6.02.2012

14 Months Old! Oh My!


Celebrating 14 months with their 1st ice cream cone!! =)

Dear sweet girls of ours,
Can hardly believe you are 14 months old today! Where is the time going?? Your daddy and I are loving this age and stage and all the “firsts” that you both keep experiencing! We are so in love with you both and we love seeing you learn, discover, explore, and test out every new area, toy, and your surroundings! You definitely are two curious little girls! It is so much fun to see your personalities continue to blossom and see some of ourselves coming out in each of you! Maddie Grace you are so much like your daddy-more reserved, quieter, and we can already see you paying attention to details. Makenzie, you hardly slow down long enough to pay close attention to anything which is more like your mommy. You are spunky and lively and go ninety-to-nothing all day long! You definitely love life already! You both are adorable individually but even cuter when together J We love that you are twins-because you are each crafted so uniquely and yet you share the bond of having a playmate and sister exactly the same age as you. We can’t go anywhere without people stopping us to admire you, touch your sweet feet or your chunky thighs J We think you are pretty cute ourselves! BUT, what we want you to know MOST of all is that you were created by a Sovereign God who loves you infinitely more than mommy and daddy and who fashioned you perfectly just the way you are. As we see you grow, we realize more and more that no matter how much we, as your parents, try to nurture you girls in the same manner and put the same food before you & discipline and raise you with identical ways, that how you both respond and develop will vary greatly =) What a reminder to us that yes we are held responsible for teaching you God’s word and helping shape your hearts towards your Creator, but ultimately it is HE that produces any growth both physically and spiritually. So your daddy and I cling to this truth and pray for His grace on a daily basis that He will sustain us and carry us through this parenting journey we’re on! We love you unconditionally and there is nothing you two can every say or do that will take that love away. Happy 14 months precious babies!
Love, Mommy & Daddy

Things you girls are doing these days:
-help undress/dress by pushing arms/legs through clothes
-LOVE taking things in and out of containers and putting things back in
-Climb in and out of things (especially Mak! Mak loves to straddle any toy)
-push buttons to see result
-sort objects on shape sorter into right holes with a little assistance
-throw a ball (or recently deliver it directly into our hands J)
-love to dip food into things!
-will hand mommy a book when they want it read
-getting rougher with one another; have begun to show signs of frustration if one takes a toy from the other/will hide toys or move them so sister can’t get to them
-understands “NO” and will also shake head no at mealtime; Mak still screams when she’s had enough at mealtime
-inflection in voice while “reading” a book to yourselves (esp Maddie Grace!)
-love our cell phones, keys, remote, tv-anything you can push buttons on (MG especially!)
-explore toys by banging, shaking, throwing
-Maddie Grace “collects” things and makes a pile on the floor or in her hand and will keep going til she can’t hold anymore
-Makenzie carries toys around while walking
-both beginning to point to things (more Mak though)
-beginning to follow commands like come to mommy, sit down, bring me the book, go get the ball
-Maddie Grace wants so badly to be able to get food on her fork by herself
-Maddie Grace LOVES dogs and gets soo excited when she sees on on tv, in a book, or in real life!
-MG sleeps with her bunny lovey while Mak still sleeps with paci & blankie
-Makenzie is very clingy to mommy and will cry around strangers; Maddie Grace will go to anyone and has no fear around new ppl
-aware when pooping now and Makenzie will sometimes go hide in corner J
-still wearing size 3 diapers & mostly 12 month clothes (Mak can still wear some 9 mo)

5.19.2012

How We Fill Our Days With JOY!

It's easy for me to take for granted the days I have at home with the girls as we settle into our weekly routine of activities and just living life. But the moment I slow down and look deep into those four beautiful blue eyes I am overwhelmed by God's continued provision and goodness towards our family. We are more than blessed, lacking nothing. He alone sustains each of our lives and He alone fills up my cup each day. My cup is more than full and I hope that every day the Lord will remind me of that truth and give me grace to cherish every moment, the great AND the not so great, with these precious girls we have been entrusted with. Watching them begin to grasp things we are saying, get into millions of messes the minute you take your eyes off them, and seeing their eyes light up with new discoveries has been such a delight! But no matter how much I adore these girls, living life with two babies could make any woman stir crazy if it weren't for the many playdates & outings each week. So without further ado, here's some of the places you might run into us around town =)

You might find us here at the zoo with friends...

or at the zoo as a family...

at the park on a sunny day...

 or at the splash pad on a hotter day...

and now that summer time has arrived, I'm sure we will be doing a whole lot of this...


5.15.2012

Mother's Day 2012

Mother's Day...a reminder of the Lord's amazing grace in my life. Not ONE, but TWO, adorable, bubbly, challenging, mischieveious, spunky, little 13 1/2 month old girls. Girls I would lay down my life for. Girls that make me die to self each and every day. Girls who fill my cup to overflowing. Girls who make me depend more on the Lord. Girls who make me desperate for the Lord to open their eyes to their need for Him. Girls I have to daily give over to the Lord. Girls who brighten up my days. Girls who I love more than anything and girls who are helping me in this whole sanctification process. So thank you Lord for your amazing grace in my life and I pray the same for these two precious girls...that you would extend the same grace towards them!
Not exactly picture perfect, but more of a realistic snapshot of our life!