Haley's Birthday Shindig...2 month late

 For Haley's birthday, her friend, Angeles spent the night. I think their favorite part is that all the little siblings, except Seth, go spend the night elsewhere so its just them.  I let Haley decide what she wanted to do for entertainment.

 They chose to have a Free Willy marathon. They watched 3 out of the 4 movies. I would have been bored and actually didn't watch a single movie all the way through, but Haley was determined to be able to say they watched them all.

 The girls helped decorate the house and the cake and Haley was so proud of her creation. She chose a puppy dog theme, green icing, and sprinkles.

We had a small family party where she got cowboy boots as her gift from us. She was so shocked! After Katelynn got her cowboy boots for her birthday, Haley was so upset and complained about how not fair it was, so she was quite surprised that I had bought her boots as well.

Haley  - I tell you all the time how glad I am that God picked you to be our oldest child. Your place in our family is very important and custom made by God just for you. I know that you are learning to hear God and to make choices that please him, and I couldn't be prouder. You are such a great big sister and daughter.You are a beautiful young lady and we love you so much!

~Mom and Dad

Happy 4 Months Seth!

 Happy 4 months, sweet boy! Each new month with you brings more new experiences for you and for us as parents. And we love every moment!  You are still wearing size 0-3 months clothes, but on Sunday you wore a size 3-6 month onesie and it almost fit, so you are definitely a growing boy.  At your doctors appointment you weighed 12 lbs 12 oz and were 24 inches long. Your face and thighs are getting more chunky all the time, even if the doctor still thinks you aren't growing enough.

 You have started grabbing and holding things a lot more, so we got out your activity mat that Aunt Jill loaned you.  You can stay happy under there for a while. You are consistently rolling from tummy to back (when you are in a good mood. When you are mad, all bets are off.)  You are becoming quite the efficient eater. Mommy is so glad that it takes less and less time to feed you and I don't feel like nursing you is dominating my life any more.  Thank you for that! You still get up once a night to eat and I am okay with that. My body is quite used to waking up once a night to eat, so I am not pushing you to drop that feeding. Well, that and the fact they are still wanting you to gain weight. 

You are all smiles when we talk to you and we carry on conversations all the time. I can't seem to capture your smile on camera very often as you are so interested in what the back of the camera looks like and I haven't tried to use teamwork to take your picture.  You love to squeal or yell at us when you are excited. Sometimes I think you are upset, but really you are just being loud. I guess you are trying to make sure you are heard around here. You are not the quiet soft spoken baby you once were.

 On your 4th month birthday we got the go ahead to try and feed you rice cereal and I have tried to feed it to you every evening since.  You eat it for a little while, but really aren't that interested in it. I keep feeding it to you until it makes you upset and then I don't push the issue. You eat the cereal a lot better when the entire family is sitting at the table to eat dinner than when you are the only one eating. You have become quite partial to mommy, especially in the evenings. Daddy is learning to get you to calm down while I am not around, but as soon as I come in the room you cry until I hold you. I am okay to hold you in the evening, but am glad that you are still sleeping in your crib, at least once you got over your 4 month shots, which made you pretty fussy for a few days.  You are just the cutest baby in the world. And so loved. And so wanted. 

We are so glad God chose you to be a part of our family. You are such a sweet boy!

Strong

Joshua 1:9

⁹ Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.”

So what does it mean to be strong?  

When I hear these words I immediately think, "Okay, Sandra. Just suck it up, and keep on going one step at a time. Don't show weakness. Don't show fear. Just keep going. Then you will be strong. You can handle this. BE STRONG!!  God is watching. Pull it together. Stand strong for him."

And God gently taps me on the shoulder and I fall apart in his arms, because I am tired of being strong by my definition of the word. 

And God has to reteach me what it is to be strong again.

Being strong is not being without fault and without fear. Being strong is learning to deliberately depend on God. Not suck it up. Not hold your head up high. Being strong is deciding to let God be the boss and let him provide the strength that you need.

Every time I try to be strong in my own power, I will get overwhelmed, and I will stress out and ultimately, I will fail. 

So I'm learning to make myself intentionally surrender and be okay with the idea that I can't do it all. Because only when I realize I can't, do I give room for God to be God in my life and allow him to be the only source of my strength. 

Jesus loves me this I know

For the Bible tells me so.

Little ones to him belong. 

They are weak but He is STRONG!