Lovely Day

When we woke up this morning, the temperature was 58 degrees. 58 degrees!!! So what was there to do but spend our morning hiking??!!!

Here are some nature shots...

Posing next to the signpost...

Taking a snack break...

Whoa, it's so high up here!

Holding on tight!!!

Here Claire is not too sure about the water...

Daddy, you have to touch it first...

Okay, I'm in!!!

What a gift to be able to spend time as a family in God's beautiful creation!

Excitement

I love Claire-giggles.

9 Month Check In

Claire had her 9 month check-up on Friday. At 9 months and 2 weeks, Claire is 28.75 inches long and weighs in at a whopping 18 lbs 9 oz. That puts her in the 39th percentile for weight, and the 82nd percentile for height!!! Where in the world did she get that from? Not her midget parents, that's for sure :) Everything looked great at the doctor. She's right on target for all her milestones, and the doctor even predicted that she's going to be a climber. Hmmm. I probably called that one a while back.

At 9 months, Claire is into everything. She has a very hard time sitting still for any length of time. She is constantly on the move, either crawling on the floor or pulling up and cruising along furniture/walls. She is full of personality. She enjoys playing in the bathtub but hates having her hair rinsed. She talks constantly, identifies "dada" and "mama", and knows the sign language for "eat", "drink", "more", and "all done." We are working on "please" and "thank you." She sleeps ten to eleven hours at night but doesn't always do so great on her naps. She has yet to refuse any food that we've offered to her. No matter what she is doing when her daddy gets home, she speed-crawls to the door to meet him and will not let him put her down for a solid half hour. She prefers her daddy when she's scared and her mommy when she's hungry :) Those are just a few 9 month traits that I don't won't to forget.

Here is Claire studying a squash from our garden. We've only had two squash survive the bugs. We had a butternut squash that was looking really good until the landscaping man got it with the weedeater. That was a sad day.

And here are a few videos. The first one is at suppertime. We definitely discourage playing at the dinner table.

Here is our daughter being ADD.




Reading "Brown Bear Brown Bear"...

And finally, here she is practicing her new "baller" skills...

Another Great Weekend...

Well, we had another weekend of traveling - this time, MeMaw turned 80 and so we went to help celebrate! We had a great time seeing a lot of family members that we don't get to see very much. Here we are with Uncle Travis!

Claire was a champ even after traveling and getting off her normal schedule. She had fun eating grapes...

And eating puzzle pieces!

She enjoyed playing with Hughley...

Hanging out with Aunt Jeni and Uncle Travis...

Seeing Papa and Nanny Faye...

Playing games with Pawpaw...

And stealing kisses from Gran!

Nine Months Old!

It's so hard to believe that Claire is a little over nine months old now! Time certainly does fly by...but I have thoroughly enjoyed every moment and every change that has taken place over the last 3/4 of a year.

As I pray for Claire, I thank God for the joy that He has already placed inside of her. With her personality, I think that joy will be a fruit of the Spirit that she will easily bear once she comes to know Christ.

I also see a stubborn and independent streak in her. I pray that God will use this to develop perseverance rather than rebellion.

Claire is an explorer. Not much seems to scare her. Loud noises, like the vacuum, sometimes startle her; but if I catch her eye and smile, she usually grins and starts singing or yelling to keep up with the noise the vaccuum is making! I pray that the Lord will use this sense of adventure to develop in her a willing and excited obedience to whatever He is calling her.

Our little girl is a social butterfly. She thrives when she is around a group of people and she can entertain everyone to her heart's content. I pray that God will use her to lead many people to Christ.

Claire is very easy to read. When she is happy, there is no doubt, and when she is tired, she lets me know very quickly. I pray that she will keep this transparency and not learn to wear a mask in front of people. I pray that her genuineness will be a tool that the Lord can use for His glory.

Finally, I pray every day for my daughter, that she will come to trust Christ at an early age, that she will love God all of her days, and that she will "grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ." (2 Peter 3:18)

Sweet Baby Justice

Our first niece was born last Wednesday! We were so excited to be able to go visit Jared, Bonnie, and Justice Elise this weekend. Here is Claire meeting her cousin for the first time...

Here is a very proud (and very tired) daddy...

And a very beautiful (and very tired) mommy...

What a beautiful little girl!

Here is Justice in the sweet dress that she wore home from the hospital...

Claire had a great time this weekend. She stayed busy playing with Justice...

...Pulling up on all of Uncle Bo and Aunt Bonnie's furniture...

...Playing with Uncle Bo...

...And playing with the toys that she is passing down to Justice!

Congratulations Jared and Bonnie! We couldn't be happier for you!

"Children are a blessing from the Lord" Psalm 127:3

Just Having Fun

A Girl After My Own Heart

With Claire's newfound mobility, I have rearranged the living room in small ways to give her room to explore. For example, I moved all of my books off the bottom shelf of one of the bookshelves and put all of Claire's books on it so that she can pull them off to her heart's content.

Be still my heart. This is the scene that I have always dreamed of...my little girl surrounded by books!!!

For my birthday, my sweet husband rallied along with my parents and my mother-in-love and got me a new lens for my camera! I am very excited about it and can't wait to experiment more with it, but here are some initial shots...

Snotty nose, drooly chin, and all...

Yes, that is a piece of grass in her mouth.

Here is Claire in front of our cucumber plants. We have about eight hundred cucumbers now. Would you like one?

More to come!!!