Sadie is 10 Months Old!

Sadie Hope hit the double digits this week!  She is 10 months old!!  

What is Sadie up to these days?

• Sadie weighs 18 lb, 11 oz (50%), and is 27 1/2 inches long (18%).
• She is in size 3 diapers.
• She is mostly in 6-9 months and a few 12 months clothes. 
• She continues to be a great eater!  This month, we have introduced her to watermelon, cranberries, mango, cherries, spinach, rutubagas, and tree nuts.  She loves all fruits and vegetables!!  
• Sadie has finally decided to go back to her good sleeping habits ;)!  We still have a few nights that she gets up during the night, but thankfully those are becoming few and farther between.  
• The girl talks ALL the TIME!!  If she's awake, she's jabbering!  She now says "ba ba" for bottle, and I think she's trying to say a form of "Ellie" as well.  
• We are officially crawling...everywhere!  And, she is pulling up on everything.  Sadie has no plans to sit still for very long these days!  Our 10 month photo session was quick because Little Miss wouldn't sit still like she once would for pictures!  

Sadie's favorites are still her books, any and all music, Ellie, playing in water, her Tiger, and Mickey Mouse.  Her favorite book right now is "Kisses".  

Sadie had her 9 month developmental check up with her pediatrician this month.  She is right on target with her speech, social skills, and motor skills!  Dr. Rochelle was pleased to see her weight has finally gotten up to the 50th percentile.  Her length is still only in the 18th percentile, but because her other developmental levels are good, Dr. Rochelle said to not be too worried.

And, what she lacks in length, she makes up for in happiness!  This little girl is probably the happiest, smiliest baby you'll ever find!  I prayed daily while I was pregnant that Sadie would have a sweet and joyful spirit, and the Lord granted me that!  She is cautious around new folks, but quickly becomes friendly and flashes a big smile.  She's very laid back, and just happy! :)

Our girl has so many different nicknames that we call her, but probably the 2 she's called most often are Goose and Goosey (short for "silly goose")...she's always giving these funny little looks like she knows something you don't, and she will laugh when she hears someone else laughing.  Love my Goose!!

This month has consisted of lots of celebrations - family birthdays, Sadie's dedication, my first Mother's Day, lots of end of the school year/church year festivities - it's been a fun and busy month with our girl!!

These 10 months of life with Sadie have been better than I could have ever imagined!  How blessed our lives are to be called her parents!

 Happy 10 months, Sadie Hope!!

  

Memorial Day Fun!

We had a great Memorial Day weekend filled with lots of family time.  Memorial Day means the beginning of summer to me, and I always look forward to it!  After we had lunch with Brad's family, we came home and enjoyed the rest of the day just the 3 of us.  We rode Sadie around in her red wagon Mama J and Papa got her for Christmas, and then let her play in her little pool.  It was a perfect afternoon!  We were all in our red, white, and blue so I grabbed my camera while Sadie was in her wagon, and got a few shots...

Little stinker quickly figured out how to stand up in the wagon, and of course that's all she wanted to do then!  She is a girl on the move these days!

Mommy and her favorite girl!  I could just eat her up!!

Y'all, this girl loves Ellie so much.  She just lights up when she sees her in the mornings, and will laugh from her belly if Ellie decides to give her a lick on the hand (...or cheek!).  They are the best of buds.  

The pool was a big hit with Sadie!  She adores bath time, so I was expecting her to enjoy the water, but wasn't sure how well she would be able to move around in the pool.  She did great!  Loved crawling in the water, and playing with the toys...and, of course standing up!

What a fun day we had to kick off the beginning of summer!!  How thankful I am for the men and women that have fought for our freedom so we can enjoy this great country we get to call home!!  Happy Memorial Day!

Sadie's Dedication

My 1st Mother's Day was perfection in every way possible.  The day itself was much LESS about me, and much MORE about Sadie Hope being dedicated, and celebrating the miracle of her life!

We had a very large group of babies and children dedicated this year at our church - 15!!  I haven't really talked about it much on the blog, but I am now serving as the director of our Children's Ministry at our church, so I was very involved in the planning of our Baby Dedication service.  It was such a sweet, sweet service and something I had been looking forward to.  Some may not understand the difference between baby dedication/christening, or really even understand the importance of it.  For us, Baby Dedication was a HUGE deal - a day to stand before our church, friends, and family and publicly commit to raising Sadie in a way that is biblical and pleasing to Christ.  It was a day to thank Him for her life, and for the blessing and miracle that she is.  And, it was a day to be reminded that the time we have to teach her and prepare her for life as an adult is so, so short - to enjoy this season and be wise in how we use our time with our children.  What a special day in the life of our little Sadie Hope, as well as for our family!

Our parents and siblings were there to celebrate with us, and Ashley came.  Ashley was our NICU nurse that took unbelievably good care of Sadie (and us) during our stay at Children's.  I couldn't think of anything more special than for Ashley to be with us to celebrate this day!!

After church, we spent the day with our families, and had such a fun day!  When we got home, Brad and Sadie surprised me with a beautiful framed picture of Sadie and my first ever Mother's Day cards.

We gave Sadie the little necklace she's wearing in these pictures for a gift of dedication.  It's a little pearl necklace with a cross.  It's so sweet, and will always be a reminder of this special day for our girl!

I've been a mother for over 9 months now, but today it all came full circle for me.  How very, very blessed I am by this sweet girl I get to call my own.  Who lights up when she sees me, and calls me Mea-mea.  I pray daily that she will passionately love the Lord and His people, and will have a joy for Him that is infectious!

Thank you, Lord for the gift and privilege to be a Mother!  

On My 1st Mother's Day Eve...

It always seems very late at night is when I do my best thinking.  Everyone else snoozing, all is quiet in the house.  I'm left getting bags and clothes ready for the next day, and thoughts swirling around in my head.  

Tomorrow is a special day for me and my sweet Sadie.  It's my 1st Mother's Day as a Mother.  A day that for many years was full of bittersweet, is now a day full of anticipation.  

Mother's Day was an internal collide of emotions for me in the past - joy in celebration of the wonderful mothers in my life that have shaped me in to who I am...grief over lost pregnancies...longing to be a mother...guilt for feeling selfish...

So very many emotions that usually left me in a very unhealthy place by the end of the day.  

This year, on my 1st Mother's Day, our little Sadie Hope will be dedicated at church.  A time to stand before our church family and friends and publicly commit to raising her in the admonition of the Lord, and asking for their partnership in holding us accountable to our commitment.  Both of our families will be there, and most of the day will be spent in celebration with them.  A very special day, indeed.  

My heart is so very full.  Our lives have been undeservingly, overwhelmingly blessed by parenthood.  Sadie is an answer to a prayer that my heart has cried out for many, many years before she arrived.  What a gift she is!!  

This was seconds after my miracle baby breathed her first breath, and I got to look an answer to a 10 year old prayer square in the face.  

Before Sadie, was a big ol' open gaping wound on my heart induced by infertility and hurt.  And, while that wound has healed, I still have the scars.  Scars that remind me what we went through.

  

The trials.  The disappointment.  The loss.  The waiting.  

Scars that remind me to never take this gift of motherhood for granted.  How thankful I am for the scars.  Scars reap perspective and gratitude.

So while I have no doubt I will enjoy and savor every moment of my 1st Mother's Day, the scars of years past will keep those that are still waiting for their 1st Mother's Day in my mind.  How I pray for those that are still waiting for their miracle.  That God would give you peace and strength in Him and the truth of His Word.  That while you are hurting, you can find refuge in Him.  That this Mother's Day would not be one of pain, but of a renewed trust in His perfect timing and plan. 

"I will not cause pain without allowing something new to be born." Isaiah 66:9..."Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer."  Romans 12:12..."Delight yourself in the Lord, and He will give you the desires of your hear." Psalm 37:4

For those that are still waiting, you are loved.  Dearly loved.  And, not forgotten.  

And, for those that held me up with your words of encouragement and prayer through my journey to reaching motherhood, let us rejoice in God's faithfulness!  Thank you, Father, for my 1st Mother's Day!!