Nine months!

Guess who is 9 months already!?

Lucy Jane!

She weighs 20 pounds, 12 ounces. 

Aidan wanted to be in the nine month photo shoot too.  At 3 years & 7 months old, he weighs 35 pounds, 2 ounces. (We were at the doctor yesterday so I know their exact weights.)  

Aidan's big news is that he is potty trained!  Yay!  Aidan was the quickest learner - it took just a day and he's had no accidents since.  I am so proud of him!

He has been the best big brother; he prides himself in being able to make Lucy laugh her deep belly-laugh and being the only one who can get her to open her mouth when she doesn't feel like eating solids.

Lucy's baptism into the covenant of grace is this Sunday, February 23.

Brian came home during our photo shoot yesterday so we could get a picture of Lucy for the bulletin.

The boys were being so silly; Lucy wasn't too sure what to think!

These two love their daddy.  I do too - he IS the best.

I believe this is the picture Brian used for the baptism announcement:

I love Genesis 17:7 and what it signifies for children of believers:

(And isn't my pastor-turned-graphic-designer-husband so talented?!)

I just wept as I stared at her picture and pondered God's promise to be her God.  It's grace nearly too amazing to comprehend.

Oh, Lucy-girl, I just pray so fervently that your baptism is a blessing and not a curse; that you will love the LORD with all your heart, soul, mind and strength all of your days; and that you love the law and the One who has perfectly fulfilled the law, treasuring Him above all else.

We have family coming into town in honor of her baptism; we look forward to celebrating with them.

On another note, a huge snow storm hit north Iowa last night.  It was great fun; we played outside in the afternoon.  It was the first time I'd bundled Lucy up in her snowsuit and wore her in my sling (your name was mentioned, Naomi Ching!).

Aidan made his way over to the church playground, but the snow was too wet & heavy for him to slide down the slide.  Instead, he sat there eating snowball as if it were an apple.  We seriously couldn't interest him in anything else!

Leo is home!

My parents took exceptional care of him for 9 months, and we couldn't be more thankful for all the love they gave him.  Now I finally am energetic enough to keep up with two kids and give the dog the attention and exercise that he deserves.

Love this man!

Once we coaxed Aidan from the slide, he helped Brian make snowmen.  They are so cute!  It's fun to see the expressions on people's faces when they drive by.

Our power went out just before 9 pm; it was thrilling to use candles as we put the kids to bed.  It's something about candlelight that makes story time so cozy.

I was relieved, though, when I woke up at 6 to all the lights on! And it was warm!  I'm very thankful to the crews who worked in the treacherous weather to restore our electricity.

It is so beautiful outside.  Leo and I romped around this morning, but it was so deep we couldn't move very quickly.

I've heard so many people say that this has been the longest and weariest winter.  It's comforting to know I'm not the only one feeling that way.

I'm so grateful to the LORD for my family and warm home.  We've been playing lots of games; Aidan's favorites are Old Maid, Memory and Hi-Ho Cherry-O.

Lucy loves this mini-gym and so often gets herself twisted up.  She's such a mover & a shaker.  In the picture below, she's totally collapsed it.  She is so hilarious.  I just love her spunk.

That's the winter update!  Thanks for taking the time to read my neglected blog. :)