A 4:30 a.m. queso dip post

So, it's 4:30 a.m. and I just woke from a deep sleep and felt led by the Lord to get up and write this. As I type, I am still not even sure what I am writing, but I just feel like God has given me something to say to you early this morning. Last night, we went to eat at a nearby Mexican restaurant with some good friends of ours. We hadn't been at the restaurant long before Kate's face was covered in queso dip. She loves to dip anything in the queso and lick it off (including the restaurant-provided crayons). Any of you who've been around small children know that part of meal time is cleaning the little ones up after they eat. We always keep wipes in our diaper bag, knowing that Kate will make a mess when we go out. No big deal. As much as I love Kate (and it's a whole, whole lot), I usually want to clean her little face up before I give her hugs and kisses. I don't want all that queso to get all over me, you know. I am struck by the difference between myself and my Lord, Jesus Christ. His love for us is so deep and so wide, that he comes to us when we are our dirtiest and messiest and he hugs us and loves on us right then and there. He doesn't wait for us to get cleaned up and present ourselves with perfection before He offers His love.

As we get ready to begin 2010, if you don't know this love I write about this morning, I encourage you to seek God out in 2010. In Acts 17:27, Paul is in Athens speaking to some of the religious leaders. He tells them that he has seen their altars built to many Gods; He knows they are religious. He tells them he even saw an altar to "an unknown God." Paul goes on to say that "The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by hands" (v. 24). Paul is drawing a distinction here, showing them and us that Jesus Christ is not a far-away God to whom we build altars, but who we can't really know. In one of my favorite verses in the Bible, Paul says "God did this so that men would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from each one of us" (v. 27). Our God is near to us. He pursues us. If we accept the sacrifice of Christ and His forgiveness and love, He stands ready to love on us - queso dip and all. He stands ready to give us peace we don't understand and mercy we don't deserve. There is no greater gift. For all of who we love near and far, I wish this peace and mercy for you with all of my heart in 2010.

There's just something about that name

Sunday morning, Kate was in the back of the house with Fred and I was in the kitchen. I could hear him getting ready for church and singing a familiar song, "Jesus, Jesus, Jesus....There's just something about that name..." When he got to the end of the chorus, he said "Kate, your turn." She paused for a moment and then, in a voice that rang out throughout the house, she shouted "Jesus" at the top of her lungs. It was so funny. I just listened to their little duet from the kitchen and laughed. What a beautiful reminder of why we celebrate Christmas. The name of Jesus is an amazing name. Our celebration of his birth, life, death and resurrection should be exuberant. I guess that's why He said, "I tell you the truth, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it." (Luke 18:17)

Twas the week before Christmas...

My students did a campaign this semester for the Governor's Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness to help kids and their families prepare for natural disasters. They created a really neat board game for kids to play in schools to learn about storms. They were asked to present their campaign to a congressional committee last Thursday. It was so neat to be there and watch them. They did a great job!

On Friday, Fred and I went to Kate's school Christmas party. These are a few of her classmates. We learned that Cheetos are good to dip in just about anything, including cupcake frosting.

Ready for church this morning. This is pretty much the gist of our Christmas decorations.

I got this dress for Kate to grow into, so you'll probably see it again at Valentine's Day, Fourth of July, etc. :)

What I would have written in your Christmas card...

Hi all! I put the first wave of our Christmas cards in the mail yesterday. I felt a little guilty about not writing a personal note in each one, so I thought I'd write a little note here on the blog.

We have experienced so much blessing this year. To be able to watch Kate grow and near her second birthday while we eagerly anticipate the birth of our son is an amazing gift. I think I can speak for Fred when I say we are completely humbled to have the gifts of these two children in our lives (even on a night like tonight when Kate somehow managed to get a staple lodged between one of her molars and her gums).

We are anticipating a big year in 2010. We're expecting John Parker to arrive in late February. Sometime before that, I should hear the final word on my tenure at LSU. So far, all the news has been good. Fred is graduating from seminary and getting ordained in May!! Our church has arranged for his ordination to be the same weekend as his graduation. It will be such a blessing to have our families here for both events.

I think one of the greatest gifts God has given me this year is watching Him work miracles in the lives of some of our closest friends. I have several close girlfriends who are also pregnant right now and some of them have had a very, very hard road to get here. Other friends have had struggles with jobs and homes, but God has shown himself mighty in each situation and He has done some amazing things in response to faithful prayer. We are blessed to walk alongside our friends as they trust in God in good times and in bad. May God bless each one of you this year and may you experience His love in a real, tangible way in 2010!

Love,

Fred, Lisa and Kate

Beginning to look a lot like Christmas

This was a busy week in the Lundy house. We had three Christmas parties. Tuesday evening, we had a party for the ministerial staff at church (see below). Thursday night, Fred went to a party for all the staff at church. I stayed home with Kate. Last night, we had a party for the small group Bible study I teach at church. All the parties were fun, but we are looking forward to a more low-key week coming up.

Kate vs. blue crayon

Ready for church this morning. One of Kate's new games is putting her dog "night-night" - she carries the dog and her blanket all around the house, putting the dog to sleep and covering him with the blanket. It is really sweet.

Relaxing with Alli after a long week. I think Kate might have a harder time adjusting to sharing attention from Alli with John Parker than she does with sharing attention from us :)

"Bless you"

Update: I started this post Friday at work, but I was interrupted when I grabbed a diet coke out of my fridge and it exploded all over me and my desk. So, my blogging time turned into an extreme makeover session deciding how to cover up the diet coke stains for my afternoon faculty meeting. I ended up wearing a white hoodie over my nice work clothes. I am sure people thought I looked a little strange.

As Kate gets closer to 2 years old (yikes!), I find myself doing more and more little girl stuff with her and less baby stuff. For example, I've been working on putting her hair in pigtails in the mornings. It's so cute that way and keeps the hair out of her face. Her teacher, Ms. Kathy, even gave me her "beauty parlor" tutorial. Every time I do it, I'm reminded of the countless times my mom and I stood before her bathroom mirror while she did my hair. It's a little girl thing! We're not really potty training yet, but Kate will come and tell us when she needs a new diaper (sometimes). When I look at pictures of her from earlier this year, I can't believe how different she looks.

Kate is talking so much these days. She can tell us what she wants, ask us questions, etc. Sometimes we don't understand, but more and more we are able to communicate with her. I tell her "I love you" all the time and I've been waiting for the day when she says it to me unprompted. What's funny are the things she just picks up hearing us say them (well, not always funny). The other morning, I was snuggling with her on the couch in the morning (about the only time of day she's interested in snuggling). I sneezed and, after a little pause, she said "Bless you!" It was so sweet to hear her say that. It doesn't seem like a big thing, but one of my biggest prayers is to foster in her little heart a genuine concern for others and their needs. One of my favorite songs right now is "Hosanna" by Hillsong United. To me, this is a song about hopefulness that we'll see more of the beauty of Christ in a world that can seem overwhelmingly negative. One of my favorite lines is "I see a generation, rising up to take its place, with selfless faith." I always think about my kids when I hear this line. I don't really care about my kids being religious. I care about them having a faith in Christ that seeks to emulate his life by giving and love selflessly to others. I care about them wanting to be a blessing to others.

Here's a few new pics. Sorry about the delay since my last post :)

Sidewalk chalk is a new favorite. Much of it usually ends up on Kate's face or on Alli.

She also loves wagon rides around the backyard. She's getting a tricycle for Christmas...shhhh :)

Chillin' in the wagon, watching the sunset.

First time for mommy to do pigtails for church.

The result - this is harder than it looks.

All ready to go.

Ready for church this morning. First Christmas outfit of the season.

I have to use Elmo to distract her so she'll stand still.

Thankful

For some reason, I always seem to be out of town the weekend before Thanksgiving for work. This weekend, I was in Dallas for a grantwriting workshop. Unfortunately, Kate's preschool Thanksgiving luncheon was on Friday so I had to miss it. Fred went with her and sent me some pics.

Lundy Update

Hi all! Things are good in the Lundy house, just normal craziness. Here are a few new pics:

Kate loves to try on any shoes we leave out, but these take the award for biggest shoes to fill :)

Swinging might be even more fun than sliding.

Getting some love from mommy.

Ready to go! When Dottie was here last week, Kate went down this slide head-first.

What to try next?

Where's Alli?

Climbing around with Daddy.

Fun weekend with Dottie

My mom came to visit this weekend and we had so much fun. I can't believe I didn't take any pictures, so I had to post this one from Kate's birthday weekend. We had a fun girls' day on Friday and took Kate to the playground to play. It was just a really nice weekend. It made me ready for the holidays!

Thanks for the prayers!

Just a quick note of update: Little Sarah Kate who I blogged about last week is home and has been for a few days. She seems to be doing pretty well right now and her parents are ecstatic to all be home together. Something we take for granted every day - for them, it's a huge answer to prayers, your prayers! Thanks for lifting them up!

Nothing but treats this weekend!

What a fun weekend! We were able to spend the whole day together as a family on Saturday and it was such a treat. We took Kate to breakfast on Saturday morning and sitting outside in the beautiful weather I felt like it was one of those moments I'd just long to remember years from now.

Kate's Halloween pajamas from Granny.

Getting ready for a fun-filled day.

Kate woke up from her nap on Saturday with crazy hair. Her hair is really curly, especially when she first wakes up. She's catching a little ESPN Gameday here. You know, when you've been asleep, you have to catch up on all the scores you've missed.

We went to our friends' Ben and Lindsey's house to trick or treat.

I'm ready...what are we waiting on?

Trick or treating with Dad.

Watching the big kids and learning the drill.

Helping the guys with the grill after trick or treating.

We went to a pumpkin-carving party on Friday night. This is our Tim Tebow Superman pumpkin.

Calling all prayer warriors

For anyone reading who is willing to pray, our friends' little girl is in serious need of prayer. Some of you know about Sarah Kate Moore. She's the little girl who was born a few months before Kate and had to have a heart transplant a few months after she was born. Sarah Kate will be 2 in a few weeks and she has spent most of her life in the hospital - either in Boston or in Baton Rouge. Y'all, I cannot emphasize enough how this whole family is in need of prayer. Here are some specific ways you can join us in praying for them:

• Pray for Sarah Kate. She was readmitted to the hospital last night after being home less than 48 hours. She has a very high fever and high levels of infection in her body.
• Pray for her parents (Eric and Lindsey), her siblings (Madeline and Wesley who is one month old), and her grandparents. They are weary, just plain worn out.
• Pray for her doctors. Sarah Kate's had some of the best medical care available in her life and the doctors seem to be at a loss for answers and solutions. Every time they seem to get one thing under control, another problem arises.

Thank you for praying!

Bible study girls

I've mentioned my Monday night Bible study before, so I thought you might like to see the girls. We were missing a few, but we got a good shot a few weeks ago thanks to Ashley Beth (far right). Ashley Beth is our resident photograher. She is amazingly talented. You can see more of her work here. We've been meeting together for a little over three years now and God brought us together in a special way. Most of us go to different churches of different demoninations, but our sweet friend Delaney (who's now living in Georgia) introduced all of us. I'm so grateful for the friendship God's given me with these ladies and the chance to grow alongside each other. We've done several studies now (mostly Beth Moore) and we are currently finishing up her study of the book of Esther. Pictured from left to right are Shawna, Lindsey, Aimee, me, Kelle, Natalie, Heather and Ashley Beth.

More Fall Festival

Here's the whole gang at Fall Festival.


With Kate, checking out the rabbits.

Thank you God for miracles!

Some of you may remember me sharing at the beginning of the year about my friend Katye. Katye and her husband, Rusty, lost a baby last year the day after Christmas. Two days before their due date, they went in for a routine appointment only to discover their little boy Scout had died. Katye carried Scout for 9 months and never got to bring him home. I've been amazed this year at Katye and Rusty's ability to mourn deeply for Scout with the faith in God that there were still good things to come for them. Yesterday evening, Katye gave birth to a little boy, Deacon. Deacon is a perfect beautiful baby boy. As I looked at the pictures of them last night smiling and holding their baby boy, I was reminded that only God has the power to turn our mourning into laughter. Be encouraged that even in the very darkest times of life, God has not forgotten us nor will he ever forsake us.

I'm bringing home my baby bumblebee

Last night was Fall Festival at church. Hopefully we'll be able to get some clearer pics next Saturday for trick-or-treating. But here's the bumblebee in her debut.

A little chilly - had to start the evening with a sweater.

Ready to check everything out.

As usual, Kate's favorite thing was the animals in the petting zoo. I think she thought the goats were dogs. Yesterday I turned on the Dog Whisperer (TV show) for her and she was memorized. Future vet? Dottie would be so proud :)

The Scariest Halloween Monster

Halloween usually conjurs images of ghouls and goblins, but the scariest monster threatening my house lately has been the H1N1 virus. Being 22 weeks pregnant and having a small child, I've been worried about what might happen if the virus attacked our house. You hear all kinds of things on the news, but it's often hard to know what to believe. Kate and I both got the vaccine this morning, so I'm feeling a little less worried now. But the whole thing made me think about fear. 2 Timothy 1:7 tells us that "God did not give us a spirit of fear, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline." While I pray for God to give us wisdom in making tough decisions about vaccinations, protecting our children, etc., my fears cannot overshadow my faith in Him for our future. I have to learn to trust him more and worry less. Any other moms struggle with this? If you want, leave a comment and tell me how you cope with worrying about your children. I should have some Fall Festival pictures this weekend (it's tonight at church). Kate was supposed to be a ladybug, but we had some costume shipping drama so now she's going to be a bumblebee. Should be fun!

Catching up

Word on the street is that some people think my camera might be broken :) Sorry I haven't updated lately. Here are some new pictures:


Saturday, Kate and I went to Boo at the Zoo with Robby, Natalie and Wyatt. Fred had a work commitment and couldn't come, but we had a lot of fun. Kate and Wyatt started out in the double stroller, but neither lasted long. They wanted to run around and check things out.


Wyatt, Robby and Kate checking out a peacock.



Wyatt is a tall one-year old. He's almost as tall as Kate and she's pretty tall for her age.



Mommy (or "Neesa" as she's taken to calling me), why can't I go in there and play with the animals?



Sitting up at the counter eyeing Daddy's iPhone.



Our good friends Jim and Bonnie stopped through a few weeks ago from Houston on their way to visit family. Jim was reading to James and Kate.



My new shirt from Dottie and Ditto's big trip to NYC.



We're working on Kate's "big girl" room. This is a little bookshelf I got her. If you look close, it has her name monogrammed on the bottom.



New bed and dresser - thank you Craigslist!



Finally! We can go play outside. It was beautiful this weekend.



Chasing Alli around the yard.



Where did she go?



Found her!