The Honeymoon Period

I KNOW THIS SOUNDS FAR FETCHED.
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But, at the risk of sounding like a senile, sleep-deprived, love-sick, hormonal, way tons of estrogen around here, haven't-gotten-out-of-the-house-much, crazy Girl...I just have to say it....
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Amazingly, (SO FAR) the addition of this angel baby has been a total and complete breeze. I think we are living in the honeymoon period. I know this won't always be the case. I know that newborns sleep a lot.
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Mom says, in general, I exaggerate. But Mom has also been here for 3 days and everyday I ask her, 'Did I exaggerate? Or is she an angel baby?'
Everyday, she answers the same, 'No, you didn't exaggerate. She is an angel.'
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I do anxiously anticipate scooting around with 3, getting places on time, delayed sleep deprivation when she does finally wake up a little more...
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But for NOW, I am LOVING it. The newness of it all. The sweet baby. The feeling of living in the Honeymoon period. The family growing by 7 angelic pounds.
God has given me the desires of my heart.
I prayed for this baby girl.
All 9 months that I was pregnant.
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I prayed for a great sleeper.
I prayed for a good eater.
I prayed for a laid back little girl.
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I've got two sweet girls. Neither of which are laid back. They are extraverted, go-getters, ram-rods....but they come by it honestly.
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Brian always reminds me, 'Jennie, look at me and you....what do you expect from these girls? Of course they are into everything, full of energy, exciteable. Look at you and me.' And, of course, he's right.

Vivian sleeps day and night.
I have to wake her up to eat.
Everytime.
And...
She has consistently slept 6 or 7 hours, a night, since the day she came home from the hospital.
The Honeymoon period.
~
'Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart.' Psalm 37:4

The best part about right now, this Honeymoon season, has also been...Brian.
He is loving this baby girl with all of his 200 pounds of rock hard muscles. (just kidding! But he HAS been working out tons and looks muscley and great). Sorry Julie, it's true.
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He has been everywhere, doing everything for his family. Week 1, he took the older two to: the park, Chuck E Cheese, swimming, bike riding, T-ball in the yard, lunches out, grocery shopping, to the gym, to Sams, playdate with friends and the list goes on.... Oh, and I can't forget! Brian made breakfast-in-bed...for ME!
A girl with a 2 year-old, 4 year-old and a one week-old...did I mention it was when I finally woke up...at 9:00am!

(She gently stretched out her fingers,
then relaxed her hand around his finger again.)

Vivian and I had been home from the hospital for less than one week.
Meanwhile, Daddy and Carlisle had their big date.
Their 2nd
DADDY DAUGHTER DANCE.~

ONCE UPON A TIME...

(Her least favorite part of the date.
THE CURLERS.
She said they were hot. That she didn't like them.

Then she poked out her big, pouty lips.)

They got home that night at 9:00pm. They had clearly had an amazing evening.
They both laughed out loud as he imitated her dancing.
I asked her about her favorite part of the evening.
Her response: 'dancing with Daddy'.
I asked Brian his favorite part of the evening.
His response: 'We had just left the Civic Center. We were walking to the car. And as we walked along she said: "Daddy....Can we do this everyday?" 'Me: 'Carlisle did you know that you had the very funnest and
best Daddy at the whole Daddy Daughter dance!?'

Carlisle: (nonchalantly) 'Yeah.'
Me: 'Really? You didn't know all the Daddys at the dance. How do you know?'
Carlisle: 'Because, I know MY Daddy.'

~

The weekend visit from the cousins
(Vivian is slightly in the picture, just tricky to see. :)
She's in the bassinet infront of the 4 stinkers.)

I am back to the gym this WEEK!!!

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I am feeling great!!! See you there!

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Monday 5:30pm Strikezone

Tuesday 5:30pm ZUMBA

Wednesday 8:30am Fit 4 Life

Wednesday 9:30am ZUMBA

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God has me all fired up!

Have you ever been to a church service or heard a message and thought it was just for you? 'It would totally have been fine for NO ONE else to have been here today because this message was designed for me to hear.' Listen to THIS: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pBhqrtMqrv8

(Go to the bottom and turn off my music, so that you can hear the most fantastically challenging message ever.)

So, I probably mentioned I am reading the book 'Crazy Love'. (or maybe I put that on Facebook, I forgot!) It is a book that challenges Christians to take the Bible seriously. It is also helping me realize that God's love is better than ANYTHING this life has to offer.

Of course, it takes me a while to read a book, I am on the fifth chapter. Chapter FOUR is the Profile of the Lukewarm. Pause.

One day last week, Brian texts me and says that he wants us to go over some awesome material that he has recently gotten. He doesn't tell me what it is. Just that he wants us to cover one topic every night, as a couples devotional time. So we started going through it Friday night, it is about the chapter I had just read in the 'Crazy Love' book. Pause.

This morning, we go into all-out battle with Carlisle to get her bathed, dressed, fed, in the car and to church. She was.... ummm....lets say....grumpy. We were not on time, but ALMOST. (that counts in my book, not so much to Bri-guy.) So we stagger into the Sunday School class after each of us takes one of the girls to their nursery. There is a video playing. I recognize the speaker. It's the author of the 'Crazy Love' book. Pause.

All three events, the book, the devotional, the speaker, have one thing in common. They have the EXACT same topic. SAME TOPIC....The topic???????????? Being a LUKEWARM Christian.

Ok God. You TOTALLY have my attention now. Sorry it took so much.

Lukewarm Christian? Big gulp. Convicted already. Sounds kind of like.....me.

Below is an exerpt from CHAPTER FOUR of 'Crazy Love'.

Lukewarm people give money to church ...as long as it doesn't impinge on their standard of living.

Here's what God's word says: 'As he looked up, Jesus saw the rich putting their gifts into the temple treasury. He also saw a poor widow put in two very small copper coins. 'I tell you the truth,' he said, 'this poor widow has put in more than all the others. All these people gave their gifts out of their wealth; but she out of her poverty put in all she had to live on'.
Luke 21: 1-4
Lukewarm people tend to choose what is popular over what is right when they are in conflict. They desire to fit in both at church and outside of church; they care more about what people think of their actions (like church attendance and giving) than what God thinks of their hearts and lives.

Here's what God's word says: 'I know your deeds; you have a reputation of being alive, but you are dead" Revelations 3:1
Lukewarm people don't really want to be saved from their sin; they want only to be saved from the penalty of their sin. They don't genuinely hate sin and aren't truly sorry for it; they're merely sorry because God is going to punish them. Lukewarm people don't really believe that this new life Jesus offers is better than the old sinful one.

Here's what God's word says: I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.
John 10:10
Lukewarm people are moved by stories about people who do radical things for Christ, yet they do not act. They assume such action is for "extreme" Christians, not average ones. Lukewarm people call "radical" what Jesus expected of all His followers.

Here's what God's word says: Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says." James 1:22
Lukewarm people say that they love Jesus, and He is, indeed, a part of their lives. But only a part. They give Him a section of their time, their money and their thoughts, but He isn't allowed to control their lives.


What do you think? If you think these don't apply, or you not even feeling as good as Lukewarm, email me. I've got to talk to you.

You can borrow my copy of the book. It has the full list of other Lukewarm qualities. Areas that are convicting me and drawing me toward this soveriegn God who loves me and wishes to pour out Crazy Love on ME!

Carlisle's First Date

Kind of felt like a baby prom. I didn't know what Carlisle would think of going to the Daddy/Daughter Dance with Brian. Of course, I knew she'd love it. BUT, how would she act? Would she get nervious? Would she enjoy the girliness of it all?

Carlisle was invited by her friends for pre-dance get ready/do nails/primp session.

I love that stuff. I got together all of my fun fruu-fruu stuff. And when she woke up from her nap, we went over to Anna's to get ready. Just Carlisle and I. She was so pensive. She was taking it all in.

She gave me a manicure, Anna one (short lived...one nail, I think), then gave herself one too.

I had prepared her that the curlers would be hot. She asked me more than once to take them out. I told her we had to count to 100 to pass the time.

I LOVED their date. It was such a ligit date. Like some of the REALLY memorable ones that Brian and I went in college. Like some of the Citadel Hops, or one of my sorority dances.
Her sweet three year old anticipation of seeing her Daddy. 47, 48, 49, 50! 51, 52, ...

For the first time in her life, curls!

Carlisle wore a Garden Fairy dress in green with long ties in the back.
Brian wore a beautiful suit on the first day of spring with matching green tie.

He also ordered a boutonniere, and brought Carlisle a wrist corsage.
She was nervious and giddy, he was excited.
She was late being ready, and he was looking at his watch.

Then off to dinner with all her friends and their Daddy's. 6 Daddy/Daughter couples.

Followed by the dance.
Then Brian's favorite part of the evening.
Sharing a booth, sitting across from his one and only while she sipped on a milkshake.
And hearing her talk about why this night had been so incredibly special to her.