8 Months

Our healthy girly is 8 months old now (actually, more than that now). No well visit this month, but I did take her to the mall the other day and weighed her on the little kids scale at the play place...18 lbs. exactly. At 8 months, she's pulling up on things onto her knees, crawling, saying "mama" (although Nick says it's wishful thinking on my part, that she's really just saying her m's.) , feeding herself finger food, smiley, and getting more emotionally attached to Nick and me. I love this age! (I guess I've said that about every age, so it just keeps getting more and more fun.) Children are a blessing from the Lord...Amen!

Who's who?

I guess I did pass some genes on to this girl who's nickname is "Little Nick". :)

Fun with the Laundry (Again!)

Some of these pictures look so much like my baby pictures...now I see why my mom says she's looking very familiar (especially the 3rd one down) . Kathryn gets such a thrill out of laundry baskets!

New Camera Pictures

Well, Kathryn did an official sitting for my photo shoot today....I had so much fun experimenting with the new camera. Sorry if the next few posts are picture overload. I promise I'll settle down in a few days. :)

She Loves Her Daddy

I saw Nick's and Kathryn's shoes next to each other, and it struck me how small her little feet are! Had to get a picture. :)

Thank you, Nick!

My husband is awesome. Today I went to see him in his office and he surprised me with pulling out a new camera for me! I couldn't believe it...I was/am totally surprised. I had mentioned that I really liked the SLR digital cameras, that they took better pictures than my point and shoot digital. And my Sweetie got the VERY camera I was thinking about. I started crying when he pulled it out, it was so very thoughtful of him. Thank you, my Love! You're THE BEST!!!!

Like a River Glorious

Kathryn woke up sick last night, which made for a quiet day of special time together today since she was still did not seem to be feeling well. Throughout the day, the Lord brought the words of the hymn "Like a River Glorious" to my mind. Here is the first verse and the chorus:

Like a river glorious is God's perfect peace
Over all victorious in its bright increase
Perfect, yet it floweth fuller every day
Perfect, yet it groweth deeper all the way

Stayed upon Jehovah, hearts are fully blessed
Finding as He promised
Perfect peace and rest

As a side note, I've been going through some material on "seasons" of life, preparing for a Womens Ministry event in November. One of the messages I listened to was by Carolyn Mahaney, talking about taking advantage of whatever season you're in at present. It was so convicting and inspiring. She mentioned that with her last child she enjoyed each particular stage more, knowing it would go by so quickly. So with that message still fresh in my mind today, the Lord really spoke to my heart through the words of the hymn. In the midst of lots of cuddle time and neediness, extra feedings, and holding Kathryn a lot, I realized that I loved every minute of it. I don't say that to seem super holy, but to dwell on the fact that apart from God's grace in my life, I would have no peace at all. My life-long temptation has always been to lack contentment and look ahead to the next season of life. So what a pleasant surprise to find myself realizing that God has given me peace and joy in this season of my life. That I didn't want to be anywhere else today than where God had placed me; enjoying my husband, enjoying caring for my daughter, enjoying being home. All glory goes to God, and may He continue this work in me, as there is always more room to grow!

Life goes on...

Saturday's "Mommy- Kathryn date" at the park

"Hmmm, I wonder if I can get into Mom's sewing boxes"
(note from Mom: She can!)

Can't resist this face for a sweet hug!

Meal time...

...The joys of self-feeding. Added convenience, added mess! (Click on the picture to enlarge it, so you can see how much food she has on her face)

And she's growing up...

"Helping" me cook...Actually, I think it's called starting to get into things! It's fun to see Kathryn's curiosity, but it does mean I have to keep a closer eye on her.

Standing!

So many temptations in our non-baby-proof house...

Caught Red handed!

Kathryn got so excited tonight when I turned on the water for her bath...She was trying to climb into the tub herself.

Lazy 5 Ranch

On Monday for Nick's day off, we headed up to Lazy 5 Ranch with Joe and Jeanie. We had a blast! It was as close as I've ever gotten to a Safari, minus the dangerous animals. We took an hour long hay ride through the habitats, with animals coming right up to us to be fed. My favorites included lots of ostriches, antelope, water buffalo, a Texas Longhorn, Bison, and Giraffes. And there were the cutest little baby pot bellied pigs running around (which goes to show, as Jeanie said, that anything can be cute when it's little!)

This picture is slightly deceiving, as Kathryn was more interested in trying to put rocks in her mouth than in looking at the goats. But there were lots of little baby goats that were quite cute. Again, proving our theory that anything can be cute when it's a baby.

"You should try the hay...it's quite good!"

Happy Girly

Look at all those teeth! Aren't they cute?

An Antelope, I think

Feeding a buffalo!

It was so cool to be this close to giraffes!

Fun at the Park

Yesterday our Playgroup met at the park...Kathryn's first time on a swing. As you can see by the pictures, she loved it! I just love her little laughs and smiles!

Our Playgroup (minus a few). At least we call it a playgroup...really it's just an excuse for the moms to have fun together. :)

A Conviction Quote

"When words are many, sin is not absent, but he who holds his tongue is wise." Proverbs 10:19

"Hypocrisy and slander are not the only sins of the tongue. There is the sin of egotism. We love to hear ourselves talk and to present our own judgments intrusively...One meets with people in the world who never seem to have made the wise man's observation that 'there is a time to keep silence.' ...Since the sin is linked to many words, it is surely wise to hold our tongue- not in silence, but in caution; to weigh our words before uttering them; never speaking except when we have something to say; speaking only just enough; considering the time, the person, and the circumstances." Charles Bridges

How truly convicting, Mr. Bridges! So very often I find I have spoken many unhelpful words and am often guilty of the sin of egotism, as he puts it. (I am thankful for very forbearing friends and family!) May I grow by grace to pattern my life around Ephesians 4:29-

"Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear."

Once again, Kathryn's idea of "helping." :)
There is a picture in my baby book of me "playing" the piano at about age 2 or 3. My mom captioned it as "Never too young to Twinkle." I think the same heading could go for this picture. She was a little perplexed at the sounds that were coming out of the piano, but she seemed to enjoy making noise.

Aha!

I was wondering why Kathryn seemed more fussy than usual this week (which still is not very much!), ran a fever, got a cold, and didn't want to eat....I think I discovered the culprits this morning...4 teeth coming in on top! All at once! Poor girly. No wonder she was having a hard time.

6 Months...a little late

I took Kathryn in for her (belated) 6 month checkup last week. At 7 months, she weighs 17 lbs. 11 oz. (75th percentile) and is 26 3/4 inches (also 75th percentile). So our little kiddo is growing quickly! Her new favorite thing to do is feed herself...cheerios, peas, anything that she can try to pick up (including ANY little scrap of paper left on the floor!) She's getting around quite quickly now with her army crawl, and I think she was practicing crawling on all fours when she was supposed to be taking a nap this afternoon. That's what it looked like when I went to check on her, anyway. :)

The last two weeks have actually been a little harder for me, in that she has not been quite so predictable as she has been before. In the midst of dropping her last night feeding and dropping her 3rd nap, I feel like there is constant transition. I really feel like the Lord is using these circumstances to reveal my heart...my ever present idol of ease. Ah. And selfishness...life looks a little different with a crawler. :) I am reminded what several seasoned moms have said, that babies really are always changing. As soon as you think you've got them on a routine, something changes. Perhaps that is the Lord's way of increasing my dependence on Him. I so love having everything predictable, and the Lord is stretching that part of me a little bit these days. I'm thankful He never leaves me comfortable with relying on my own strength for very long!

Here are some recent pics:

"Pirate Kathryn" at Jake's Birthday Party

Just like her Dad, that tongue always sticks out when she's concentrating on something!

"Helping"

Waiting for Daddy to get home from work...she gets so excited when she sees him!