Sweet, precious blessings. Children bring so much joy and I'm so thankful God chose me to be the mommy of two precious girls. As I was rocking my Ivey Kate tonight, holding that precious, cozy body in my arms and listening to her soft breathing, I came to the conclusion that holding a sleeping baby has to be one of the closest things to heaven we get to experience here on earth. There is something so peaceful about watching them sleep. I'm also flooded with an overwhelming joy that I don't think I could really express in words. All that to say, Lord, thank you a million times over for my baby girls. I know I don't deserve them, but thank you for allowing me to experience this type of love. I can't even imagine the depth of your love and feelings for us.
Ivey Kate is now 5 months old. She smiles and cackles all the time, especially at her big sister. We've attempted sitting up on our own, but she slowly inches her chest forward until it's practically resting on her legs. She's grabbing EVERY thing in site, and it all goes directly in her mouth.
My favorite things about my Ivey Kathryn:
Her lips. I love how her bottom lip makes a little heart shape.
Her feet. Her precious, tiny toes curl up just a little. And I love that she gets them from my mother.
Her face lights us every time she sees me. I remember when Mattilee would do that. It's so sweet and sure makes a momma feel special.
On her left side, she has one faint dimple when she smiles. Makes me want to eat her up.
Her soft, sweet voice making all those precious baby sounds.
How she sucks her two middle fingers when she's sleepy. With those two fingers in her mouth, she makes an I love you sign with the rest of her hand. I like to think it's her way of telling me even though she can't speak yet. ;)
How she responds to her name. She always turns her head when she hears it.
How she lights us every time she looks in the mirror. It never fails. No matter how many times she has seen herself in the mirror she still loves it and gives the biggest grin.
When she's really excited about something, like the bath water running, she kicks and wiggles with excitement.
Couldn't you just eat her up?
Happy girl
Sisterly love
I can't believe I've let months go by without posting about Ivey Kate's baby dedication. She was dedicated on February 12. This service was a little different than when we dedicated Mattilee. Matt and I were asked to think about what we want for our daughter's life and who we hope she is at age 18. We were given a small piece of paper and asked to write it down and read it to our friends and family that came to the dedication. We could never fit all we pray and hope for our precious daughter on that one slip of paper, but we tried to hit on the most important points. This was a great exercise for us. Although Matt and I pray specific things for our girls, actually thinking through who we hope she becomes and writing it in a letter to her was a really cool thing.
Here's the letter:
Ivey Kathryn,
We pray you surrender your life to Christ and that you continually pursue a stronger relationship with Him. We hope you put the needs and concerns of others ahead of your own, and that you are compassionate and loving to everyone. We hope you are a happy person and that you find joy in the blessings of life. We hope others enjoy your company and that you always ignite a greater love for Christ in others. We hope you fully understand what a growing disciple of Christ looks like and that you have a desire to be one. We hope we exemplify the parents/spouses we want you to be.
We hope you are obedient to us and know we have your best interests in mind. When you begin to consider a spouse, we hope you look for someone that loves Christ more than he loves you. We hope that you are wise and that you understand and utilize the gifts God has given you.
We were asked to choose one bible verse that would accompany her picture in the bulletin and slideshow. We chose the same verse we used for Mattilee's dedication because it really describes what we pray and hope for our children.
"For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you and asking God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all spiritual wisdom and understanding. And we pray this in order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please him in every way bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God. " Colossians 1:9-10
Ready for her baby dedication in our family dedication dress.
I never posted pictures of Ivey Kate's room so I thought I would. I don't know if my girls will care to see how their nurseries and rooms looked when they were little but I put a lot of thought into their rooms so I like to tell myself that they will. :)
I didn't take the best picture here, but that green canvas has an "i" cut out of Ivey's bedding fabric by my very talented husband.
My mom painted this for Ivey Kate (she did one for Mattilee too). On the carriage it says "For this child I have prayed" 1 Samuel 1:27 I know these will be so special to the girls one day.
