick his face in. It is kinda like a big bathtub to him. (That's kind of what the water feels like.) On Wednesday they tested the tornado sirens. It happens to be next to the pool. That did not go over well. But he soon got over it. Here are some pictures and video of Noah and the pool! (And his pale parents!) You can only watch the video if you promise to ignore the goofy voices :)

The Parables

This week I have been studying two parables. One for the study called Chase the Lion for our Sunday School class and another in Calm My Anxious Heart for Women's Bible Study. These two parables are ones that I've heard, read or studied a dozen times but these two studies gave a fresh take on them and they have left an impact. So I thought I'd share.

The first one is the story of the three slaves who were given talents by their master each according to their ability. The first and second slave invested their talents and doubled them but the third slave buried his talent. The master had some pretty harsh words for him. The author of the study made the point that apparently breaking even didn't please Jesus. It is not good enough to maintain status quo. He went on with some other illustrations to make the point that you should not live on the defense, avoiding sin but omitting good. You should live your life on the offense and take risks to invest your God given talent. That impacted me because a lot of times as a busy wife , teacher, mother, friend many days I live life just enough to get through the day. I waste the time God gives me by counting away the minutes or looking to the next thing I have to get done. God gives me 24 hours in a day for purpose. I lately have been begging God to give me self discipline and He is slowly helping me. The only way I can live offensively for Him is through self discipline to accomplish what needs to be done in order to have time to reach out to others with God's love.

The second parable was about the man who owed a large amount of money but begged for mercy and was forgiven all of his debts only to turn around and demand a lesser amount from someone who owed him. He had the man thrown in prison. When the king who had forgiven him heard this he had him pay the fullest price. This parable speaks of forgiveness. How can you be forgiven of all your sins by God yet refuse to forgive others? And then it speaks to the consequences of unforgiveness. The author made several great points about unforgiveness turning into bitterness that keeps you from experiencing God's joy. This impacted me deeply. I can easily forgive but is hard for me to forget. I continue to bring up past hurts and let them taint relationships and eat me up. It even effects my relationship with God. Forgiveness is an action. I need to forgive and then find ways to bless the person I've forgiven. And it doesn't matter if they tell me they are sorry for hurting me or even acknowledge a wrong doing. Sometimes forgiveness is between me and God.

I hope I keep these truths close to my heart and act on them daily! I was blessed by reading about them and praying about them so I thought I would share. I hope everyone had a great weekend!

The Diapers

Today Noah used his last Swaddler Diaper. He is officially a Cruiser. For some reason this is hitting me hard today. I actually shed tears in the grocery store. I've been excited about each of Noah's milestones; smiling, rolling over, baby food, teeth, sitting up. But in the back of my mind I've been a little sad. I was sitting at Bryant graduation a couple of weeks ago and began to tear up for two reasons. For t he kids I never though would make but did and for the bigger reason. I realized that if six months went so fast so would eighteen years. And then I would be a parent at the graduation watching my little baby walk across stage. I've been packing up Noah's clothes that are too small and gotten very nostalgic about some of the outfits. It's hard to imagine that my 20 lbs. six month old was ever too tiny to fit in newborn clothes at 6.4 lbs when he left the NICU. It's a weird feeling. I look forward to playing with Noah in the backyard, planning birthday parties, cheering him on at T-ball games, helping him with his homework, covering my fridge with his artwork, helping him pick out a tux for prom, meeting his wife I've prayed for since he was a fetus. But at the same time it makes me sad to know that one day he won't fit his sweet little head on my shoulder or need me to rock him to sleep. It makes me sad to know soon he will crawl away from me and say "No!" instead of snuggle and give sloppy kisses. I guess its a bittersweet process watching nurturing and loving this little being as he becomes independent. Cruisers are part of the process.

The TopTen Reasons Noah and I Love Summer

10. Because our hair can look as bad as we want.

9. Because we can play in our new baby pool.

8. because we can take naps together.

7. We can play outside with Charlie.


6. Grilling out every night.

5. Sleeping in an hour or so.

4. Free time together.

3. Accomplishing things on the to do list.

2. Beach!!!!!

1. No School!!!