Hook. Line. And Sinker.

Oh my.

I don't even have the words to tell you just how hard I have fallen for this baby.

This is the look he gives me all day long.

.

{ Jack smiling his famous good morning Mommy smiles }

And it melts me.

Every. Single. Time.

Like. Nothing. Else

Can I just say that looks like his handsome Daddy, even though we can't quite put our finger on what it is exactly it is about him that does, especially when he has so many of my features ( chin, mouth, shape of eyes, etc. ) And I pray, oh I pray for him to grow up and have a heart like his Daddy. A Jesus loving heart. A heart that is strong and good. A heart that loves well. And the best ever grin.

{ he's a jolly good baby }

So far he has picked up these endearingly nick-names: Jack-Jack and Jacks and baby lover-boy, by Mommy mostly. Annabelle calls him baby brother and Wiggle Worm and all sorts of different things, most of them silly made up words, never the same thing twice, spoken in her own personal secret language. Daddy always asks, hows the little fellow, or refers to him as my buddy?

{ Jack, 1 month old }

He's growing faster than the weeds in our backyard. Tipping the scale at just under 14 lbs. And he's squishy and chunky and strong but not fat, just built. He seems tall to me. At least he is compared to Annabelle who was always more petite.

{this picture was taken in the middle of packing up our bedroom, around 5 weeks old }

He's quick to smile. And smile and smile... and he loves to talk. Loves to be sung. He laughed for the first time over the 4th of July weekend, while Anniebelle and I were singing this song " Oh the Lord is good to me, and so I thank the Lord, for giving me the things I need, the sun and the rain and the apple seed...the Lord is good to me..." in the car. He thought it was hilarious. Ever since then when he tries to laugh it gets caught in his throat with a " hhhheeeeeep" and he ends up with the hiccups.

{ This is his bewildered look, we get that a lot...as if he was saying, you guys are cuckoo.

Guilty as charged. }

The poor little guy has struggled with severe cases of the following:
baby acne
cradle cap ( the worst I have ever seen)
heat rash
Hates riding in the car
(he screams...eyes wide open, how could you do this to me sort of screams )
gets the saddest tummy ache attacks ( i.e. colic )
and appears to be teething
everything babies are prone to get
you name it, he's got it.
If any of you Moms know of any miracle cures out there for any or all of these things,
please do speak up.
But he sleeps like a dream at night. He loves his bed and from about 11 p.m. - 5:30 a.m.
We literally do not hear a peep.
So far.
We know better than to think it will always be this way.
If there is one thing, the wild world over that is subject to change,
it is a baby's sleeping patterns.
But for now I enjoying getting to be one of those terribly spoiled Mommy's
who gets plenty of sleep at night.

Annabelle has a hard time containing herself over him.
She the kind of personality that has to have her hands all over you...and squeals very loudly and
jumps up and down as a means of showing her affection. She is very enthusiastic in her loving. She actually shakes with giddiness over her brother. I don't blame her either. I know how she feels. And it's so sweet. Until of course he gets overwhelmed by her very animated attention and needs a break, poor baby. We are working with her on being gentle and quiet with him and trying to teach her how to be a little mother. But you can see it in her eyes, she loves him so much, she could just squeeze him. Which is why, bless her heart, we watch her every move.

{ Annabelle and Jack with and the line-up of friends we
were so blessed with, by some of you dear ones}

Oh and his hair turned red. I am still scratching my head over how that happened. But I love it.
And yes he really is as cheerful in real life as these pictures portray.

{ I adore him in the little Kangaroo outfit that the gorgeous KT made for him }


He is one bright eyed, wide eyed, alert, perky little boy. He has been since day one. Oh and his kisses are amazing...he loves to open his mouth wide when he knows a kiss is coming. Also, I love how his head bobs back and forth as he takes it all in from his perch in the baby bjorn, which he loves to ride in.

My darling baby son,

I cannot wait to watch the coming months and years unfold for you...and see you grow and discover and become...for now just know, you are your Mommy, Daddy's and Sister's absolute delight.

Kiss, kiss baby lover boy!

All my love always,
Mommy

Mostly a matter of perspective.

( Waterlilies picked from yesterdays trip to " Me-Ma's lake"


Or an alternative title this post might be: Blogging with a baby on your lap. (While his big sister runs in and out the door with a handful of baby carrots to feed the imaginary baby bunnies that live in our yard...she is wearing her pink ballet leotard and white church shoes with golden curls that match the bounce in her step. )

A very dear friend sent me a email yesterday asking me, hows your summer going? Hows your heart doing? I adore her for that because she sees beyond the day to day, " Hi how are you, " that is asked without a pause taken to hear the reply. She notice's peoples hearts. She intentionally looks beyond the surface, not that she wouldn't be the first to notice a cute pair of earrings, just that she wouldn't stop there...that she would keep going... down deeper, and peer into your very heart. I long to grow in the habit of caring for others hearts. Especially the hearts of my husband, daughter, son, my family and my friends.

Also, I have been thinking a lot about the future and how it is built one day at a time and about how the future that I am looking into now, my children will look back on someday as their past, and how these days are so quickly turning into the years that make up their childhood. I ran across a quote yesterday that stopped me in my tracks and made me do some serious thinking. It's one very simple and yet profound sentence that struck a deep chord, and I have asked that the Lord would use it's truth in my life because more than anything in the world I the rhythm of my heart to beat in unison with His . And lately it feels like I am being reminded daily just how much of life has to do with perspective. That " What we see depends mainly on what we look for.”— John Lubbock. That the out come of a day, or a life, has so much to do with how we chose to perceive it. That you can see deep, unparalleled joy in the weak smile of the nine year old leukemia patient, who despite all she suffers sees each new day as a gift and lives with gratitude and appreciation...or you can hear the hollow misery in the voice of the woman with the flawlessly beautiful face, complete with designer car/bag/clothing/shoes/who has everything she could ever want, materially speaking and yet her life is frighteningly empty and she is obviously unhappy.

I wonder what would happen, if you were able to take two people, with similar temperaments and personalities and make their circumstances and environment identical...I am guessing that after such a experiment those two individuals could come up with very different views on the quality of their experience and whether it was positive or negative. So much hinges on perspective. That's why I want learn how to value what is lovely and good true... things like, cheerfulness, and humility, and patience, unselfishness, hospitality, kindness. Because I so desperately want Annabelle to be able to look back and on these days that are her childhood and be able to say...we might not have had the latest or best of anything , but that never kept us from being happy,and there was one thing we did have in abundance, the love of Jesus.

{ Warning }

{ David was so thoughtful to bring me these flowers from the yard of our Spokane house... }

We are back online.
With some heavy duty picture posts to come.
So far our connection is hit and miss so it could take me a while to get posts up.
But I have so much I cannot wait to tell you about our summer so far.
And you won't believe how much Jack has grown.

For now here is a little sneak peek preview of this seriously darling little duo.

{ Fun things to do at Poppy and Nana's House }

For instantce, you could climb the ladder with Poppy to pick cherries out of tree.

Sample Cherries.

Help Poppy pop out the pits with the cherry pitting machine.

Eat cherries till your face turns purple.

Or you could spend hour after delightful hour playing dress up

and pretend with your cousin. The two of you girls had so much

fun together are a very sweet and at times rather dramatic twosome.

You could enjoy the sights and sounds of Nana's bird house village, as the swallows and wrens swoop and sing, and the humming birds zip back and forth and butterflies gracefully flit from one pretty petal to another.

Or you could gobble up handful after handful of Nana's better than candy, sugar snap peas.

You could not quite resist the temptation to pick and bring pretty flowers to Mommy. Every 3 minutes.

You could go to town with poppy and get a popsicle and a lollipop all in the same outing.

You could jump on the trampoline and squeal with glee while Poppy sprays you with the hose.

You could be graced with the honor of getting to taste the very first cherry tomato of the summer.

You could help Mommy help Nana plant a border of cosmos.

You could sit on Nana's lap and let her read the books to you that she used to read to your Mommy and your Uncle Nate when they were your age.

You could come inside and watch Mr. Rogers on T.V. during the afternoon, instead of having "nap time"

You could spend time together with me in the attic bedroom, the one I used to call my own, thw one with the walls that are covered with pink roses and blue swirly ribbons, pouring over the trinkets and treasures of my childhood.

You could miss your Daddy and ask a dozen times a day when he was coming to see us.

You could watch as Nana helps your Mommy sew you your very first piece of clothing, a red and white polka-dot skirt, with blue ric rac, for the 4th of July.

You could consume the half a dozen lemonade popsicles that Nana made just for you.

You could run around all day in nothing but your swim-suit. Or just nothing.

You could participate in all the flirting sessions one has when one has ones very own irresistibly cute, smiley faced baby brother.

You could smile and laugh and giggle as you run around the yard in bare feet and golden curly pig tails and be a pure delight those around you. How I love getting to relive these wonder filled, care-free summer days through the sparkling eyes of a three year old. As my Dad turns to me and says with feeling, " and just a few short years ago, that was you."