The Prettiest 9 Month Old Ever

This past weekend, Brett & I took Leah to our seminary campus to take some pictures with our fancy-schmancy new camera. Every year around our anniversary, we take our picture in the gazebo on campus where we got engaged. We had our picture taken here the day after we started dating, on our engagement, on our wedding, and all 3 anniversaries since. Now we have a picture including the newest addition to our family! Convieniently, it's also right around Leah's 9 month day so we saved ourselves some money from having to go to JC Penny to get those done.
We made a whole morning out of our photo adventure, even eating out for breakfast at the restaurant where we had our rehearsal dinner. We had so much fun and Leah did so great! The last few pictures were taken at home, just for fun. Check the photo website for all the photos.

A Day in the Life...

My birthday passed without a lot of fanfare (which was fine with me)-- just another day. I am blessed to be another year older and have another year to spend with my family.

Meanwhile, I've been taking pictures like crazy with my new toy! I have captured Leah in all the everyday ordinary activities she does. They may be nothing exciting, but maybe 10 years from now I'll want to look back and remember what she was like when she was this little. And why not? I have a great camera!







Touching something she probably shouldn't be...













This is her determined face. When she sees something she wants, there's no stopping her...











Violently kicking her legs up & down. She used to do one leg at a time, now it's both together...













Getting into the books on the entertainment center to which we've told her "no" many many times!













But I'm cute! How can you tell me "no"?



















Playing with the tag on the carpet. Tags are one of her favorite things...













Always taking time out to smile or laugh...


















This was actually taken on my cell phone at work in the church office. She headed straight for the locked safe. She ain't no dummy....

Movin' On Up

The past two days, our big girl has been trying as hard as she can to pull herself up to standing. And she's doing a great job! She still needs to figure out how to go from laying down to sitting up, but when she was in a sitting position, she put her hands on the coffee table and pulled up. Of course I was sitting right there to help a little, and to hold her once she was standing, but we'll keep practicing. Our next task was to immediately lower the crib one more setting. Knowing this girl, she'll tumble out trying to get something she sees on the floor outside her crib. This is going to require a whole new level of childproofing!

"I don't need you, Mommy! Look at me!"

Happy Mother's Day

This year, Mother's Day has a whole new meaning for me. I can hardly believe just 8 months ago, I was bestowed with this new title, "Mommy." (Well, technically I considered myself a mother last year, but not in the fullest extent of the word "mother.") It was a rough ride at the beginning, and I wasn't so sure I liked that title. When Leah was a newborn, there were days I wondered when the baby's real mommy was going to come pick her up. Now, I'm growing to love the title more and more every day as my little girl develops her own personality and her own quirks. It's still the hardest job I've ever had and probably ever will have. And it will probably only get harder-- especially considering I can solve most of a 9-month old's problems with a bottle of warm milk or a nap. I have a whole new appreciation for my own mother and for mothers everywhere.


I Timothy 2:15 says, "But women will be saved through childbearing—if they continue in faith, love and holiness with propriety." I heard a sermon on this the other day that got me to thinking of all the ways I have been sanctified through my role as a mother. I have seen my own depravity as I see how even though she's very young Leah still knows right from wrong in many cases. I have learned patience. I have learned endurance-- because being a mother is unending--just like Christ's love for us. These, and many more, are ways I have been sanctified as a mother. And oh what more I have to learn!































For Mother's Day and my birthday, Brett got me the digital camera we've been looking at for over a year now. My other one officially broke, so it was really a need. We wanted to make an investment in a nice one we'd be able to use for a long time. So the Canon Rebel XSI is almost like a professional-grade digital camera with removable lenses, super-zoom, etc. (I don't know all the technical terms). Yesterday I took Leah to a garden nearby to try out the new camera. There's a bunch more pictures coming soon on the photo website, but here are a few of my favorites.































































Brett took Leah out yesterday morning so I had a little time to myself, to catch up on sleep, and then this morning he cooked me breakfast. At church, I was recognized with a corsage for being the youngest mother. We don't have evening services tonight, so we enjoyed a nap (seeing as how someone was so excited about Mother's Day she woke up at 6am) and a relaxing day!

Before I Was a Mom

I'm not sure who wrote this, but this short poem really puts into words all the things I've been reflecting on today.

Before I Was a Mom

Before I was a Mom, I never tripped over toys or forgot words to a lullaby.
I didn't worry whether or not my plants were poisonous.
I never thought about immunizations.

Before I was a Mom, I had never been puked on. Pooped on. Chewed on. Peed on.
I had complete control of my mind and my thoughts.
I slept all night.

Before I was a Mom, I never held down a screaming child so doctors could do tests.
Or give shots.
I never looked into teary eyes and cried.
I never got gloriously happy over a simple grin.
I never sat up late hours at night watching a baby sleep.

Before I was a Mom, I never held a sleeping baby just because I didn't want to put him down.
I never felt my heart break into a million pieces when I couldn't stop the hurt.
I never knew that something so small could affect my life so much.
I never knew that I could love someone so much.
I never knew I would love being a Mom.

Before I was a Mom, I didn't know the feeling of having my heart outside my body..
I didn't know how special it could feel to feed a hungry baby.
I didn't know that bond between a mother and her child.
I didn't know that something so small could make me feel so important and happy.
Before I was a Mom, I had never gotten up in the middle of the night every 10 minutes to make sure all was okay.

I had never known the warmth, the joy, the love, the heartache, the wonderment or the satisfaction of being a Mom.
I didn't know I was capable of feeling so much, before I was a Mom.

Day at the Museum

Saturday Brett & I spent some time at the NC Museum of Science. We're so blessed to live in the state capital and be close to so many great things. I know Leah is too little to really appreciate this now, but I am excited about all the things she'll be able to experience in just a few years. I already saw a lot of great teaching opportunities while we were there.

We tried to get her to look at the big whale bones, but she was more interested in Daddy taking a picture.

Does it look like she's in nature?

Reading about types of soil in NC. Leah is really just into opening & closing things.

Touching the plants in the butterfly exhibit. It wasn't until she actually pulled a leaf off that I realized it was real. :)

We couldn't get a butterfly to land on her, so this is the best we could get. That really is a butterfly on the orange feeder thingy. Leah was more fascinated with the waterfall behind it.

8 months revisited

At long last... the 8 month old & the bear...