SURPRISE!!

So I'm WAYYYY behind on our blog! We had flip camera issues, then I had to give my computer back to Starbucks and it took a couple of months to get me a new one. So I'm back and hope to get the blog up to date with what we've been doing the last few months.

This video captured what no still photo can- the look of sheer surprise and delight as Meg opened her Christmas present from us. I don't think Brian and I have ever been so excited to give a gift!! Several weeks before Christmas, we wrapped up a suitcase and put it under the tree. Meg had 100 guesses of what it might be (my favorite guesses were 2 American Girl dolls or a pet feret in a cage) but never in her wildest dreams could she have imagined what was inside.

Check out the happy dance at the end!

Standing Up (with a little help)

Beck’s neck, back and legs are getting so strong. Every day we try to do some “tummy time” (Daddy’s specialty!) to make his neck stronger, and we’re definitely seeing that Beck would rather be upright and moving than anything else(fast forward 3-6 months-- yikes I better rest up!). One of Beck’s new favorite things to do is to stand up and work his legs. He gets the funniest look on his face- his eyes get wide, he starts to smile and breathe heavy. His muscles are still developing so he looks a little like he’s doing a dance and by the end of the day his little legs are trembling from the effort. Needless to say, Brian is hopeful that there is rock climbing in Beck's future!

The Kiddos of PEPS

I recently joined a PEPS (Program for Early Parent Support) group. The groups are made up of first time moms and are geographically based. They meet weekly for 12 weeks in the homes of the group members. I was lucky enough to be assigned to a group with a lot of other professional women in their 30’s and it’s been fun so far. It’s amazing how you bond with people when you share a major life experience like figuring out how the heck to care for a newborn and keep yourself sane at the same time! The group has been something I’ve really looked forward to each week. We share our highs and lows and our leader covers a topic, and then it turns into an open forum to find out what other moms are doing with sleep patterns, starting solid foods, treating a stuffy nose, etc. What a help it has been! A couple of weeks ago we had all of the babies wear their Christmas outfits so that we could take some pictures. Check out Olivia going after Emily’s hat! Beckett’s just a cool dude hanging out on the end 

Beckett is Dedicated!

A few Sundays ago, our church was doing baby dedications and we were excited to have Beckett dedicated in front of our church body. He was dedicated alongside 2 of his new friends whose parents are in our community group. Babies Luke (parents Jenni and Jonathan Clark to the left of us) and Linnea (parents Tim and Cameron Psiaki to the right of us) are 2 little one's we hope Beck will grow up with as all of us team up to raise our kids up to love the Lord. We were also glad to have family there on Beck's special day- Beckett's Godparents/Aunt & Uncle Heather and Eric Tuininga, Grandparents Dave and Pam and Aunt & Uncle Jessica and Laith and little cousin Isaac. Brian chose Psalm 23 as Beckett's verse and we loved what it had to say about dealing with adversity in life (which will surely come for him although we shudder to think of it!) and leaning on God for all he needs. Our church does Baby Dedications instead of baptisms because we believe that baptism should be done when a person accepts Christ into their heart and this can only occur once a person has gained a true understanding of this choice at a later age. We have seen baptisms of new believers of all ages- from 9 to 69 and it is a beautiful thing! I pray daily that Beckett will accept Christ into his heart someday. Until then we will do our best to teach him and show him the truth and the love that comes from our Lord and Savior!