jane: three months

well, more like 3.5 months. we flew to california on the day she turned 3 months, so i took the pictures a little late. she's growing fast!

here are the first three months, side-by-side. i'm not so great at getting the chair to look the same color each month. oops! :)

and with her little lamb!

a short letter to my daughter

sometimes when i change you in the middle of the night, you look up at me with this sly grin that seems to say, "hey mom! isn't it wonderful that we get to hang out at 4am?"

yes, jane, it is wonderful. it really is. because i know it is just a matter of time before you won't need me in the middle of the night. and in the morning, i'll hurry to your crib to see your smiling face because i'll miss that special time together just you and me and a quiet, dark world outside our window.

these overnight moments are the perfect time to pray over you. your daddy and i pray that as you grow, Christ would draw you to Himself and that your heart would be soft to treasure Him. we pray you will marry a man who treasures Christ, too. and that you stay pure for each other and devoted to your Creator until you meet Him face to face.

within your tiny, wiggly body exists a soul that was known perfectly before the foundation of the earth. we pray that your soul would be completely satisfied in God, who knit you together and whose Word is a lamp unto your feet. He is worthy of your affections and worship, jane——and He is the only One who is.

before long, you'll grow too big for that spot in my arms that you fit into perfectly now. your crib won't seem so vast as i carefully put you down to sleep. and i won't see your beautiful dark eyes peeking over your daddy's shoulders as he soothes you during your evening fussies.


whether fussy or still, sweet jane, i hope you know that it is a delight to spend time with you——no matter what time of day or night.

before and after: our master bath

we finished this renovation in august 2010. as for sharing pictures, better late than never, right?

this bathroom used to be a bedroom. and the old bathroom is now our connected master closet. did you follow that? ;) here's a picture of the bedroom that became our master bath.

 we ripped up the carpet on the second night we owned the house, back in the winter of 2009.

during:

and after!

we designed the layout of the bathroom ourselves with help from ben's dad. at first we were going to try to squeeze in a tub, but we realized we aren't really tub people and decided on a nice big shower instead. (staying on top of cleaning the grout can be tough, but i've had great success with basic h from shaklee—which i use all over our house—and mr. clean magic erasers for tile and grout!)
 

here are our sources in case any of you locals are curious.

cabinetry: designed cabinets

countertops: corian in glacier white from nu shapes construction

tile: marble mosiac and white ceramic penny and wall tiles from kate-lo tile and stone

glass shower enclosure: designed glass

fixtures: delta, kohler, and moen (menards and home depot)

mirrors: ikea
paint color: benjamin moore palladian blue

more on the diy artwork here. 

 

 

jane: two months

eight thoughts from the first eight weeks {in no particular order}

1 :: i'm pretty sure jane looks a little different each morning. and sometimes, when she wakes up from a nap, i swear she looks different from when i put her down.

2 :: watching ben with jane might be the happiest thing in the world.

3 :: baby breath on my neck might be the second happiest thing in the world.

4 :: isn't it funny that tiny little babies are capable of adult-size gas? seriously. and the explosive pooping? my favorite is when it happens during prayer time at small group. she's such a lady.

5 :: moving her to size 1 diapers was kind of traumatic. of course they grow up. i know this. but do they have to grow up so fast? and while we're on this topic, starting a bin of outgrown clothes was kind of traumatic, too. but i better get used to it because i'll be adding to it for a long, long time.

6 :: i am absolutely amazed at the generosity of friends and family. meals, gifts, phone calls, encouraging emails, offers to babysit. the works. i am humbled and blessed by the outpouring of support we have received!

7 :: this sounds super scandy but ben and i love our baby shirtless. that soft baby skin...mmmmm good!

8 :: it seems strange that i have such a strong relationship with a person who can't talk.