They're 2, they're 4, they're 6, they're 8, shunting trucks & hauling freight . . .
red & green & brown & blue -- they're the really useful crew! Guess who chugged on over to wish me a happy 4th birthday? Thomas the Train & Friends! We partied at the McDonald's Playplace in Camden, and had a chicken-nuggety, french-fry-licious good time! My friends got conductor hats, bandanas, and train whistles; I got a pile of presents! I am so thankful to all of my grandparents, cousins, & friends for coming to my birthday party . . . I'm already planning for next year!

Speaking of birthdays, do you know who's having a birthday celebration soon? That's right -- JESUS! Since Jesus owns everything, He doesn't really need any gifts, so we made up some boxes for the little kids who don't get Christmas presents. I helped Mom & Lydia shop for our church's Operation Christmas Child gifts, and we picked out some good stuff. I know they will enjoy opening their boxes! The only thing I was sad about was not getting to meet the children . . . Mom kept telling me that they lived far away, but I thought they would be there to play with me when we dropped off our boxes. Bah-humbug. Anyway, maybe when I get older I can be a volunteer to deliver the gifts & meet the kids!

We also began preparing for Christmas by helping Mom decorate and going to get our tree. When we arrived at the tree farm, I asked Dad & Mom where the frozen trees were. "What?" Mom said. I knew she told me to look for the frozen trees. Finally I said, "Mom, where on earth are the frozen fir trees?" Oh, I guess I meant frasier fir trees! She laughed and pointed me in the right direction. Then, I got to help pick out the best one for our house. (The nice Christmas tree people also let me sit on their tractor!)

In the next week, I'll be a sheep in the preschool Christmas play and a shepherd in the church Christmas play. And, Lydia will be a cute little angel in the church play. We can't wait! Hopefully we can squeeze in one more holiday post before the big day, but until then, Merry Christmas!
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Season's Greetings,
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Levi
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Milestones of the month: Levi took a trip to the dentist for the first time (no cavities!); Lydia is growing like a little weed, is very independent (won't eat unless she can hold the spoon!), answers with "yes" & "no", wears everyone else's shoes around the house, loves to dance, and soon will be using our little potty

Entertaining Levi quote (as told by Lydia): We were all together at the house and a rather loud horn-like noise came from Levi's bottom area. Mom said, "What was that?!" Levi replied, "I had to poot that frog out so he could hop away!"

Fall Flashbacks! Guess what? It's not really November 1st! Mom & I figured out how to post on a past date, and since we have almost let the entire fall season slip by without an update, we invite you to join us for a Fall Flashback! At the end of our last post, we were on vacation in Garden City . . . we had a peachy, I mean, beachy time! One of my favorite things was our trip to the Nascar Speedpark. Being a racecar driver sure is fun, and, Mom said I did a great job obeying all of the traffic signals. She told me it was just for decoration, but I stopped at the red stoplight every time I circled the track. I hope we can go there again on our next beach trip, and maybe Lydia will be big enough to ride in the car with me!

We also had a lot of other fun fall festivities with our church friends this year -- pizza suppers, a campfire & wienie roast, roller skating night, and an absolutely awesome Autumn Jubilee! Our church joined forces with four other churches and we put on a HUGE free community fall festival. We had two bouncy houses, a puppet show, games, food & drinks, face painting, raffles, a hay ride . . . and most importantly, we had a way to share Jesus with our neighbors! We didn't keep a close count, but we think we had around 600-700 people. We still haven't finished all of our candy from the trunk-or-treat! Lydia & I went as Bob the Tomato & Larry the Cucumber, so we managed to get our veggies in, too!
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Love,
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Levi
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I've Been Workin' on the Railroad,
All the
Live-Long
Day . . . Can you spot me waving in front of the enormous locomotive? There's nothing like a good old-fashioned day at the South Carolina Railroad Museum to get your pistons pumping and your boiler bubbling! We took a day trip to Winnsboro last month to learn even more about our state's train-tastic history (even though I know quite a bit on the subject already). We wandered through cabooses and train cars, looked at old artifacts, played on a wooden train table, and took an hour-long ride along the tracks! While we were chug-chug-chugging, we passed all kinds of antique railroad equipment, old freight cars, quarry rocks, and other cool stuff. It was a Rockton & Rion good time . . . I hope to hear the conductor call "All Aboard!" again soon!

Do you know another exciting event that has happened since my last post? Let me give you three clues -- reading, writing, & arithmetic! Fortunately, I don't think Mrs. Pam knows about the "hickory stick" thing. I started PRESCHOOL! It has been so much fun, and I've already learned a lot, too. Mom takes me on Tuesday & Thursday mornings, and I get to stay until lunchtime. My friends there are really great, and a few of them love trains as much as I do! Mrs. Pam has a cool train building set that we work on together. We also read stories, learn at the "Listening Rug", paint pictures, play outside, have snack, use scissors, dress-up in costumes (my favorite is the firefighter outfit), and practice our colors, letters, and numbers. And most importantly, we learn about Jesus! Can you believe I have my very own bookbag & cubby hole? Also, at the end of each week, I get a sticker on my apple if I was on my best behavior. Three weeks = three stickers . . . so far, so good!

Mom and I are typing this post from Garden City Beach, so we're going to make like the ocean and "wave" bye-bye for now! We'll have another post soon to share all our vacation adventures. Be sure to look for our animal pictures at the right -- we've got swans, a turtle, and a tiger! Also, if you didn't see it last time, please click on Our Summer Slide Show!
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With love,
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Levi
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P.S. To read others' comments, click on the
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Milestones of the month: Lydia knows all the parts of her face (eyes, ears, nose, mouth, etc.), can repeat most one and two-syllable words, and is starting to tell us when she needs a fresh diaper; Granddeddy bought me my very first real set of junior golf clubs (it was Dee-Da's birthday, but I got the big present!)
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Entertaining Levi quotes (as told by Lydia):
*A few months ago, Mom was fixing Levi a bagel and asked him if he wanted it plain. He didn't quite understand what she meant, so after thinking about it a minute, he replied, "Mom, I just want it bald-headed." So, now this is a normal saying for our family. If we're talking about anything at all that's plain or bare, it is bald-headed.
*We were walking through the mall, and Levi stopped to say 'hey' to one of the kiosk workers (aren't you impressed that a one-year-old knows the word "kiosk"?). He asked Levi his name and so forth. Dee-Da was standing next to Levi, and the worker asked Levi who that was beside him. Levi said, "This is my friend, Pastor Roy." We all got a good laugh out of that one.

Those Lazy Hazy Crazy Days of Summer! What an exciting summertime we've had! It's a good thing I don't have to go to school yet, because I need to rest from my summer vacation. I helped Mom put together a slide show of the photos we wanted to share, because there were too many of them to fit on the page! Have you ever played "I Spy"? See if you can "spy with your little eye" some of these fun things in our slide show:

1) Lydia's first haircut -- Mr. Marshall's a brave fellow!
2) At the Winston-Salem Children's Museum -- Look for a rocking chair, crane, horse, & turtle!
3) Levi at Challenger Sports British Soccer Camp -- Kevin was our coach... he's a professional soccer player in Scotland!
4) At the playground in Kershaw
5) A tuckered-out Levi & Lydia
6) At Riverbanks Zoo with Kinsley & Reagan -- Look for the elephant & flamingos!
7) Fun times at Will's birthday party -- What a sweet hug!
8) Vacation Bible Schools -- The Egypt File & Saddle Ridge Ranch
9) More photos of Levi's 4 weeks of swimming lessons
10) At SciWorks in Winston-Salem -- Look for a piano, huge teeth, a dinosaur head, a robot arm, a chair lift, & the Food Guide Pyramid! Whew!
11) At KidFest in Lexington -- Look for bouncy castles & a tractor train!
12) Cooling off in the sprinkler

We also got to go to a bunch of birthday parties, McLeod's Peach Festival, Joseph's Journey VBS, a magic show at the library, and some other wonderful events that we're too tired to remember right now! Lydia also went for her one-year-old doctor's appointment . . . she was a little over 23 pounds and almost 31 inches long. She sure is growing up fast! And, Mom & Dad had their 9th wedding anniversary . . . I'll bet they never really knew the meaning of fun until we came along!
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Love always,
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Levi
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Just a few of Lydia's favorite things: Unrolling the toilet paper, giving kisses, throwing random objects into the trash can, feeding her snacks to Meli, flushing the toilet, wearing "jewelry" (anything becomes a necklace or bracelet), climbing like King Kong, singing, & walking/running all over the place

A Bubbly Butterflies Birthday! Happy 1st Birthday to me! Can you believe I'm a whole year old? Mom says the time has just "fluttered" away! I had such a wonderful time celebrating with my friends and family . . . I'm already looking forward to the next one!

Did you know that butterflies are a symbol of the resurrection? 2 Corinthians 5:17 says, "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation . . . " Just like a butterfly starts out as a caterpillar, and then pops out of its cocoon as a new creation! Isn't that neat? So we had all kinds of butterfly things at my party -- wings for the girls to decorate & wear (the boys made caterpillar hats), butterfly balloons, cakes shaped like butterflies, butterfly suckers & other goodies, butterfly & cocoon games, and a little butterfly baby pool for my buddies to splash in. My older friends played in the big pool, ran through the sprinkler, and slid down the Slip-N-Slide. And don't forget the bubbles . . . we blew lots of bubbles! It was a beautiful butterfly day!

Do you know what else I did on the day of my party? I took my first steps! After all the partying was done, my family was visiting in the living room and I decided to surprise them. Since then, I have been taking steps daily (my record is 4 steps in a row). I've also learned a few more words, including banana & ball (my most-used is still bye-bye), and my new favorite snack is blueberries. They are delicious!

I have been practicing my walking, but Levi has been working hard practicing his swimming. He has been taking swimming lessons for the past two weeks, and he is turning into quite the little fishy! He can dip under water, kick his legs, move his arms, and jump off the side. I can't wait until I'm big enough to splash and play with him!
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Love you bunches,
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Lydia
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Milestones of the month: Levi has memorized 6 Bible verses & I went to my first movie in the theatre, Shrek 4

Entertaining Levi quotes (as told by Lydia):
*Each time we headed out to the beach, Levi would hang his towel around his neck, grab his sand shovel, and repeat, "Surf's Up! Surf's Up!"
*One day Levi was frustrated with Mom and started to say that he was going to kick her. When he realized he would be in trouble, he decided to say, "First I'm going to buy an egg, and then a chicken will hatch out of it, and then it will bite you on the nose!" Mom tried to be a good disciplinarian, but she was laughing too hard.

Happy Birthday to You,
Happy Birthday to You,
Happy Birthday, Dear Lydia . . .
Happy Birthday to You!

He Lives! He Lives! Christ Jesus Lives Today! For my very first Easter celebration, I sure had an egg-cellent time! Levi shared with me a special story about Jesus, the cross, and the empty tomb . . . if I could say it, I'd shout, "Hallelujah!" (This big, wonderful word does begin with the same letter as hot dog: the only word-phrase I've clearly said other than Da-Da and Ma-Ma. Mom isn't sure if we can count that as my first word out of consideration for my Granny, the dietitian. As a side note, I haven't eaten any hot dogs, but I have enjoyed an episode or two of Mickey Mouse Clubhouse with my brother. The theme song starts, "Hot dog, hot dog, hot diggity-dog!")

I've watched Mom crack open eggs in the kitchen before, but I never knew that some of them had candy hidden inside! During the Easter Egg-stravaganza at church, I went on a fun egg hunt, won prizes, and watched the big kids play some crazy games with real eggs. I enjoyed opening my candy-filled eggs while Levi enjoyed tossing & cracking open the real ones. It was a little yucky, but lots of fun! Did you go on an egg hunt this year?

After our Easter Sunday service, we drove all the way to Mimaw's house for a yummy lunch and family visit. I really had a great time seeing everyone, playing outside, and wriggling my toes around in the nice soft grass. Mom said I looked like a little bunny with my two bottom teeth sticking out, but now I'm growing another one down there which makes a total of seven! I'll be crunching carrots in no time!

Since our last post, I've started standing by myself, playing peek-a-boo, climbing everything, and I just had my first bottle of regular ol' milk. It's quite refreshing! I also just returned from my furthest road trip -- to Tim & Teresa's house! We packed up the van and headed north so that Dee-Da could lead revival at their church. While we were there, Teresa took us to a children's museum and to ride on a neighbor's horse! Well, Levi rode on the horse and fed pretzels to a goat while I napped. We are so grateful that the Lord has blessed us with wonderful friends like those two!
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Love,
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Your soon-to-be-first-birthday-girl, Lydia
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Milestones of the month: Enough about me . . . Levi has memorized another Bible verse (Proverbs 17:17) and is almost completely potty-trained -- I'm so proud of him

Frosty the Snowman was a jolly, happy soul . . . What a great day in the snow! Mom and I had such a "cool" time building our snowman, throwing snowballs, making snow angels, and eating snow cream! We woke up to this wintry surprise the weekend of Valentine's Day, and I was so excited I almost forgot about all of the yummy heart candy that was in my near future. Baby Lydia was excited, too, until Mom tried to squeeze her into a tiny snowsuit that used to be hers when she was a baby. As you can see in the pictures, this made for a very unhappy snowbunny. But after she had a taste of the snow cream, everything was better!

After we came inside for some hot chocolate and a rest, Dee-Da took me back out in the snow to play. I ran to show him our snowman, but I couldn't find him anywhere! There was only a watery lump of snow where he had been. And I guess he must have gotten hot, because he left his hat and scarf on the ground, too. So, the only thing left to do was make another snowman! And that's what we did. The snow was all gone by the evening, but it sure was a fun day!

There was another really exciting thing that happened right before Valentine's Day -- Baby Lydia started crawling! She can really move fast, and she wants to explore everything! I think she gets that from me. I tried to explain to her that only food is supposed to go inside your mouth, but she still likes to taste everything anyway. She's also getting three teeth on the top, so altogether that will be five! (I'm becoming a pretty good counter.) Lydia also claps, waves, blows kisses, and dances to the Mickey Mouse Clubhouse theme song. She's sure getting to be a busy little bee!

Over the past few weeks, I've done some pretty fun stuff while visiting with all the grandparents, like go to the zoo, play with the trains at the bookstore, and visit with my great-grandmoms. This weekend Lydia & I get to go to our friend Reagan's birthday party, and Mom & Dad are also taking us to a children's production of The Wizard of Oz at the theatre in Camden. Mom told me about Dorothy and Toto, and I can't wait to see the lions, and tigers, and bears . . . oh, my!
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Love always,
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Levi
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P.S. To read others' comments, click on the
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Milestones of the month: Crawling, of course, and memorizing a Bible verse (I did that, not baby sissy) -- Genesis 1:1

Our Blog Back-Log!
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Hey everyone! The last few months at our house have been a little crazy! We got behind on our blogging after the accident, and then it just piled up on us . . . so many things to report and share! I've been trying to teach baby Lydia the alphabet, so we thought that we would practice our ABCD's in the blog titles. We have three blog posts below this one, so scroll down & practice your ABCD's, too!
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With love,
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Levi

A

Beautiful

But

Crazy

Day!

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A few weeks ago we all headed out with Grammy to try and take some family photos. Boy, was that hard work! We went to the State Capital building in Columbia and took about a million pictures. It was really a challenge getting my brother & me to sit still and look towards the camera; we're pretty busy little people. But, we ended up with a few good photos and fun memories of our first trip to the Capital! Dee-Da and Levi even climbed all the way up the big steps to the very tippy-top . . . that seemed a little scary to me, so I stayed at the bottom and looked at the statue. We are all very thankful to Grammy for her patience with us!

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I have grown up so much in the past few months! I can sit up really well, I play by myself (for just a few minutes), I'm eating all different kinds of baby foods, and I even munched on my first Cheerios this week! They were delicious, and I love feeding them to Meli, too. At my 8-month doctor's appointment, I weighed in at 18 pounds, 3 ounces, and I'm almost 27 inches long! My hair is growing nice and thick, and I've sprouted two sharp little teeth on the bottom. Teething biscuits, beware! My favorite word is Da-Da, and I say it over-and-over whenever Daddy walks in the room. I'm pretty good at this heart-melting thing.

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I pray that the Lord blesses you in this new year, and that you stay toasty warm during the winter months! Please come and visit me soon!

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Yours truly,

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Lydia

Delicious

Dinners

And

Christmas

Celebrations!

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We sure had a yummy Thanksgiving & fun-filled Christmas season! (The day after Thanksgiving wasn't so great, but we had a lot to be thankful for!) All of the family gathered together at Grammy & Granddeddy's house for Thanksgiving dinner, and I ate so much I almost popped! Also, Lydia gobbled down her very first jar of baby food -- something green & squishy. She liked it a lot! We played all day with Kayden, Trapp, & Jessica, until we were all tuckered out. I am always so glad that Gramps, Granny, & Gee-Gee come for all of the festivities, too!

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Well, between Thanksgiving & Christmas, we got to do something sort of fun -- shop for a new car! Mom wasn't real excited about getting a minivan, but I sure was! I love riding in the big church van with Dee-Da, and our van is just as great! It sure came in handy over the holidays when we had to load up all of our stuff for family visits. Mom can open the doors with her special keychain, I have my own arm rests, the windows are nice & big for good views, and there's plenty of room for stretching out during those emergency diaper changes. I'm almost potty-trained, though! I totally have the #1 routine down, but I'm not quite ready to do the #2. It's a little weird to do that in the open air.

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Christmas was wonderful, as usual, and this year it was extra-special because it was baby Lydia's first Christmas! I showed her the ornaments on the Christmas trees, I helped her sit on Santa's lap, and I even let her open her own presents. I also explained to her that Christmas is not about trees or presents, but about the birth of Jesus! We even got to be in a Christmas pageant at church telling all about the nativity story. Lydia was a lamb and I was a shepherd. I tried to sing the songs, but I was having too much fun throwing straw on my friend, Reagan.

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There was something else really neat that happened this Christmas -- we found Gramp's cat, Butterscotch! We all thought Butterscotch had wandered off to the place where old kitties go, so Mom was going to get Gramps & Granny a new cat for Christmas. Well, while she was looking at available pets up for adoption on the computer, she found a picture of Butterscotch at one of the shelters in Winston! To make a very long story a lot shorter, Gramps was really surprised when Mom carried Butterscotch through the door with a big red bow around his neck! He's still perking back up to his old self, and we're all glad to have him home. We know God was watching out for that Christmas kitty!

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Love,

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Levi

Birthdays
And
Baby
Dedications!
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In November, Levi had his 3rd birthday party, and I was dedicated to the Lord at Shamrock Baptist Church! All of my grandparents came, and we had such a great time! Can you see the beautiful baby dress that I got to wear? My Aunt Faye passed it down to me . . . it's almost 100 years old! And Granny made my pretty little bonnet out of a handkerchief that belonged to my great-great grandmother. Mommy said I looked like a little baby doll! I felt very special to have my own Daddy lead the dedication service, and I even got a little Bible & framed picture with my footprint. My friend, Brooke, was also dedicated, so we had a party afterwards with all our families and a big cake! (Unfortunately, I couldn't have any, but Levi told me it was delicious.)
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Speaking of parties, Levi had a super-fun glow-in-the-dark birthday party for turning 3 years old! We had glow sticks, glow toys, flashlights, luminaries, and a campfire for roasting hot dogs & marshmallows! Our theme for the party was letting "your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven" (Matthew 5:14-16). Everyone had a really great time, even though it was a little chilly. All the big kids were running like crazy with their flashlights and glows sticks . . . I can't wait until I can run like crazy, too!
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Love you lots,
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Lydia