From the Bumpy Road: "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.