Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Kiss Me! I am 1/32 parts Irish! :)

Trip to Nashville

We recently had our longest adventure with Caleb... trip down to Nashville to visit Aunt Jodi! He did such a great job. Even though there was a lot of crying in the car... there was a lot of sleeping too. :) Caleb liked breathing fresh air and feeling misty rain on his face. It's been so cold in MI that he seems to always be bundled up tight whenever we go outside. His biggest accomplishment was sleeping for 12 hours one night!!!! Wow! Thanks for a fun trip, Aunt Jodi!

Tummy Time

"Tummy Time" is the popular saying now for babies spending quality time on their stomachs. Jason and I laugh at how cute it sounds! Since it is recommended that babies sleep on their backs, it is important that they spend some time strengthening their arms and neck. Caleb has been so strong since a week old. Today he made big progress in starting to hold up his head and neck during "Tummy Time." :) Before he would always fuss, but I think he might be starting to enjoy it now!

2 Months Old

Time is flying by! Caleb had his 2 month old birthday yesterday. As Jason says, "He is getting so mature." His gift to us last night was sleeping the longest yet at night --- 9 hours! We are so proud of him. Hopefully he can keep this up! Some of his newest accomplishments are holding his rattle, following the rattle with his eyes, starting to roll side to side (not all the way over yet), and making more fun sounds all the time. He has his 2 month checkup next week, so you can be praying that his body handles the vaccines well. We'll let you know how much he has grown then!

7 Weeks Old

Caleb continues to be a lot of fun to be with! He is smiling all the time now, and that makes us so happy! Someone told me they thought that God has babies start smiling around 6 weeks because otherwise the parents might pull their hair out. It really does make my entire day to see his face light up! Caleb is starting to be more social... making more sounds like he's trying to talk back. We are just waiting for him to laugh. He is also starting to hold onto things... like a couple rattles he has. In the pictures in the slideshow, you will see some of his "friends" he enjoys: butterfly and his bears on the bouncer.

Enough about Caleb for a second! I want to brag about my husband just a little bit! We had our friends Kip and Sarah over for dinner Saturday night to see Caleb and to have some adult company for a chance. It was so wonderful! Anyways, Jason said he would take care of dinner since I had my hands full with Caleb. He made the most delicious meal in the world! As Kip said, "It could have come straight from Olive Garden!" Jason made cheesy garlic bread and a shrimp alfredo dish over angel hair pasta and all I did was make a salad. I knew my husband could cook, but Saturday he definitely outdid himself. We'll see if he can recreate it again someday.

He Sleeps!

Caleb has had some new sleeping breakthroughs this past week! We're so proud of him. The top picture is him falling asleep in his swing... it has only happened once, but it was so nice not to have to be "the swing" rocking him to sleep for once. :) The bottom picture is him falling asleep sitting in my arms in the rocker! It just feels so good holding him like that.

Joy in Every Circumstance

Finding joy in every circumstance!!!

As most people know and can relate, babies can change moods almost instantly. Take these pictures for instance... literally taken moments apart. I just thought Caleb looked so cute in his bear outfit, but he didn't want to comply for very long.

I have been meeting with my friend and mentor Karen for about a year now. When we were waiting for the arrival of Caleb, she would pray for me that I would find the joy in every circumstance. Little did I know how that specific prayer would help me so much in the days and I'm sure years to come. There are moments that are so frustrating and I remember her prayer and I just say, "Lord, give me joy!" God is good and does! Now there are plenty of times where I forget or just choose to hand him over to dad! I feel as if I have been much more at peace and a calm mother because of these few words... give me joy!