Cuteness is Reason Enough

Cheeks!

Not quite big enough for the exer-saucer. We tried!

Major attitude. I can't imagine where that comes from.

Bliss!

Friends and Firsts

In comparison to our mostly hermit-like summer, the past week has been rather busy. We had a visit from Adam, Maria, and their new addition, Delia! She was born two weeks ago and was almost the exact same weight and length as Adeline at birth. I've already forgotten that Addie was that small. Amazing how the brain forgets. We're all excited about the future friendship these girls will have.

Addie rolled again. This was her reaction. Priceless.

Our friends, the Blakes, were staying at a hotel for the wedding of other friends (the Wulffs). They invited us for a swim. This was Addie's first pool experience. She lasted about 10 minutes before letting us know she had had enough.

In contrast, she loves bath time. And she looks pretty stinking cute afterwards.

Back to the Wulff wedding-- Gerrit and I got to get all gussied up for the occasion. Last time I wore that dress was the day after I found out I was pregnant. Oh my!

My sister, Carey, was gracious enough to babysit. Addie was a crabby-pants for much of the evening. Sorry, Carey!

Adam, Matt B., Matt W. (the groom), and Gerrit are all high school buddies.

The day was blazing hot, but the wedding was gorgeous. We had a great time! Congrats to Matt and Emily!

Our Growing Girl

Can you believe it? The Bean is 2 months old! What a lady. She's turning into quite the little chunker. Look at those cheeks! At her last check-up, she weighed in at a whopping 12 lbs 8 oz!

This was her the first time she spent any real time playing in her little bouncy chair. I think she liked it. :) It's so nice that she's enjoying this little seat. That has freed up my arms for 5-10 minutes at a time. Woo-hoo!

One of her many endearing facial expressions:

And another:

Her face always looks different to me. Every time I look at her, she has already changed.

A couple weeks ago, she started to coo at us. Her favorite thing to say is, "A-goooooo." She's a great story-teller already. Oh! She's waking up! Gotta go! More later....

To Mister

Four Years Ago.......
A verse chosen by me for Gerrit:
Ruth 1:16-18
Where you go I will go,
and where you stay I will stay.
Your people will be my people,
and your God my God.
Where you die I will die,
and there I shall be buried.
May the Lord deal with me,
be it ever so severely,
if even death separates you and me.

A verse Gerrit chose for me:
Song of Solomon 8:6-7
Place me like a seal over your heart,
like a seal on your arm;
for love is as strong as death,
its jealousy unyielding as the grave.
It burns like blazing fire,
like a mighty flame.
Many waters cannot quench love;
rivers cannot sweep it away.

Gerrit, I don't love you more than I did yesterday. I couldn't love you more. But I hope that I love you better than I did "yesterday." I hope I'll always love you better tomorrow than I did the day before. I'll certainly be here trying.

*There's nothing fancy 'bout the way I love you. But it sure is fancy how you love me.*

~David Barnes

House Arrest

Here's my bit of honesty for the day. As a new mom, lately I have felt like a prisoner in my own home. And her she is:

The Warden

She dictates when I eat, sleep, get dressed, and go to the bathroom.

Dear, oh dear. Before we had Adeline, when we were struggling to conceive her, I would sometimes get sad when women would talk about having a hard time with their baby. I would think, "At least you have a child." But you know what? I am learning what it means to be selfless and it is not easy.

I didn't fully appreciate the ease of life B.C. (Before Child) Before, I took for granted a leisurely shower. These days, I mostly smell like a baby or a teenage boy (due to lack of showering). I didn't realize what a treat it was to go to bed at the same time as my husband and sleep through the night together. It used to be simple to get out the door and arrive on time. Now we need to give a vague time of when we'll be arriving. There's a lot of loot that needs to come with us and she might need feeding at the exact time we intended to leave. Breastfeeding is a whole area of selflessness that I'm dealing with. There's so much to learn as a parent. We're just beginning. I know in some ways, this is the toughest time. In others, it's the easiest. The time will go by so quickly. Once she's walking and talking, I'm sure I'll miss this stage when she just wants to be held.

We are starting to be rewarded with some gummy smiles. Her personality is coming out. That makes parenting a joy. Praise the Lord for her little baby smiles, her dimples, the smell of her head, her super soft skin, the new noises she makes each day, and her cuddly little self. AND, praise Him, that Lord willing, I will one day

• smell like a woman
  
• sleep through the night with my man by my side
  
• eat a warm meal without interruption
  
• go to the bathroom when I choose
  
• be out in public without the fear that I'll leak breast milk (!!!)
  

Until then, I'm going to spend time with the Warden. She can be nasty, but she sure is cute.

New Background....Humor Me!

Forgive me for the cheesy new background. The Fourth of July comes but once a year; and I'm a sucker for the patriotic. I secretly want a red, white, and blue room in my house someday. Secret's out! I don't think Gerrit would go for that....Actually, I casually mentioned this idea to him one day. He said if the colors looked like the Twins colors, then he might be okay with it. For now, I will indulge my not-so-secret desire and decorate my blog to my heart's content. Don't be a hater.

Addie and Her Daddy

Happy 1st Father's Day to my man. I love you, Gerrit.
Thank you for being a wonderful dad to our Adeline. I couldn't do this without you! She's already got you wrapped around her baby finger. I'm sure that will never change. Thanks for loving your two gals. We love you back.