Common Grace

Do you ever have so much to say that you can't find the words? This has been one of those weeks for me. So many stories and big things and love and even a miracle or two, but I just don't have the words right now. I am so thankful for everyday, ordinary, amazing common grace.

For a guest room that is nothing special, but the perfect quiet and sunny place to escape my crazy green living room.

For my husband who understands my need to redecorate every 6 months. He gets me.

For quiet space with my son, no matter how messy it can get.

For my little sister who is an artist.

For seven pillows on a king-size bed. And yes, I really need that many pillows.

For the perfect romper for my son that cost a BUCK at a thrift store.

For this crazy face. Check out those polar bear feet.

For messy children.

For my mother, collector of antique dolls.

For magic in a light fixture.

For love love love.

For a baby who sleeps through the night. 

For health and new teeth.

For William's constant reminders that there is magic all around us.  There is fun to be had, even in a laundry room.

For a husband who always helps with bath time, even if he is tired from the weight of his patients.

For grandmothers who think William hung the moon.

For the short, sweet pleasure of a clean baby wrapped in a towel.

Chalkboard Madness: How to Track Baby Food

I'm a fan of chalkboards. I loved them when I was little, and I love them now that I'm big. Or medium. Whatever.

I made this huge chalkboard last year and we use it in the kitchen to write down Bible verses we're trying to memorize and notes to each other. I can see William using it as an easel once he can actually hold a piece of chalk. And stand. And wants to draw. 

But the point is that I love chalkboards because they're practical, too. I bought this massive roll of chalkboard paper at Michael's yesterday. The back is a sticker so you can just cut the size you need and slap it onto the surface of your choice. 

I chose to cut a big piece to stick on our freezer door, since I am forever standing with the door open trying to figure out how many cubes of baby food I have left and which foods I need to use up. Now I can just write the foods that we have and keep tabs of William's baby food this way. I love it.

I also love this chalk pen from Michael's. Amazing. If you're OCD like me and actually care if your handwriting looks decent on a chalkboard, then this pen will speak to your soul. If you don't care about such things, then you will probably be saddened to know that the pen costs about $3, but they only sell the pen in packs of 4, so you'll have to spend $12 to have pretty handwriting on your new chalkboard.  Ridiculous, I know.

On a side note, if you spend time in our home, you may have wondered why we have "Deuteronomy 6: 4-9" written all over the place...in cabinet doors, on mirrors, on our fridge, and now on BOTH chalkboards in our kitchen. When we learned I was pregnant, we knew the single most important task we'd have as parents would be to raise a child who knew Christ. These verses are such solid, practical advice on how to do that. Just TALK about Christ, as much as you can, every day, throughout the day. We fail a lot of the time, but this verse is our goal as parents.

"Hear, O Israel, the Lord is our God. The Lord is one. And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. These words, which I am commanding you today, shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your sons and shall talk of them when you sit in your house and when you walk by the way and when you lie down and when you rise up. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand and as frontals on your forehead. You shall write them on the doorposts of your home and on your gates." Deuteronomy 6: 4-9

Yesterday My Life Changed...Kind Of

William crawled! We went to visit with Jenny and Myles and William started crawling to Jenny's toes. He loves Jenny. I love her, too. She is such a calm new mama. Not a hot mess new mama like I was. Look at how beautiful her son is! I was so thrilled to take some photos of this sweet baby.

Tiny toes. Nothing sweeter in the world.

Crawling to Jenny.

He is so proud of himself in this picture!

A Story in Pictures: William Vs. Hat

William has a beautiful hand-knit baby hat. I like him to wear it on cold days.

William does not like to wear his hat. 

It's hard to take off a hat when your arms are strapped down.

If you try, try, try, you may just succeed.

Then again, you can't always win at everything. Sometimes you have to lose.

And hat wins.

Happy Day!

Excuse my hair. It was incredibly windy outside. William and I just got back from buying paint.

Happy boy! I was pulling him towards me to take a close-up and he thought it was HILARIOUS!

William looks just like his daddy. How did I end up with such beautiful boys?

Wiping his mouth after a banana-peach smoothie (that's what we call it when I mash tofu up with pureed fruit...gag).

Did I mention that my freaking awesome husband gave me a new camera for my bday? Because he did. And I basically took pictures with it all day yesterday. I love you, D! And NOT just because of the camera. :)

Dinner and laughing and talking for hours last night at Mandola's with my best friend, Adri. Susan and Katie, there were two empty chairs at our table in honor of both of you. Now if they would just build a light rail between NYC, Houston, and Austin, we could ALL go out to dinner together.

I feel so blessed and loved to have such a thoughtful husband and friends and family. Thank you for my pre-birthday night out and gifts. Tonight, we get to go on a real date, complete with babysitters and all! Happy happy joy joy. No offense, William.

Valentine's Card Ideas

While William napped last week, I tried to sneak in some pictures of him for Valentine's cards. I rushed and cut a few hearts out of red ribbon. I sprinkled them around my sleeping boy and took as many pictures as I could before he woke up. The bad news is that we don't have photo editing software, so I can't blur the background of the images. And I only have a point and shoot digital camera, so I can't change the settings to take better pictures (this may or may not be a hint for my birthday gift, D). I can't decide on the pictures to choose. Below are the images I think might be cute with the captions I would write on the cards.

Does anyone have a favorite?

No one has ever measured, even a poet, how much a heart can hold.
-Zelda Fitzgerald

There was never a child so lovely but his mother was glad to get him to sleep.
-Ralph Waldo Emerson

No one has ever measured, even a poet, how much a heart can hold.
-Zelda Fitzgerald

A hundred hearts would be too few to capture all my love for you. -Anonymous

Your love follows me wherever I go.

Boys in the House

Catherine's post struck me. Ricky Moody, do you mind if I use your words to start?

Boys enter the house. First one, then the other. A husband, tall and strong. He has healing hands; he is a father. He works at the hospital, the good one, downtown just off the highway. He is essential personnel, so he doesn't get to take snow days. He has to work weekends. When this boy is home, things are easier, funnier, louder. The other one, my baby. My boy, carried in a car seat, enters the house trailing an arm's length behind daddy. This boy is all baby, but all boy. All spit bubbles and yelling and happy smiles and clear eyes that see right through you, no pretenses or posturing. Both boys are whole that way. Their eyes can't hide anything, so you always know what they want. This one wants time away, that one wants milk. This one wants more money, that one wants milk. This one wants his wife, that one wants his mama. They will keep entering this house, keep growing. One growing up and the other growing older. One will get stronger and the other will age. Boys enter the house, boys enter the house. My boys, both of them. Sometimes early but mostly late, one being carried and one doing the carrying. And me, 28 today, 68 tomorrow. I will keep watch as the house grows and swells, impossible love following them as they go from this house.