Beautiful!

This day is beautiful! This is the day that Lord has made. Let us rejoice and be glad in it! It's sunny here this morning in Seattle ... Praise Jesus. I am so looking forward to spring and summer.

Not only is this day beautiful but this blog is beautiful too! Thank you Jhen Stark for designing a beautiful home for my writing. I love it. If you haven't checked out her blog, do so by clicking here!

And (yes I am a former 1st grade teacher & am starting a sentence with and, SHAME on me!), my daughter is beautiful and today adorable, kissable, sweet Siena Joy is 5 months old! I absolutely cannot believe it. Everyone tells you how fast time goes by when you have a baby, but truly in the midst of all of the sleepless nights & anxiety & change... it doesn't feel like it's

moving
at
all.
But it is! Praise be to God! My little one is growing all the time and somehow five months flew by and here we are. I haven't been good at blogging about her milestones or what she was like when. I haven't been good at writing in her sweet baby book that you really should buy for your next baby, it is just so darn cute. For most of her sweet, precious life I was just trying to keep my head above water. More accurately, I was trying to stop kicking and flailing and cling to the Holy Spirit's flotation device. But now we are here at her five month birthday and the Lord has brought me peace and stability more than ever before. So, in honor of my little one (and because I left my Basket of Blessings book at my mom's house yesterday...) I am starting a little 5 post break from the JOB, which you can read about here, and telling you month by month how SJ has changed and grown. We are going to start at the present and work our way back to her birth. Sound fun? Here we go.

Oh, and Happy St. Patrick's Day!



Belle Belle,
You are such a wonderful joy in my life. You light up my days with your sweet smiles and those precious laughs, I truly cannot get enough of them. I feel so honored that Jesus has given me such a great blessing. To be your mama and to spend each day with you is a wonderful and life giving task. From February 17 to March 17 our lives have changed drastically! You are taking naps now every day at almost the same time every day. You sleep from about 9:30-11:30am, 1-2pm, and 4-5pm. You put yourself to sleep now. I feed you a little and lay you down and you cry sometimes because you love us but then you fall asleep. You wear pajamas and a sleep sack to bed each night to keep you warm. You are now sleeping on your tummy. Little one, we are trusting Jesus with your life. You sleep so much better on your tummy and so do I, I can't wait to see the other ways that we will be alike as you grow. You go to sleep around 7 each night and sleep until about 8 in the morning. All night you ask? Well, no. Not anymore. But that's ok. You wake up about two or three times during the night to eat and snuggle with your mama. I've been trying to love those moments to pieces and caress your sweet baby head and hold your sweet baby hands. They won't be baby forever. During your awake time you love to stand while holding my hands. We are working on rolling over however, you feel quite content just laying on the floor staring at toys, your family, or taking in your surroundings. One day you will roll over, you just aren't ready. You don't really like the bumbo, but we sit in it occasionally, especially when I have to do dishes, cook, or do laundry, and you want to be up and part of the action. You LOVE tv ... but I don't think I've let you watch it in a few weeks. I just forget because I love playing with you. The last time you watched it was when we met your Papa and Grandma for pizza. That night they told me that you look a lot more like me than you ever have before. That makes me SO happy! I love when babies look like their mamas. You have become very distracted while eating. I can no longer talk, look at my phone, or do anything else while nursing you. You just stare with your big eyes right up at me. You are WAY more interested in what is going on around you then to eat. Now- baby girl, that is the first difference in you and me. Your mama loves food so much, sometimes too much, and won't notice whats going on around her because of how delicious a certain food is... We'll work on that! I gave you water for the first time a few days ago out of a baby sippy cup and by the face you made, you thought it was NOT as good as your mama's milk. We take lots of walks now and you are beginning to enjoy them. The trick is carrying you on my body. I'm not sure how long I will be able to do that. Your mama doesn't have very big muscles and you are growing so fast. You have laughed quite a bit for me but not much for anyone else. You need it to be the right time of day and the right dance move, raspberry noise, or silly face to make you giggle. You are getting better at liking the car or your mama is knowing the right time to put you in it. You babble all the way to places instead of screaming your head off, which I enjoy by the way :). You are starting to get scared of things like little boys flying toy airplanes by your face, your grandpa's deep voice, and your daddy's sudden silly movements. At that point, you have to be assured and loved on by me. I don't love that you are crying, but I love that you need me and that you seem more like a little girl. It is so sweet. You are wearing three month clothes still (but are about to grow out of them), three to six months, and some six months. You are beginning to reach for things, you have a silly, squishy, yellow toy that hangs from your play mat and I saw you reaching for it the other day in the kitchen. The other day you made raspberry noises for the first time. I tried so hard to get it on tape... but you would not cooperate. You love to take showers with mommy or daddy and are happy afterwards (well... after you get clothes on that is!). I love you more and more each day sweet girl. Your mama is feeling more sane, more able to get things done at home, and more like a regular person. I am so excited to watch you grow into a little lady! I love you.