3 Months

11 days late.  Here she is:

This picture cracks me up. Nelia is truly one of the sweetest babies! She is a true delight.  WHICH is why this picture makes me laugh. Doesn't she already look baby tough?

3 months is a HUGE milestone for me.  I feel like pretty much everything settles down by this point and I am SO thankful.  It is certainly a roller coaster, but fun nonetheless!  We've moved to a four hour eating schedule, which makes the world of difference--longer naps and a little more free time too! :)  [for my own memory, not because anyone else cares, Nelia currently takes 3-4 naps a day, two long (morning and afternoon) and two short-ish (lunch and early evening).  And bedtime is about 7:30.]

She loves to blow bubbles, has discovered her hands, and of course can roll over.  She prefers to roll back to front, but will occasionally roll stomach to back.  Sheesh. She's a mover and shaker.

She smiles. Lots. 

And she doesn't know she's got fingers for toes.  Yet.

She's got a GREAT big sister.

And a pretty awesome big brother.

Who wants to hold her.

All by himself. Really badly.

And doesn't understand why he can't.

Or maybe he just wants to practice his gang signs...

But then we remember why this not-yet-two-year-old still needs adult supervision.

Thankfully, he's got some patient sisters that know all he wants to do is love them.

We also worked on our family stare.   Robert and Nelia are nearly perfection.

And some family kisses.

Can I learn to snap today too?

Hey you. Lady. Behind the camera.  Stop taking pictures.

This month also saw Nelia's first cross country flight to surprise Granddaddy for his 70th birthday.  Here's what we looked like before boarding the plane.

And here's what Nelia looked like most of the trip. She did great. No better place to sleep than on Mommy's (or Daddy's, or really anybody's) chest.

Meanwhile, Robert explored his love of all things that "Go."

And princess Emma practiced her t-ball. Crown and all.

You know, we were just generally hanging around.

And that, is month three.  Woohoo! :)

Look who is

Rolling over.
I wouldn't believe it if I hadn't seen it with my own eyes. Surely this doesn't mean she's going to move more than Robert. Surely.

Driving Miss Emma

Where to ma'am?

Guess who's playing...

tee ball...

Gifts

It's been "trendy" for a while now.

It's true. Christian books trend in and out just like secular ones.

I hope this one stays around.

For a long time.

99% of our home library we owe to Grandaddy and Meemaw. And this treasure was no exception.

If you haven't read these pages, I really encourage you to.

If you have, read it again.  It is compelling. Inspiring.  Even Kathie Lee Gifford agrees.

In Mrs. Voskamp's own words:

The book is written in its own idiosyncratic language—prose meeting poetry, a strange kind of language. Throughout Scripture, when a person came into the presence of God, the only language they had to stammer out anything was a different language than their vernacular. The only way to communicate their encounter with God was often through lyrical language. I didn't think a book written in that "prosetical" God-encounter language would ever find a real home out in the world.

{And after 39 weeks on the NYT best seller list since its January 2011 release, it sure found it way into millions of homes and hearts.}

But maybe that is exactly what we're all hungry for—a powerful, personal encounter with God in a language all of its own?

Amen.

Valentine Rewind

In an effort to preserve what little memory I have, I'm going to post our Valentine's activity.  A little late. Like 42,000 other folks with Pinterest accounts, we made crayon hearts for Emma to give out at school (and to a few friends).  It was super easy--and a really nice activity since the kids were quarantined at home for 2 weeks with colds and ear infections. We needed something to do!

You start by unwrapping 1 million crayons.  (Ok, it's not 1 million.  It just FEELS like it).  This is also a perfect use for all those broken crayon bits that wind up all over the house...

Preheat your oven. Silently wish you had a gas stove--or at least an oven with a Time Cook feature. I mean, c'mon--how's a girl supposed to have Sunday lunch ready when we get back from church?

Remember the task at hand, and:

Fill heart molds with crayon bits.

Pop them in the oven for 10-15 minutes, watching each minute to make sure they are "cooking."

Check on this guy.  Make sure he hasn't gotten into anymore cat fights.

And make some gift tags.

Make sure to have a four year old color in the hearts on the tags.  And not just any four year old will do.  She needs to be dedicated to coloring, imaginative, joyful, funny and creative.  Lucky me. I knew just where to find her.

And voila!

Notice how I forgot to take a picture of the finished crayon?  Nice Clark. Real nice.  But you get the gist anyways, I'm sure. And if not, just search melted heart crayon on Pintrest.  You'll see the other 999,999 ways to do it--that all look "fantastic."  Because, let's face, doesn't everything on Pinterest look "fantastic"?  I.e. nobody throws up pictures of their crappy, disorganized kitchens where their kids are covered in what was supposed to be dinner, but is now just a crusty, burned disaster; and where they hosted said child's birthday party, void of a meticulously selected (or any recognizable) theme, and precisely created decorations. Nobody shows the pictures of what their kids, ages 6 and under, have done to their house, each other, and the family pet(s), while mommy was churning out homemade craft after homemade craft all while redoing every room in the house. Oh no, those pictures don't exist on Pinterest.  Must be because that is the stuff nobody wants to see.  You know, the real life kind of stuff.  The stuff that only happens at my house, right?? :)

Ahh, I digress...

Tootles!

Month 2

So here we are.  2 months in.  You'd think I could throw up something in this venue a little more frequently.  Woulda. Coulda. Shoulda. I say.  But you know what? Life is happening around here.  You know, all the usual antics like box sliding.  Emma can certainly do anything in her "heels."  She is the quintessential lady.  

We're grateful to enjoy each day and feel incredibly and undeservedly blessed.

This angel is now officially 2 months (ahem, 11 weeks Sunday) old.  She is a blessing.  She has hung on through cold and flu season, catching now 2 colds and working on a third.  Even still, she is a delight.  When she is feeling well, she loves to talk, loves her play gym, and is pretty close to rolling over (I know!).  She adores a passy--and her thumb.  I honestly think she might be sucking blood out of her thumb sometimes.  She is fiercely attached!

She's crept up the charts and is more in line with Emma and Robert's stats at 2 months.  She weighed 11 lbs 13 oz (75%) and was 23 inches (75%).  And oh yeah, she smiles. Lots.

And now, for the inevitable comparisons:

This month has also brought some new changes.  Look who's sharing a room...

There have been lots and lots of early mornings.  It is equal parts entertaining and annoying to turn on the monitor before 6 am to see the mischief going on.  Maybe I should take a picture of the monitor.

If we were Emma, this is the scene we'd see when we woke up (sans Robert of course).

And here's the view from Robert's jail crib.

With this close proximity, how could anyone expect much sleep? :)  Eventually the exhaustion has to set in and they will sleep again, right? :)  Those that have walked this road before us tell me to expect two weeks of H-E-double hockey sticks, and then...room sharing bliss.  

Any chance we can adopt this IKEA mantra?

Not sure how to simplify that to toddler and preschool levels, but I loved the sentiment. Apparently so much I decided to take a picture of it when I was there in November.  I only wished it included something about the importance of organization!  Which, is why we're SO thankful for Granddaddy's work putting up costume hooks for Emma's princess dresses.  A girl can never have too many princess costumes.  Right?  And now, a place to put them.  I'm sure Robert is grateful too since he is now a cohabitant in the princess palace.

And finally, this month saw Jason a year older and now one piano closer.  I called Jason's dad after Christmas and asked if there was any way we could get Jason's mom's piano moved from Tuscaloosa to Birmingham as a birthday surprise.  He graciously agreed, and the week of Jason's birthday, we squished some things together and made room for it.  It has been wonderful to have more music in the house! And of course, the kids love it.  Do you think it contributes to the lack of sleep? :)

That's about it.  I'm not even going to say I'll be back here soon. Because frankly, who knows!
The end.