A New Year

 I'm all about the New Year's Resolutions. I like to stop and reflect at the end of each year and think about how I've changed and grown. I also like to be intentional about the upcoming year. A mentor of mine in college (my beloved RD, Koby) always talked to us about being intentional as we ministered to the women of Glide-Crawford. Being intentional is a life lesson that has stayed with me all these years since college. I think it's important to think about who I want to be and to take steps to get there. I don't want to turn around one day and wonder how I've become someone I never thought I'd be. 

Here is what I am not good at: giving stuff up. I have failed during many lents at the sacrifices I've told myself I would make. D. decided he would give up soft drinks for 2008, and he actually did it. I think he had a soft drink twice. Once, he had the stomach virus and he drank some Sprite. Once, he got a root beer float at Sonic without thinking. He is very disciplined. I am not so disciplined. 

So this year, I've decided that instead of giving something up, I want to add something to my life. I want to add more liturgy. That might sound a little strange, but it's something I've been thinking about for a while.  One of my favorite authors, Henri Nouwen, wrote these words: "It is not easy for us to truly believe... but every little gesture of trust will bring us closer to [the] truth" (Bread for the Journey). I think practicing liturgy is a way for us to make little gestures of trust. Sometimes the truths of scripture are hard for us to believe. We live in a world that sends us so many messages about who we are and about who God is that we are inundated from all sides. But when we speak the words of scripture or recite prayers that other believers have recited for hundred of years before us, we're making little steps toward allowing the truth to sink down deep into our hearts. 

So here are the practices we're going to engage in as a family: 

*Each day at breakfast and dinner, we are going to recite a scripture together. Something simple enough that Isaiah can remember it. We want to find a scripture that fits in with the part of the story the church is celebrating at this time. Right now, our scripture is "For unto us a child is born." Isaiah's got it. (Well, he says "a child is born.")

*I am making a book for Isaiah that talks about his belovedness in Christ. I am using the words to The Litany of the Person, which I will list below. I want Isaiah to know that he is deeply loved so very much. And the truth is, that when D. and I read this book to him, we can be reminded of our own belovedness as well. 

*Finally, and this was D.'s idea, we are choosing to sing a special song or hymn to Isaiah each night that fits in with the season of the church year. We sang "Silent Night" during advent, and now that we are celebrating Christmastide, we sing "Go Tell it on the Mountain." 

You get the idea. These steps are simple. They will take about 1 minute of my time each day, but the impact can be huge. 

A LITANY of the PERSON 

image of God

born of God's breath

vessel of divine Love

after his likeness

dwelling of God

capacity for the infinite

eternally known

chosen of God

home of Infinite Majesty

abiding in the Son

called from eternity

life in the Lord

temple of the Holy Spirit

branch of Christ

receptacle of the Most High

wellspring of Living Water

heir of the kingdom

the glory of God

abode of the trinity. 

God sings this litany 

eternally in His word. 

This is who you are. 

Quote of the Day

Me: "Isaiah, what do you want for your birthday?"

Isaiah: "I want cake!"

This will now be an occasional feature on our blog, and yes, he really said this with no prompting.

He is almost 2...

One of our gifts to ourselves and our families was to get professional portraits taken of Isaiah. We had to keep the pictures a secret, so this is their debut on our blog. They were taken at the beginning of November. 

Can you believe how handsome he looks? 

Can you believe how old he looks? 

34 Week Update

Yesterday we went to the doctor. All three of us went because we were scheduled to have an ultrasound. Isaiah wore his "big brother" t-shirt in the photo below. 

Baby brother weighs between 6 and 6.5 lbs, measuring 2 weeks ahead of schedule. That means he'll probably be a big one, just like Isaiah. The pictures don't quite capture what we saw. We really got to see his face a few times, and he is quite handsome. Oh, and just in case you were feeling doubtful, he is definitely a boy! 

Going it alone

I am spoiled. I am married to the most wonderful man; he is an amazing father and husband. He is so involved with raising Isaiah, and there is no job that is too "womanly" for him. Okay, so he doesn't make the grocery list, but still. So what this means is that I often have someone to call upon when I need help with Isaiah. You know... when the 34-week pregnant woman can't get up off the floor... or she can't pick up her son and carry him around like she used to... she can ask her sweet husband to help. 

But what happens when her husband goes away for a few days? He was going to a conference that is appropriately titled "Refresh." It is a conference for United Methodist Campus Ministers. A lot of his good friends were going to be there. How could I complain? I was a little nervous, I must admit. Three days all by myself with our high-energy boy. 

I have to say that we have made it. We are going to pick D. up at the airport in the morning. I have had a wonderful time hanging out with Isaiah. We played, we baked blueberry muffins together, Ella and Addie came over to play, and Isaiah also happened to sleep until close to 8 every morning. Sometimes I worry so much about making it without D. that I wish for the time to fly by, but I am grateful for a few days for Isaiah and I to spend together. He is such a blessing. And when he wakes up at 5 am and says to me "I wanna hug," what else is a mom to do? I hugged him. He went back to sleep. And he slept until 8:10.

Now if we can only make it to the airport in the morning...

We are getting ready...

Sweet Smile

You might not be aware that I have been gifted with a little boy who has the sweetest smile. I would post a picture, but it is really impossible to capture on camera. This smile includes dimples, and two front teeth with a tiny gap in between. It is the most beautiful, and the most captivating thing I have ever experienced. It is especially captivating when accompanied by the phrase "hey mama." 

If you are lucky enough to receive one of these smiles, you might never be the same. It might be hard to make this guy go to bed, or to refrain from giving him a cookie. It might be harder for you than it is for me. 

So I am a little curious... what if baby brother has a smile that is just as sweet? What if it is even more captivating? (I am not sure that is possible.) I don't know what I'm going to do... 

An Advent Prayer

Lord Jesus, Master of both the light and the darkness, 

send your Holy Spirit upon our preparations for Christmas. 

We who have so much to do seek quiet spaces to hear your voice each day. 

We who are anxious over many things look forward to your coming among us. 

We who are blessed in so many ways long for the complete joy of your kingdom. 

We whose hearts are heavy seek the joy of your presence. 

We are your people, walking in darkness, yet seeking the light. 

To you we say, "Come Lord Jesus!" 

--Henri Nouwen

"Baby Brober"

I need to update you on the life of baby brother. 

Isaiah often points to my belly and says "baby brober." We pray together for baby brother every night, and we talk about him a lot. We are getting very excited to meet him. 

I think you should know that this baby is getting BIG. He has not been the mover and shaker that Isaiah was when he was growing in my belly, but lately this boy has started to move. I feel like he must weigh 8 or 9 pounds already! It's not the same kind of crazy moving that Isaiah did... it's more like a lot of rolling. I like feeling him move a lot because it makes me excited to meet him. I can't wait to see what his personality is like and how it will be different from Isaiah's. 

We went to the doctor this week and everything is fine, and we will go again on December 18th. We are going to have our second ultrasound to measure the baby. Isaiah weighed 9 lbs, 8 oz, and the doctor is thinking this guy is going to be a big one too! 

As a side note, I washed and folded a lot of clothes this week. This baby does NOT need any more clothes. I can hardly fit them all in the dresser! We let a friend use Isaiah's clothes, and when they came back, I think there were some extras added in...

Vocab update

I have not updated you on Isaiah's ever expanding vocabulary lately... 

It is quite impressive. But really, do you know how much I talk? Do you know how much D. talks? Are you surprised that our child likes to talk too? 

Isaiah has been able to count to four for a while now... but today he counted to TEN! Okay, so he skips seven, but overall I think it's pretty impressive. 

A few weeks ago, Isaiah started saying his name. He says it like he's looking for himself when he's hiding... "i-AI-ah." It is quite possibly the cutest thing ever. 

We had such a wonderful time spending Thanksgiving with my family. They drove to meet us in Georgia, and we stayed at a cabin. Isaiah loves his cousin, who he calls "Naa-nah" (Anna) and he started saying "Ash-wey" (Ashley). He does not have Miles down, though. But of course, he says "Mema" and "Pop." 

Okay, I'll leave you with one last word: "ketchup." Yup. Loves it. I did tell him that cranberry sauce was ketchup over Thanksgiving, and he ate that right up too. I mean it's red and you dip in it, so it's close enough, right?