The Daily Joys...

What we've been up to lately...forget the daily grind,

we've been experiencing some serious daily joy!!

Did we all think this day would come? mmm maybe.

But nevertheless here we sit, right in the middle of it...

Organizing socks. (a girl after her mama's heart)
Bathing the beauty with our fave-o-rite toys, can you tell which one it is?!
Smiling for miles. Many many smiles big and small, wide and tall.
Snuggling & traveling with mama.
Munching everything in sight. Or teething on everything in sight is more like it.
Attempting to sit up on her own. A little side push-up we like to call it. We're not quite there yet, but ALLLmost!
Making crazy screeches, hollers and pterodactyl noises.
Sitting up big and strong.
Eating lots and practically jumping out of the high chair when it doesn't enter the mouth quite fast enough.
Watching Horton and snuggling with Grammy.
Studying the Bible with mama (or Bible study interrupting is how it really goes).
Losing all the dark luscious curls, down to the baby mini mullet nubs.
Reading the Bible (or eating it mostly).
Playing with daddy, her favorite playmate. He gets lots of big belly laughs, especially when eating her feet.

Discovering our toes, hers and ours.
Turning half-a-year old! We had half-a-party!
Loving our moments.
Enduring affection, ha!
Being a family.
Feeding ourselves.
Drinking formula in a big girl cup (or measuring cup, ha!)
Obsessing about tags. We need NO other toys in life, just tags.
Pretending to be a bunny.
Enjoying rice treats.

More where those came from soon...

Ok, sorry...

I'm youtube challenged. I didn't want my video to have to go public, but I guess it has to, to be on here. So Kia, how in tarnation do I just upload videos directly to Blogger like you do on yours? Lesson please...
And by the way, I made it accessible now to all those who tried it before and it didn't work, sorrrryyyyyyyyy. I think I'm on the up and up now with youtube savyness!
Please attempt the link below in the post below for the Anna vid again...

New Tricks!

Uhhh, this is NOT one of the times this trick worked. Ha! You can see she makes an attempt and then I totally get slighted for gramps walking out of the room. Oh well, maybe next time...

Happy day of loving to you!

Anna got to spend the day of love with her daddy dearest on Saturday,

while her mama threw a baby shower for her dear friends Jill and Grace.

She got to stop in for a visit though, to see two of her buddies.

The big girls were very intrigued by fresh-out Grace....

Just a few o' Anna! (no time for anything else:))

Just us 3...

In the middle of BELIEVING GOD...

I'm in the middle of a study with a friend by Beth Moore, called Believing God.

While in the middle of the study, I'm in the middle of learning to BELIEVE God about all the promises He's ever given me, that I always talked about believing, until I've had to put feet to my beliefs as a new mommy, as we encounter new challenges together, on a daily basis. "Is what I've always said that I believe, really what I believe, as I'm challenged to walk out my beliefs in a new way?" is my daily question to myself and my Lord right now.

I'm in the middle of believing that in my weakness, His strength is made perfect.

I'm in the middle of believing that His grace is sufficient to make me the best mommy He wants me and will enable me to be.

I'm in the middle of believing that only He can bear His fruit of love, patience, peace and all the rest of all that tasty and sweet stuff in my life.

I'm in the middle of believing that only God can make me a devoted, committed, passionate and faithful lover of Him, then a lover of Will and a lover of Anna too, whew, that's a lot of love to go around.

So, in the middle of a million more things that I'm learning to believe God for, and being stretched to grow in moment by moment, God encouraged me the other day with the testimony of a man who BELIEVED and saw God work in a radical way in his life. Be encouraged by God's bigness in this story and ability to take care of any area that you are in the middle of believing or even struggling to believe Him for. And I'm just going to keep on believing God myself (praying that in my areas of weakness and unbelief, He will keep increasing my belief.) "Lord, I believe, help my unbelief." -Mark 9:24

Here's an explanation of Duane Miller's testimony leading up to the miracle you can hear all about, if you click on the link below the explanation of his brief story...
"Duane Miller was a pastor who lost his voice. He was using his false chords to speak. Mr. Miller had to give up everything since his voice was degrading to nothing. It was a raspy whisper at best. The doctors and specialists told him that it would only get worse for him and that his voice was finished, but God had a different plan. The amazing story of Duane Miller is that God intervened in his situation and restored his voice. 200 people witnessed his healing and studied with him for 3 years in a sunday school class. They were recording the class when Mr. Miller was healed."
Click on this link for his testimony and the sermon he was preaching when he was miraculously healed, while in the middle of believing God (it's totally worth the approximate 45 min!)...
http://www.soulblaze.com/training.htm Go to the bottom of the page and under the post "Hear it for Yourself" there is part 1 and 2 of the sermon Duane preached (Redeemed from the Pit) It will play on your Windows Media Player. (if this one doesn't work, let me know, I have a link to another site with his story too.)

Someone got a new coat for Christmas...

And thinks she's a sophisticated lady now...So sophisticated that she gives herself permission to eat her own burp cloths...

We get desperate...

For sleep and entertainment options these days...

YUMMO!!!!

We had our first encounter with rice cereal, and boy was Anna a pro. Ate it like she's been chowin' down her whole 4 months of living! So proud of her! (we attempted this to see if she'd sleep more thru the night, ha! didn't work.)

Just a little shout out...

on my man's sermon last weekend at big church...

http://oursfc.org/Sermon/

Click on "Pastor Will Irwin-Storms", the audio icon, and listen away!

God totally blessed and encouraged me through him and pray it does you too!

Fave Song Repeat for Christmas '08...

I sure listen to this with new eyes and ears now...

I was reminded even more this year of the precious gift Mary must have known she had when receiving her baby Jesus into her arms, the Creator and Lord of birth and life itself. Wow! Am I worshipping this gift of Jesus as she did? Or wanting more stuff under my tree which could never compare and will never last. Hmmm, just a little out-loud thinking to myself. Let's worship this gift and the Giver of it all together this year!
And a thought from a friend on one of Anna's Christmas shots (the one above in the blog header, with the 2 hands and clasped in friendship)...
"what a perfect picture to accompany the Word, who was made flesh, and dwelt among us... in this same, soft, chubby-sweet-baby form... so perfectly beautiful!"
Just a couple thoughts on this season's true celebration!

Been an awful good girl, Santa Baby, so hurry down the chimney tonight...

(click on the pic below to view Anna's Christmas album)

12.11.08 christmas photo shoot

Thanks Auntie Kellie for my special Christmas photo shoot!

I just love getting all dolled-up, Santa-style!

Over the month...

we've done lots of fun things and had lots of fun changes! Click on the album below to view them...

Fair thee well, Bunting Ct...

So, I just realized that there has been some lackage in my postage lately and most of you don't know that yep, we said goodbye to our first built home on little Bunting Ct a couple of weeks ago. It's a total miracle that it even sold in this market and we have already been moving forward on building our next home in Sutherlin, to be closer to our life ministry. So, we know and trust that God is doing this move for us, otherwise I'd be completely and totally freaked out, doing all of this with a 3 month old!

I gave Will my vows (from the book of Ruth) on our wedding day and God has faithfully been reminding me of them as He is leading me through Will, on this next crazy adventure..."Entreat me not to leave you, Or to turn back from following after you; For wherever you go, I will go; And wherever you lodge, I will lodge; Your people shall be my people, And your God, my God. Where you die, I will die, And there will I be buried. The LORD do so to me, and more also, If anything but death parts you and me."

A pretty clear piece of guidance that I've asked for over and over and over and over and over...as we've packed, cleaned, moved and mourned over the house that much blood, sweat and tears were spilt over, the house that God built more honestly putting it.

2 major career changes for both of us
self-building our 1st home
carrying & birthing our first child
selling our 1st home
moving back in with parents during transition with a brand new babe
purchasing property and building our next home
and a partridge in a pear tree
Think that's enough for the 1st 3 years of marriage?! I do! I'm praying it's the last major transition for a LONGGGGG time! As many of you know, should we say, I don't do very well with change (that's lightly putting it!)

Relying daily and desperately on His grace,
KI

Anyone else...

get lost in these eyes?

We do.

Our Baby Bee, take 2!

Audrey's mama, Anna's Auntie Em, did a little photo shoot of our little baby bee...

Our Baby Bee!

Love this little honey bee of ours!

We put on a harvest party each year at SFC and Anna so enjoyed herself, or maybe we enjoyed dressing her up more! ha! She wasn't so into the 100 degree roasting tank of a costume, so it didn't last for long, but was stinkin' cute for as long as it did. Thanks Grammy June for dressing me this Halloween, Anna

Happy Harvest Time to You!!!

Anna & I spent a few moments at the pumpkin patch in Winston yesterday with Auntie Em and Audrey!! What fun we had, they were such good girls with their posing!!!

The Many Faces o' Anna

"the faces of the cherubim were toward the mercy seat." -Exodus 25:20

More than just silly and smiley and sweet,

I pray that the face of my little angel will always be towards God's mercy seat.

More of Anna's 1st photo shoot...

Just a little taste of the Captivating photo shoot our dear Auntie Kellie did for us! Seriously, hire her, ask me for her digits!!!

My photographing phriend...

has so blessed us with an amazingly creative and beautiful family photo shoot time. And then so blessed us with a baby announcement. Here it be...(p.s. HIRE HER! She's starting her Captivating Photography business, ask me for more info on how to contact her!)

My prayer for my girl...

is that she would know my Great I AM God as this (spoken as only Nichole Nordeman could)...

Pencil marks on a wall
I wasn't always this tall,
You scattered some monsters from beneath my bed,
You watched my team win,
You watched my team lose,
You watched when my bicycle went down again,

And When I was weak unable to speak,
still I could call You by name,
and I said “Elbow healer, Superhero,
come if You can,” and You said “I am”

Only 16, life is so mean, what kind of curfew is at ten PM
You saw my mistakes, You watched my heart break
Heard when I swore I’d never love again

When I was weak, unable to speak,
still I could call You by name,
and I said “Heart-ache Healer, Secret-keeper,
be my Best Friend” and You said “I am”

You saw me wear white, by pale candlelight,
I said forever to what lies ahead
two kids and a dream, with kids that can scream
too much it might seem when it’s two AM

when I am weak, unable to speak,
still I will call You by name.
“Oh Shepherd, Savior, Pasture-maker,
hold on to my hand,” and You say “I am.”

The winds of change,
And circumstance blow in and all around
us so we find a foothold that’s familiar,
And bless the moments that we feel You nearer
Life had begun, I was woven and spun,
You let the angels dance around the throne, who can say when,
But they’ll dance again, when I am free and finally headed home

I will be weak, unable to speak,
still I will call You by name
“Creator, Maker, Life-sustainer,
Comforter, Healer, My Redeemer,
Lord and King, Beginning and
the End, I am, yes, I am.”

This is how He has been meeting me day by day, as my all-in-all I AM YOUR EVERYTHING GOD. And I so pray that my Anna girl comes to know Him at an early wee age also.

Anna wanted...

us to make sure that everyone saw her "I'm here" announcement on Mercy's website and that they all got to sign her baby book on it (daddy picked out her outfit and added the bow to her hair)...

http://www.newbabynews.net/hospitals/mmc1/public/mmc1birthannouncement.pl?babyID=h1-7608

We are in love...all over again...

So, until I can get cognitive thoughts out that mean something significant, please just enjoy our little principesa thisaway...

What happens when...

you get put on bed rest (I like to call it nest-rest) to wait for your little chick to hatch b/c of some late-onset prego complications?!

You get really bored and search blogs for entertainment to perk up your day...

Here's me in all my 1954 glory! ha!

P.S. thanks Kia for the inspiration, you've always been able to bring good laughs to my spirit!

Almost here!!!!

Some good stuff on all our feets, especially the babes'...

I mentioned in my last post that at my Baby Blessing this last weekend, I had a girlfriend share a devo on feet, and she ended up posting it on her blog. Check this good stuff out, God gives her good and deep words, that she speaks often to me (Sorry Kell, couldn't pass up the chance to shout out about the next Beth Moore!)...
http://trenkletoes.blogspot.com/2008/08/feet.html