iwantone

So, to make a very long story very short.  I do not have good luck with phones.  I think they hate me.  So for the past year and a half, I've had different issues on and off.  (Don't get an LG Neon!  They are defective.)  My Christmas/birthday present from Josh is to get a new iphone 4, but I am not eligible for an upgrade until March.

So,  I was left needing a phone that works, but not wanting to buy a new one when I could get an iphone if I wait a few more months.  My sister, Lindsey stepped in and saved the day by letting my borrow her iphone (which she was not using the phone function on) until that point.  First of all, I love it.  But secondly, it reminded me of this post from Dave Barnes' blog.  It literally made me laugh out loud, so go read it.

I also found this photo on his blog.  Which has absolutely nothing to do with iphones, but still makes me laugh.

Growing Girl

Sophia has gone from baby to toddler in just a few short weeks.  She is now walking everywhere and has developed a little stubborn streak. She is saying a lot more words and repeating things when the mood strikes her.  She will pick up books on her own and "read" them by babbling some language that I don't yet understand.   And she loves bath time in the big girl tub with her toy fish. 

 Oh, and she likes to cheese for the camera.  (Which we did not teach her to do.)

The change between 12 months and 13 months has shocked me.  I was expecting it when she turned one, but somehow thought time would slow down for me after that.  Now, we are coming up on 14 months and I keep staring at her wondering when my baby turned into a little girl.

But enough sappy stuff.  I only meant to comment on ways she has been learning and growing.  :)  It is definitely more interesting learning to parent and train her as she grows more independent. She is still a little tyke though.    I think she was around 3% for weight at the 1 year visit and 12% for height.  (But still taller than mommy was around that time.)   We took her back last month to make sure she was gaining weight well, and she had gained 5 oz to make it to a whopping 17 lb, 3 oz.  She just tends toward petite I guess.  Though the addition of whole milk is putting some fat rolls on her. :)

She's doing much better about sleeping through the night, which was probably helped along by the weight gain.  And the fact that 3 out of 4 molars are now through - #4 is on it's way, and I hope after this we get a little break from teething.  That will bring the total to 10 teeth!

So maybe you don't care too much about all the details, but I suppose one day I will be difficult to remember, so I'm keeping a record.  ;)  Basically, we love our girl!

Snow Play

 Sophi's first experience going out in the snow involved 20 minutes getting ready and warm, but only about 5 minutes outside.

 We don't really have a snowsuit for her, but we made do with lots of layers and a pair of boots that will probably fit better next winter.

 She wasn't sure what to think of the mittens.  :)

 All ready to go play!

 She loved exploring and wanted to get down and walk around
.

 But some combination of too-big boots and snow covered ground made her end up on the ground a lot.

 Whenever we laid down to make a snow angel, the flurries of snow were falling in her face.  I promise she was not crying. 

 Daddy tried to get her to lick some snow.

 The first thing she did when we got in was go over to see the doggie.  :)  (Note the cute scarf hand-made by Aunt Kati.)

A Book a Month

So, I don't do New Year's resolutions. But my friend, Emily and I were discussing books and I definitely did not read as much last year as I would have liked. (Something about not being able to keep my eyes open.) Josh and I did listen to some great books on cd and I'm sure we will try to keep finding new ones. I thought I would be fun though to set a goal of one book a month and do some reading that is not just fiction. So here is a list of books I would like to read.  So far this month I have been working on LOTR on cd, but eventually I will try to read instead of just listen.  :)

What is your favorite book?

~ Outlive Your Life by Max Lucado
~ The Lord of the Rings Trilogy
~ Shepherding a Child's Heart
~ Beth Moore study
~ Photography book
~ Tender Mercy for a Mother's Soul: Inspiration to Renew Your Spirit By Angela Thomas
~ Her Royal Spyness by Rhys Bowen
~ A Series of Unfortunate Events
~ Interrupted: An Adventure in Relearning the Essentials of Faith By Jen Hatmaker
~ The Hole in Our Gospel: What does God expect of Us? The Answer that Changed my Life and Might Just Change the World By Richard Stearns
~ Accompanied by Angels: Poems of the Incarnation by Luci Shaw

Wordless Wednesday

Christmas Travels

This Christmas we traveled to Arkansas. We left on Christmas Eve and drove ... and drove ... and drove. What should have been a 7 or 8 hour drive was turned into a 10 hour drive thanks to the "White Christmas" aka snowy weather. Sophi serenaded us with accompaniment at the top of her lungs for a little less than half of it.

After a horrible trip in the car, we had a wonderful visit. A house had been rented that was large enough for all the families to have a room. It had a game area in the basement (taken over almost immediately by the guys, their game systems, cards, and ping pong). There was also a heated pool that everyone enjoyed.

Sophi loved being down and exploring.

The living room had a step down area and she loved playing on the steps.

It was actually perfect, because I could let her enjoy them without worrying she would fall.

Which was helped by quite a few extra pairs of eyes.


She also enjoyed walking in circles around this table.

I had to get a pictures of Krystal in this chair because I thought it looked like a throne. Which is really appropriate since she remains the queen of her house after finding out that they are expecting boy #4! Of course, we are all sure he will be just as charming as his big brothers.

But she does take the time to spoil her little princess nieces. And she knows chocolate is the way to a girls heart. :)
We missed Matthew, Whitney, and Emery, but are looking forward to celebrating Christmas with them (and the rest of the gang) in Ohio later this month.

Home for the Holidays

aka In which I attempt to cram all of our Christmas adventures into one post and fail miserably

I thought I would share a few highlights from our wonderful Christmas season.

This year was especially fun since Sophi is starting to get in on the action. She enjoys the decorations. We got this gate for my piece of mind, but have had the gate down all weekend (since Josh and I are both here to watch things) and she really hasn't bothered it at all.

At a family Christmas for Josh's extended family, we always get a visit from Santa. Sophi wasn't too keen on being left in his lap, but was happy to stare from mine.

Santa gave her a teddy bear that she loved.

Although Sophi didn't understand what all the excitement was about, she was ready to dig in to the presents.

And even though she is a wonderful gift to us, she didn't like being reminded of it.

This gift from Aunt Kati and Alex was a smash hit. She walked back and forth across our living room the rest of the night. (Needing a little help each time she was ready to turn around.)

And even though we don't really play with cars, she was making appropriate noises the whole time. You know, the kind that you can't really spell out.

She is also in a phase of giving kisses to her toys which is so sweet. She was moving in for a smooch on this gift from her Great Aunt Carolyn.

Here is Sophi with her sweet little cousin of some number ... second, third, I don't know how to do the math. But Josh's cousin gave birth to Jack on the same day that my sister Lindsey is due to the deliver her sweetie. Well, different years obviously. They had a good time playing together on Christmas Eve.

All Things New

I love the new year because it feels so fresh. It's like a blank page spread out before us. In truth, it is nothing more than marking the passage of time. Yet we, as a culture, embrace it so readily - the desire for a new beginning. I love these verses because they remind me that I do not have to wait until December 31st to have a begin anew.

<sup>Lamentations 3:21-24

21</sup> Yet this I call to mind
and therefore I have hope:

²² Because of the LORD’s great love we are not consumed,
for his compassions never fail.
²³ They are new every morning;
great is your faithfulness.
²⁴ I say to myself, “The LORD is my portion;
therefore I will wait for him."

Because of who You are and who I am in you
You make all things pure
Because of who You are and who I am in You
You make all things true
You make all things new

And I'm so thankful for this life that I know
That I am no longer what I was
Because of Your love
And the beauty of the cross
I can see Your work in me
All things new
All things new in me
All things new
All things new in me

(Lyrics from All Things New by Watermark)

Happy New Year! May your year be filled with mercy, hope, and love found in our Lord.