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