Life Really Does Go on!

It's hard to believe that it's been since January that I've posted. Certainly much has changed in life with the arrival of Alistair Joseph in June. Since I'm waiting for him to fall back asleep in hopes of weaning him off of one of his two nighttime feedings, what a better time to post!

Ella turns five on Monday. It's hard to believe that we have had her in our lives for that long. She is such a blessing. Daily, she is a reminder to us of the goodness of God, the beauty and laughter of children, and the ways in which our children can delight us with even the small things that they do. I appreciate her sense of humor, her amazing intelligence, and her kindness and generosity towards others.

Alistair is just over 5 months old, and is one of the happiest babies I have ever seen. When he makes eye contact with you, his face lights up in an amazing smile that will melt your heart. He is a stubborn boy (I say he gets it from his daddy), and likes to get his own way. And, he's certainly making life interesting. Over the past few weeks, he's started eating real food and loves avocados and sweet potatoes. He's turned over a few times, but working on doing it more. I can't to hear his first word and get a sense of his little voice. What joy he brings to our lives.

And, they love each other! The joy that I see in their eyes as Ella goes in to greet Alistair in the morning, or reaches down to show him a new toy, or holds him in her arms is awe inspiring. We couldn't be more blessed than to have these two wonderful children as a part of our lives. We look forward to watching them grow and become the people that God is calling them to be in our world.

Dexter is a boy!

I had my 20 week ultrasound yesterday, and we got the wonderful news that Dexter is a boy. Big sister, Ella, who really, really, really wanted a sister is in a state of shell shock, but says, "I'll love the baby anyway, and give him lots of kisses." It's fun to know, and we look forward to meeting him in early June. And, in case you were wondering, no, Dexter will not be his name :)

Presidential Scholar?

On our drive to the Midwest for Christmas, we somehow got onto the topic of presidents, and who was president when. On a stop at a local K-Mart (we were early for a dinner date in Upland, IN, not much choice around) we found a place mat with all of the presidents and when Ella asked us to buy it, we decided that a parent couldn't go wrong. What we were not prepared for what would happen after we actually started using the place mat. Each meal is now filled with questions about the presidents: who was good (Abe Lincoln was the best, we tell her), who was bad (I'm not even going to post our opinions about that!), how long were they president (She finds it fascinating that Grover Cleveland has two pictures because he served in non-consecutive terms), who is alive and who is dead? She now has favorites which include: Andrew Jackson (who let all kinds of people into the White house and they got mud on the chairs), William Henry Harrison (who had the shortest presidency, dying after he refused to wear a coat or hat during a freezing inauguration, giving the longest inauguration speech in history) and William Howard Taft (who was so large he got stuck in a bathtub). We didn't think that she would enjoy it so much! Unfortunately, Brad and I are running out of presidential trivia to share with her. Do you have any good trivia on presidents that we can share?

An Advent Prayer

Pray with longing for a better world and the arrival of the Kingdom of God.

In our secret yearnings
we wait for your coming,
and in our grinding despair
we doubt that you will.

And in this privileged place
we are surrounded by witnesses who yearn more than do we
and by those who despair more deeply than do we.

Look upon your church and its pastors
in this season of hope
which runs so quickly to fatigue
and in this season of yearning
which becomes so easily quarrelsome.

Give us the grace and the impatience
to wait for your coming to the bottom of our toes,
to the edges of our fingertips.

We do not want our several worlds to end.

Come in your power
and come in your weakness
in any case
and make all things new.

Amen.

Walter Brueggeman
Awed to Heaven, Rooted in Earth: Prayers of Walter Brueggemann

An Addition to the Family

We just wanted to let everyone know that we are expecting a new addition to the Daugherty family! I am 14 weeks pregnant, and Baby Daugherty (whom we affectionately call Dexter, and no, we don't know if the baby is a boy!)will arrive sometime in early June. We are all excited about the new addition to our family, particularly Ella who told us a few weeks before we let her know, "Mommy, I think I'm ready to be a big sister now!".

We'll keep you updated as the time draws closer!

Ella on Advent

Sometimes I like to write things down just for me, and perhaps that's what this post is :) Last night, Ella and I were in the car on the way back from church, and we were talking about Advent. Sometimes it's hard to convince a 4 year-old that we really do need to observe Advent before we get to Christmas and Baby Jesus. So, as we were talking about what Advent is, I was trying to prompt her to tell me that we're waiting for Jesus to come again. Instead, I said, "What are we waiting for in Advent, Ella?" Without missing a beat she answered, "We're waiting for the resurrection of the dead." I thought for a moment and said, "Yes, Ella, yes we are." It's amazing what comes from the mouths of little children!

Our Little "Mama"

For anyone who knows her, it is no secret that Ella loves babies. She loves playing with her dolls, is always within arm's reach of any baby in the same room as her, and talks a lot about having a baby brother or sister (well, really she just wants a sister, we tell her that you get what God gives you.).

On Sunday night, Ella's class at church talked about Abraham and Sarah and the special plan that God had for them. The class ate birthday cake and ice cream to celebrate Abraham and Sarah's 100th birthday. I came in right as cake was being served, and stayed for a few moments. The preschool director asked the children while they were eating to think about what God's special plan for their lives might be. Ella thought for a moment, then looked at my with big eyes and huge smile on her face. "Mommy," she said, "I think that God's special plan for me is to have a baby when I get big."

I've heard many women say that all they've wanted since childhood is to be a mom and raise their families, perhaps we're raising one in our house.