Grandma is Here!

Grandma is in Africa and thriving. What a woman!

The Book of Dragons

Speaking of good books, I came across a great Audio Book for children. The Complete Book of Dragons, by E. Nesbit, read by Flo Gibson. I wish that I had it in book form but the unabridged audio version has been a great asset for the girls' rest time. It has eight stories that are humorous, imaginative and full of dragon adventures. What more could a six year old want?

Reading Together

Last week I finished reading The Chronicles of Narnia to my family. We usually read at least one chapter after the Bible, once the kids were ready for bed. It was, of course, a hit, and we often read more than a chapter at a time because Nate and I wanted to keep going. Our six year old loved it and was completely drawn in to the stories. Our baby was usually already in bed, and our two and four year olds didn't exactly follow along with the stories, but they loved the togetherness of reading as a family. I will always remember Ambrose asking if we can "wead Nahnia" after dinner.

The trouble is, where do you go after C.S. Lewis? I would love some recommendations for other good read alouds for children of this age.

Naming Babies

In the culture where we live, parents don't always name their own babies. Often the parents choose someone to give their baby a name a few days after the baby is born. Our friends have told us that the husband chooses someone (usually from his family) to name the first child and the wife chooses someone for the second child, for the third child the husband chooses again, and so on.

My friend and grandmother of this little girl gave me the privilege of naming her unmarried daughter's first baby. I felt it quite a responsibility. After much prayer and thought, I settled on Noemi. I was inspired by a colleague's little girl who was dramatically healed by God. Noemi is also the portuguese name for Naomi, and we always love Bible names (found in the book of Ruth). When I presented the name to the family on the baby's 2nd day of life, the great-grandmother said, "That's not hard to say."

I hope that meant she was happy with the name :)

Remember

I'm getting all sentimental about my little babies.

Rocks, sticks and dirt.

What do your young ones do during Sunday meetings? Ours have an any abundance of play things :)

The End of a Season

I weaned Anastasia last month. Yes, tears were shed during the weaning time from her and me. It was an especially significant milestone because it most likely marks the end of the baby years for us.

What years they have been! Completely underserved, I spent the last 7 years pregnant or breastfeeding, or both, minus one month between weaning Lilah and falling pregnant with Ambrose. All I can do is give humble thanks to a great God.

One week old Ambrose

Thank you, Lord, for the lessons and blessings these four babies have given us. Thank you for the grace you gave to sustain me, for opening my eyes to the ever growing list of my failings during this season, and for filling me with the inner peace that despite my faults, I am still your child, resting in your hands, cleansed by the blood of Jesus, full of the hope that you are with me and that I will one day see you face to face. The season has certainly afforded me new knowledge of the Lord, and for that I give thanks.

I have no personal pearls of wisdom to share about the baby season. Perhaps I'll do a post one day of what not to do :) But I can share what many elderly strangers have said to me over these years. "Enjoy them."