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Wednesday, March 21, 2007

Small & Cute

Here are the latest pictures of Charissa and all she's been up to ...


She got to dress up like a bunny ...

Her Nana taught her to eat chips ...

She learned to eat from a bottle ...

She's perfecting the art of pouting ...

She learned fashion from her Daddy ...

She decided to start smiling for the camera!!

Isn't she precious?!?! And so happy!

She also likes her bunny slippers ...
By the way - she finally grew into 0-3 month clothing! YAY!
A whole new wardrobe opened up to her.


It's pretty fun being the Mama to such a happy, beautiful baby!

Thursday, March 15, 2007

It's Apparent I'm A Parent

Do you remember when the Family Circus cartoonist would do "It's Apparent You're a Parent"? Well, now that's me. I've come to realize in the last few days that not only am I a parent, but it's pretty obvious that I am. Here's a few reasons why:

  • Every surface in my living room is covered in baby supplies. And I mean every surface.
  • There is no day when Charissa doesn't have the most adorable clothing on, and she looks especially good when we go out. Me ... well I seem to be living in a rotating supply of t-shirts, stretchy pants, and my hair thrown up in a knot.
  • When we go anywhere it looks like we're going on a week long vacation with all the gear I'm hauling. It's all for her, and we hardly use any of it while we're out. But - we've got it!
  • I no longer count time in hours but in feedings.
  • Half of the laundry I do is pink. And I don't wear pink.
  • I've made up songs about eating, sleeping, pooping, bathing, changing clothes, and crying. None are really award winning, but Charissa seems to like them.
  • I'm very excited to tell anyone who asks how much my daughter weighs.
  • Being spit on is a daily occurrence.
  • I don't know what movies are out, who popular singers are, or how any team is playing in any sport, but I do know the physical, social, and developmental milestones for the first 12 months.
  • I've tried to give a pacifier to a friend. She refused my offer.

My life is fun. :)

Wednesday, March 14, 2007

I Have the BEST Husband in the World!!

Now, before I inadvertently start a who's-husband-is-better-than-who's competition, let me clarify by saying that my husband is the best husband for me. Your husband is the best husband for you. No competition - just thankfulness.

Why is my husband the best? I'll give you the latest reason. Last night Britt let me take the night off and get away by myself. I haven't had much time to myself lately and so he was gracious enough to watch the baby while I had a "date" with myself. But he planned it for me. And it was a scavenger hunt! When I left the house he handed me 5 letters and told me to have fun and call if I got lost. So I get in my car and open the first one which was an introduction. It basically told me how thankful he was for me and that God had blessed him richly with me. He also told me that he was praying that my night would be refreshing and relaxing. Now for the destinations!

Destination One: Britt wrote a poem about how I wanted to learn and wanted to travel. And where did I go? To my college! He told me to walk around and remember life on campus - where I lived, ate, and went to class. So I walked around for over an hour just remembering all sorts of things from the four years that I was there. I walked around the two buildings that I had the majority of my classes in, the library, my dorm, and just around the campus. And things have changed! Especially the library! It has a wii now for students to play with. Isn't that ridiculous? What happened to good ol' fashion learning and studying in the library? Oh well.

Destination Two: The next letter was a poem about how so many people have loved me and encouraged me from our church. So my task was to go to our pastors' houses and tell them and their wives how much they have blessed me and encouraged me. Well, I took so long at Destination One that I thought it was a bit late to knock on their doors unexpectedly (of course I know that all of them would have welcomed me in and wouldn't have had a problem with it). So I drove over to their houses and sat outside and wrote them letters of how they have encouraged me. After I wrote the letters I crept around and put them in the mailboxes and took pictures of the houses so Britt would know I went there. All went well, except I got caught by one of the wives! She just laughed at me though. I love my church! :)

Destination Three: I got back in my car and read the third letter in which Britt told me that God had provided us with so many spiritual blessings, but God also provides us with many physical blessings. He had enclosed some money and told me to go shopping for some new clothes. How sweet! Only problem was that I had taken so long with Destination One and Two that it was 940. Too late for a shopping trip. So I'll just have to save it for another time. And it's nice to know that I have a shopping trip stored up for the next time I can get away and go out.

Destination Four: My fifth poem! My husband is really good at rhyming words! This one told me go somewhere I could sit and reflect and enjoy a little dessert. Since I had done this when I was on campus, I decided that what I really wanted to do was to get dessert and head back home to my husband where I could share it with him.

Isn't that fun date? And he wasn't even physically with me! It was such a fun night and allowed me to relax and get a break from the demands of Charissa for just a few hours. Which is exactly what I needed because when I came home I wanted to be home and I didn't care that Charissa just wanted to cry (which I think was because she missed me so much while I was gone - at least that's what I hope). I'm so blessed by a husband who understands my needs and provides for them.

I love him. :)

Friday, March 09, 2007

Counting My Blessings

Recently I have found myself really falling in love with my church on a whole new level. I'm not sure what's caused the change, but the more I see the more I want to see. Let me tell you why I love my church. (And when I use the word "they" I am not just talking about the pastors or a few people - I mean the church as a whole.)

  • They teach the Bible.
  • Sermons come from the Bible and use appropriate texts kept in context for the message.
  • They feed the poor and hungry every Sunday with physical food and spiritual food.
  • People share what is really going on in their lives and want to know what is really going on in my life.
  • They are real people. (i.e. they have faults that they can talk about, they don't have a perfectly clean house all the time, they have real emotions, and they even wear sweatpants and t-shirts!)
  • They can be silly.
  • They want to hang out and invest in each other's lives.
  • They remember to pray for one another.
  • At churchwide fellowships you can find groups of adults playing basketball, skipping jumprope, doing the electric slide, playing games, singing loudly, laughing like children, and talking theology all at the same time.
  • They aren't afraid to admit that they watch American Idol and they like it.
  • They invite us into their homes. (Note: this is the first church I've ever been involved with where I've been in a pastor's home. And actually I've been in ALL the pastor's home numerous times.)
  • Letters of encouragement are a regular occurrence.
  • After you have a baby they will bring you dinners for 5 weeks (and really good food too!).
  • They are always looking for a reason to have a party.
  • It's easy to get involved and plugged in.
  • We have two gathering times a week to meet and discuss the Word.
  • They are inviting to newcomers.
  • They are fun.
  • They want to know Jesus more deeply today than they did yesterday.

I am completely in love with my church. If you live in the area, you should at least visit. And if you don't have a church, you should definitely come and check it out.

Wednesday, March 07, 2007

The Great Debate

My mother sent me a few pictures today of me from when I was a baby. She is claiming that Charissa and I look alike - she said especially in the picture when Charissa is playing in her overhead gym.

Here are the two pictures - what do you think?




Monday, March 05, 2007

"It's Not Even Fair ..."

Recently Britt and I were looking at a picture of Charissa and he said, "It's not even fair she's so cute!" And I have to agree. She is just too precious for her own good. Instead of being able to live in peace she is constantly being fawned over by the adoring masses (namely her parents and grandparents). It's very hard for her.

Here's a glimpse of the cuteness and what she's been up to lately.



She endures when her parents put stuff on her head ...


She's a gangsta ...


She gets unhappy ...


She helps Mama do laundry ...


She stares at the camera ...


She's too cool for herself ...


She gets worried ...


She's a drama queen ...


Charissa is a pretty fun kid. We enjoy all the funny things that she does on pretty much an hourly basis.