Just For Fun

Just for fun, here are a few comparison shots of Catherine and Will at the same age:

Catherine at her 1st birthday party:

Will at his 1st birthday party:

Catherine walking with the school bus at Christmas. She was 12 months old.

Will learning to push the school bus (11 months old).

Will definitely has more hair than Catherine did at this age. And he's obviously much thicker. But you can certainly tell that they're brother and sister. The part that doesn't make sense to me is that even though Will is bigger than Catherine was when she turned one, I feel like he's still more of a baby. Maybe it's because everything he does is now being compared to a 2 1/2 year old, so it seems more baby-ish. I don't know, but I do know that it's so much fun to watch them grow up.

Will's Birthday Party

On Saturday, we celebrated Will's First Birthday with our families and a few close friends. We had a fire truck birthday party at the park. It was so much fun to celebrate the wonderful year God has given us with Will. Will is such a special little boy, and God has given me joy through having a son that I didn't anticipate. I love this little man beyond description.

So here are a few pics from the party:
The birthday boy!

I had planned a fire truck birthday party theme. Much to my surprise, Jay arranged for a real fire truck to come to the party. The kids thought it was great, but I was probably more excited than anybody!

Will eating his first cupcake--at first he just liked to mush it up in his hand, but then he caught on that he was supposed to eat it. He seemed to enjoy it (surprise, surprise).

Is it all gone?

Will's true birthday isn't until Wednesday, so I'm sure I'll have a few more pics and things to share then.

When You Have a Big Sister....

When you have a big sister, you sometimes end up with Princess panties on your head at 7:30am!

Catherine really is such a great big sister. She loves her baby brother so much and helps take care of him. I love to hear her talk with him when she thinks I'm not listening. She definitely likes to be the little mommy and tell him what he can and can't do. She also lovingly refers to him as "chunk-o" and "chunky man". We'll have to do something about that before Will is old enough to be self-conscious about it!

They are so sweet together. I'm such a lucky mom!

Seeing Spots

Yesterday morning Will developed a few spots on the back of his neck. By the afternoon, he had a few on his stomach too. By last night he had probably 100 spots. And this morning, there are a lot and they're bigger. I talked with our pediatrician and he said it's probably a viral rash. Will doesn't seem to feel bad, he isn't running a fever, and they don't itch. So as long as he doesn't start having swelling on his lips or trouble breathing, he should be okay soon. He does look a little funny though. Poor guy!

Spots all over!

Ring around the belly button

If you look closely, his entire ear is actually red and swollen too.

The Truth #18

Truth #18 from Lies Women Believe is Personal holiness is more important than temporal happiness. My happiness is not the highest good, nor is it my right. God did not save us to make us happy or so that we can live for ourselves or our own pleasure. He saved us so that we can be free to live for Him. We were created for His pleasure. Holiness requires sacrifices of our own personal comfort and convenience. But any sacrifice we make cannot be compared with the joy and fulfillment we will gain in eternity.

Ephesians 5:26-27 "...to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless."

I think this is one of the areas our current culture has been terribly deceived about. Everyone thinks that the goal of life is to be happy. And people are willing to do anything that they think will bring them more happiness. More money, bigger house, new car, different spouse, better job, on and on it goes in the search for "happiness". None of those things will ever make you happy. You'll drive yourself crazy if all you do is frantically search for happiness. That longing in your soul for "happiness" can only be filled by God. And it's not really an ache for happiness, but for holiness.

The first time I really started to understand this was after reading Sacred Marriage. The basis of the book is that God uses marriage to make you holy, not happy. That very much goes against most people's reasoning for getting (or staying) married. But as I grow in my marriage, I am learning how true that really is. And marriage is just one example. Really, all experiences and relationships here on earth are designed for the purpose of glorifying God and drawing you closer to Him.

The Truth #17

Truth #17 from Lies Women Believe is that In the will of God, there is no higher and holier calling than to be a wife and mother. True joy comes from discovering why God made us and embracing his purpose and design. God made women to be a helper to her husband and a bearer and nurturer of life. To make a home, to be united with one man in glorifying God, to nurture and tend the lives of children and grandchildren, to deny oneself and lay down one's life on behalf of others--there is no higher calling and no greater joy.

Titus 2:4-5 "Then they can train the younger women to love their husbands and children, to be self-controlled and pure, to be busy at home, to be kind, and to be subject to their husbands, so that no one will malign the word of God." This is actually the passage of Scripture our new Mentor Mom study is based on. I think it's very interesting that the reason a woman is to do all of the things listed is in order to glorify God and point people to the gospel.

Some of my other favorite wife verses come from Proverbs 31 "A wife of noble character, who can find? She is worth far more than rubies. Her husband has full confidence in her and lacks nothing of value. She brings him good, not harm, all the days of her life...She speaks with wisdom and faithful instruction is on her tongue. She watches over the affairs of her household and does not eat the bread of idleness. Her children arise and call her blessed, her husband also and he praises her. Many women do noble things, but you surpass them all. Charm is deceptive and beauty is fleeting but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised. Give her the reward she has earned, and let her works bring her praise at the city gate."

It is my prayer of thankfulness that God has given me Jay, Catherine, and Will to care for. It is my joy to be Jay's wife and Catherine and Will's mom. There is nothing in this world I would rather do.

This Time Last Year

This time last year, I was very, very pregnant and sooooo ready to have a baby! I was already 3cm dilated (even though my official due date wasn't until Oct 9) and was rather uncomfortable. It had been a very long pregnancy and I was ready to meet this little baby. We still didn't know if we would be welcoming baby Will or baby Claire to our family. But we still had 2 more weeks to wait.....