20 weeks!

"Hey everyone!"

Highchair time...."now when do I get food?"

My battlewounds from the Dr

Patty cake, Patty cake

"You taste good!"

Bumbo time

"Hey Rubberducky..come back here!"

"Cookie!, no kisses"

Daddy and his clone!

I love my mommy!

Tummy time and drool go hand in hand

I am rolling over

I love my dog!

So happy!

Two smiles in a row that mommy caught on film!

Chillin while Mommy works

Superman!

My first big snow!

My snuggly

"What are you doing daddy?"

Chase is 20 weeks old! He had a great week and I was able to finally get him smiling on camera! He is starting to kick his legs when doing tummy time. Of course, he isn't on his knees so we don't have to worry just yet about crawling. But, he is showing the first signs of wanting to move. He grabbed his toes last week but only once..he is beginning to bring his legs/toes up a lot so I don't think it will be long yet. He is still sleeping through the night and is beginning to take the hour and a half naps here and there. He has been teething the last few days and while he is still smily, you can tell he just isn't himself. Brian loves going to get him up in the morning. He says it is the best part of his day b/c Chase smiles so big. Brian dressed Chase for church Sunday with a matching outfit to his. It was so cute that we each took a picture with him.

He is still loving Baby Einstein...he hears the Cd's ALL of the time...they play continuously in his room, we play them in the car, and we watch the DVD's..brain enrichment here we come! I love watching him watch the DVD. When Baby Lamb comes on, he smiles so big...he just loves that lamb. In other news, we had over one foot of snow this week and took Chase out...but just for pics of course. Tayler had a day off of school and two school delays...so that was nice for Chase to have more time with him. Tayler also had his first indoor soccer game. He was so pumped last night as he hasn't had much activity this winter. Brian took pics but they didn't turn out great..they never do in the gym:( Next weekened, we are going out of town for my nephew's Star Wars, Jedi training camp, birthday party...let's just say Brian is so excited!

The Joy Of The Lord Is My Strength...Nehemiah 8:10

I just wanted to offer a quick thought of encouragement. I know there are many being hurt by what's going on in the world around us and we are not immune. I have never lived in a time where so many people are anxious about the future. Every day I meet people who have just been laid off or know someone who has. There is a general sense of insecurity and fear that is pervasive everywhere I go in my job. No one feels safe from what's happening.

The other day my position got temporarily down graded (or I'm hoping it's temporary). We're already struggling (but still doing OK comparatively) and I try to explain to Tayler that millions of people are hurting and we are in the same boat with them. That same day I went to Walmart to pick up a few items and on my way home I realized that I had left a bag of things there that was worth about $25. Normally I would just turn around and go to Walmart and fix the situation but the Walmart I went to that day is a good 30 minutes away and I stopped on my way home from work. I had a meltdown.

But, later that night, after calling Walmart and being put on hold, being hung-up on and then told to just come in and they would replace the items I decided to just go to the closer Walmart and rebuy them. On my way home I began thinking about an old Joyce Meyer message. My wife and I were attending one of her conferences several years ago and she explained that Satan doesn't want our "stuff". We tend to think Satan wants to take it and so we defend it and get upset when we lose it. She says that this verse makes it clear what Satan is after- our joy. Because if he can take our joy then he will take our strength. And when we are not standing in the Lord's strength we are relying on our own and Satan will devour us.

I don't want to continue to expand too much but will say that this thought has helped me many times over the years to gain a proper perspective on my circumstances. Satan wants my joy- not my happiness in circumstances but the joy I have in the Lord for Who He is and Who's I am.

I find myself worrying about the future and am looking forward to our church's next series on Fear. I have often thought that my nickname could be "Much Afraid" and find great comfort in knowing that I am not alone in this thinking.

Nehemiah said, "Go and enjoy choice food and sweet drinks, and send some to those who have nothing prepared. This day is sacred to our Lord. Do not grieve, for the joy of the LORD is your strength."

19 weeks!

Handsome boy!

Chillin in the morning

Mommy is working

I am so happy Tayler was home today!

Daddy practicing with the Bjorn

I love my worm

Bumbo time is fun!

Tayler is so silly

I just rolled over!

MLK day downtown...

Really, he is so silly

Fun times!

I love talking to my monkey while I get my diaper changed!

I am sitting up!!

It is...........

impossible to..........

get a picture of me smiling!

Famous snazzy face

So warm...

First pic with a large animal to chart my growth!

Sir Drool a lot!

Woah momma!

Hi friends!

My Dr. is the best ever!!

Chase is 19 weeks old!! He absolutely loves patty cake! He gets so excited when you do the "roll em up, roll em up, throw them in the pan" He also loves Baby Einstein..which I stated in another post. He is talking "up a storm" these days and it is so very cute. He loves to stand up with his arms raised and for us to say Superman!! This is his new nickname:) He still rolls over everytime he is on his belly. He went for his well baby visit/shots yesterday..3 is our lucky number..he gained 3 pds, and 3 inches...weighing in at 12.2 and 25 inches long. He finally got out of the 5th percentile and is 10-25 in height, 10 head circumference, and 5 in weight. YAY!

When a friend from work says "Hi Chase", he shrinks his shoulders back and gives a big grin....it is hilarious. He did it over and over again. He is such a flirt! I think he is scared of the camera. He will be smiling so big...when I take out the camera, he stops right away..it is so hard to get a pic of him smiling. He is still sleeping through the night going 12 hrs. I do feed him at 10:30 though, so he is only 8 hours without a feeding. He had some stranger anxiety the other night at church. We were attending our first session of Financial Peace University. He cried so hard they came and got me. I have never seen his face so red. The pediatrician confirmed that this was most likely the cause. He actually asked us if we had experienced it...so I answered...yes, I think we just did!

His tooth has yet to break through but you can see the white under the skin. He can stay in the exersaucer much longer now...holding his head up for a long time...about ten to fifteen minutes without wobbling back and forth. We did the spoon test to see if he was indeed ready for food....after the mouth open, drooling at the dinner table..lol It appears he is ready. But, I will probably still hold off for a while. The Dr. said it was fine to wait until 6 months...I don't want to rush anything. I know there was more I wanted to write, so hopefully I remember those things. ..I need to start writing them down as they happen so I don't forget!!

Inauguration Day

I know that regardless of my political views this is proving to be an exciting day for millions of people. I will celebrate that America has come to a point where we can nominate and elect an African American as President of the United States. Many of his views are in contrast to mine (I have been as verbal about it as I know how and voted my conscience) and so my criticisms of him and his presidency will be based on that. But, I will refrain from criticism until after noon Eastern Standard Time. I want to show respect to the position and the ceremony of Inauguration just as I would expect people to do for any Republican.

I would like to take a minute and thank President Bush for his service to our country. I am in the minority of people who believes he has done a good job with many things. Some things were outside of his control and he responded as well as I would expect any President to respond. No President will be perfect including Obama.

Congratulations to Barack H. Obama for his victory. I would not wish the next four years on anyone and will lift him in prayer for wisdom, strength, discernment and protection. May God bless America.

Brian

18 weeks!

I am such a big boy! He stares at our food and drools with his mouth wide open...it is hilarious!

'Check out my mad grabbing skills"

Lovin my daddy

"Let me see here"

Watching Baby Einstein...he loves it so much..he talks to the babies and kicks so much out of excitement!

Chillin in the bumbo

"You sound like Cookie, but you don't look like him?"

LOVE this book

Swing time

"Rockin' it on my gee-tar!"

Chase is 18 weeks old! We have had very exciting developments this week. He sat in his high chair for the first time while we ate dinner. He only does well for about ten minutes then slumps over. He is continuing to teethe but nothing has broken through. In the biggest news, he slept through the night several nights waking up at the exact same time each day...7 am. So he is going 12 hrs! YIPEE! We are working on sleep training this week trying to get him to take longer naps. He only naps 45 minutes to the minute each time! At least he is consistent! He is still rolling over each time we put him on his belly. He can also sit up for five seconds on his own. Our little baby is growing up!