A night caught on film

Tonight was a picture night at home, and I wanted to share them with you. Here are more pictures of the girl enjoying sitting up. She's makes the best faces!








Here is the boy's favorite funny face and showing off his "lovie" - bunny!








Then there was bath time. It's been moved to our nightly ritual since the boy is playing so hard these days. We bathe him, and then he plays while the girls gets clean. He spends most of his time moving letters around and telling you what they are. Can't you hear him squeal with delight as water pours over his head? And this is an "n"!

Creating a monster?

I fear I am creating a monster...a mini-version of myself. I found the boy lining up his magnetic letters a few weeks ago...followed by lining up his books on the ottoman. He worked meticulously to make sure they were all even.

Heaven help us if he is as much of a perfectionist as I am - I'm not sure we can handle two in the same house!!!

Lovin' sittin' up

This is definitely her preferred position...guess it's time to invest in a Bumbo seat since manipulating the Boppy isn't the most stable thing and she isn't strong enough to keep from toppling over!

Outside fun

Thanks to our neighbors, we have two great outdoor toys. The boy LOVES to be outside. He tries to follow the dog out there, and often cries when it is time to come inside. We had a great time playing Monday morning while the girl slept. It hasn't gotten too hot yet so outdoor play is still enjoyable. I caught some great pictures of the fun. He spent the first minutes walking around the deck singing and then ventured out into the backyard. It is such a joy to watch him enjoying God's creation - like any good boy, he found a stick to play with! I also find myself doing double-takes as he continue to be less and less of a baby. He is gaining confidence to venture out on his own, and his imagination is expanding too. Again, this is the best job.

Funny faces

I pulled out the camera over a week ago to catch some fun faces. Trying to get some pictures of Clay and his girl, the boy kept jumping in front of the camera! We finally caught one of the three of them together... and all these other fun funny faces!

Baby dedication

Sunday was special not only because we celebrated Mother's Day, but our girl was dedicated. I love our church's baby dedication. It is really more a parent dedication. They have a nice dinner on Friday night (this time it was steak and potatoes!) where they spend time talking about what our responsibilities as parents are. They remind us that we can't leave it up to the church to disciple our children - it is our job. What an awesome responsibility. They print out the commitment we are making for us to sign making it more than just words. This dedication was also special because 4 of the other 5 babies (and that wasn't everyone - we are quite a fertile church!) are daughters of gals in my accountability group. It was a special treat to worship with my parents and sister, dedicate ourselves to raising this little girl to know and love God, and to celebrate mothers (being one and having them).

Such a sweet sound

The boy melted my heart today (as he so often does, but I think this takes the cake so far)...he said MOMMMY!!! Well, at least his version which sounds a bit more like money, but whatever is fine - HE CALLED ME SOMETHING!!!! We were simply playing the "name this" game and for the first time he repeated "mommy". Fortunately my mom was here to witness the event so it really is real! She worked with him on it Friday night and he said "money" a couple of times, but failed to show it off. I tell you I didn't think I could love the little man any more than I already did, but somehow I do.

And before he said my name, he said the closest thing to Elizabeth he has said to this point. Usually it comes out "o-beth", but today it sure sounded like "Lizbeth".

And the girl continues to amaze me as she rolls over and tries to sit up. I could just eat her up! Such sweet moments, smiles and coos after some very trying weeks.

Have I told you how much I LOVE being a mom? I can't imagine a better job.

News

There are many things I need to blog about, but the time keeps slipping by these days. It has been a busy May so far, but for good reason - lots of things to celebrate! I'll get pictures of the kids up soon and share about the girl's baby dedication.

I thought I would take a moment and make sure I had told you that the girl has rolled over multiple times! It only happens when she is really upset while on her tummy, but it has happened at least a handful of times. I have yet to catch it on camera, but when you know she was on her tummy and you then find her on her back there is no other explanation!

The boy learned a new song yesterday. I just love the praise of children, and watching him move along as he sings just melts my heart. Praise Him, praise Him, all ye little children. God is love. God is love. Praise Him, praise Him, all ye little children. God is love. God is love. I love that our boy is learning these things early.

He gave me a wonderful Mother's Day present - he said "wuv you"!!! I just stopped in my tracks. More to come...

A night away

This is where I spent last night...well, actually in a little cottage on the side of the property. Clay surprised me with a night away to celebrate my birthday and our 8th anniversary (this Tuesday). Mom and Dad came and kept the kids so we could slip away for a night of rest, relaxation, reconnection, and rejuvenation.
Lockheart Gables created the perfect atmosphere for just such a celebration. Nestled along the interstate, it is a perfect getaway across town. Close enough to the little ones, but secluded enough to feel like we were a hundred miles away. Amazing hospitality, personalized ginger cookies, and amazing fresh lemonade welcomed us to our cozy "Beloved Cottage." Adorned with Victorian decor, the romantic feeling of the three-room cottage enveloped us from the moment we stepped through the door. A king-size bed, covered porch with swing, remote-controlled fireplace, and heart-shaped tub made the evening and morning full of movie moments as I like to call them. I couldn't have asked for more. I will spare you all the details, but what a blessed time to recall where God has brought us, to look ahead to where He is taking us, and to recommit to the promise we made 8 years ago. My best friend and partner in life hit this one out of the park!

Finally caught a smile

I just love this picture! But I finally caught her smiling on camera along with a few other adorable faces. It just melts our hearts.

Yes, Jesus Loves Me

Before we get to the music portion of this post, I caught the boy in action...do you see the number in the top right corner of the TV? We were watching Millionaire, and he counted down with the numbers! He has a tendency to count along with any numbers he sees - the counter on the TV if we pause it, the numbers on his toys, etc. He is counting almost to twenty now...what a smart boy!






Now to the music portion -
If only you could hear him "sing" Yes, Jesus Loves Me...I missed the first part, but here he is in route to pointing to himself.











He has just opened his Bible. This is a word he says with quite a bit of clarity. Makes my heart swell - he still won't say Mommy, but as long as he knows about Jesus, I don't care!











And here is his "so" - he gets quite excited! Clapping and "yeah" commence each song. Ah, the praise of children.

A few new links

I've added/changed a couple of links, and I wanted you to know.

Mckelveymaghshoud.com now links directly to the journal side of the website which is what I read to catch up on my friend, her family and her website business.

Until Next Time...is a new blog of a dear friend and her family.

The LPM Blog is a blog for Living Proof Ministries led by Beth Moore. It is amazing to read Beth's entries...it's almost like she's sitting in my living room.

And there's Encouragement for today (from crosswalk.com)...a daily devotional that has really reached out to me.

Hope you enjoy these...and the two new posts below.

A birthday bash

The boy celebrated being 22-months old today by going to a friend's 2nd birthday bash. Bailey got a great sand and water table along with a swing set...and man the boy had some fun! He loves water so he was pretty partial to that part of the table...the pictures don't capture it all and I'm not sure exactly how the saga began. When I stepped inside to feed a hungry little girl, the boy was happy and dry. When I returned, he was completely soaked with bits of sand all over him and crying. Bailey's dad got us a towel, we removed his t-shirt, put on a borrowed shirt from Bailey, and tried to settle him. He was gladly distracted by cake and ice cream. He ate both with his hands while waving his spoon around and ended up with it on his head, face, replacement shirt and towel. We ended up with him in their bathtub and left in a second replacement shirt and a diaper. He had a blast at the party!!! I must say it was quite comical...and fortunately the birthday girl was none the wiser!








Here's a shot of dads and their daughters. These girls are both the second children in their families with older brothers and were born only 5 weeks apart. This just melts my heart...just like these dads' hearts melted when they held their daughters for the first time.