Lilly's Dedication

As parents, Tim and I have an incredible responsibility. Lilly's dedication, at The Creek Sunday, was a great celebration of that and the blessing that both her and Grant are in our lives and those of our families. You always hear "it takes a village to raise a child" and wow, that is SO true! We have such an amazing support system around us for our babies and we are so grateful. I pray constantly that Tim and I will live up to the model that our parents have shown and that Grant and Lilly will see the love we have for Christ, especially in our parenting. What an opportunity!! God is GOOD!

Yay for Spring!

The four of us (and Indy, too) are definitely suffering from serious cabin fever so we are grateful for the warmer weather lately. Grant, Lilly, Indy, and I have especially enjoyed dusting off the double stroller and making our rounds in the neighborhood for a little sightseeing and exercise for mommy and Indy. You can't beat fresh air, birds chirping, and the smell of spring!

Marshmallows and milk for Grant + Cheerios for Lilly = happy passengers, happy walk

Big Boy Bed

We finally broke down about three weeks ago and took the front railing off of my little man's crib. We were waiting until he started trying to climb out of it and sure enough, he did...that was the day we made the change! Even though it's another step into his independence I refuse to acknowledge the fact that he's growing up!!! He has been doing fantastic with the transition and has only challenged us a couple times so far. Grant's pretty proud of himself when he crawls up into his new bed - so cute and sweet!

Testing out the new setup!

Grant's favorite toy - GeoTrax!

And She's Off!

Wow, what a difference a couple weeks can make in the life of an infant! It literally was just a few days ago that Lilly figured out how to crawl, but she has quickly progressed and we're hedging our bets for an earlier-than-average walker. She is absolutely LOVING her independence...hmm, wonder where she gets that from!

She pulls herself up on everything (even walls!), has crawled inside a kitchen cabinet or two, and is just dying to walk at any minute. She needs to keep up with her brother after all! I'd almost forgotten what it was like to baby proof, but Lilly has sent me a sweet little reminder. What a gift she is! Praise God for her!!

At It Again...

The latest experiment...Happy St. Patty's Day!

Please Pray

For a couple weeks I've been very intently following a blog that one of my high school friends posted on her FB page: www.maggiebixler.blogspot.com. Maggie Bixler is a precious little girl who was diagnosed with cancer at 8 1/2 months. Lilly is 8 1/2 months and wow - this story has put many things into perspective for me and made me do some serious reality checks on a daily basis. I have NOTHING to complain about...

Although it's an absolutely heartbreaking story, Maggie's parents have displayed enormous strength through a journey of ups and downs, progress and disappointment, and a sense helplessness that I can't even begin to imagine. Maggie and her family are in need of prayer from all of us...she continues to persevere through complications, but is recently struggling. Please pray for a miracle for Maggie!

Mooooo!!!

Warning for the guys reading this...might be TMI. But, it's MY blog and I feel like writing :)

So,. around here I'm lovingly known by Tim as a "machine" when it comes to producing breast milk. I often feel like maybe I'm a reincarnated cow straight out of a dairy farm. Ha ha!

Similar to my situation when I nursed Grant, I once again have quite a stock pile of frozen milk taking up way too much space in our freezer. I've been SO lucky to have a more than an adequate supply with both of my precious babies even with going to back to work full time. By now, I've probably made money on my pump hand over fist - what a small investment compared to what I've saved!!! It's a labor of love and I admit there are times when I feel a bit tied down by it all, but in the end I wouldn't trade the precious moments when I nursed Grant, and now Lilly, and them melting into my arms. Chokes me up a bit to think it'll be over soon with my little girl.

Now to the point of this ramble...I've been procrastinating doing anything about the freezer situation because, well, I'm just too stinkin' busy sometimes! But, a short news story a few weeks ago spurred me into action:

http://www.wthr.com/global/story.asp?s=11954778

I dropped off over 100 ounces of breast milk today to the Indiana Mother's Milk Bank to hopefully go to the NICU's in Haiti or here in Indianapolis! I donated three separate times with Grant because I was obsessed with making sure I had enough for him. Yep, I had enough and then some!

With my reclaimed freezer space it made me think about a couple things: making and freezing more cookies to decorate, and more importantly just "helping". Our pastor at church gave a sermon Sunday on the very topic and it's pretty simple. We need to help each whenever we get the chance...use our strengths no matter what that may mean. It doesn't have to be complicated...it could be as simple as some frozen milk.