Jovie Claire @ 4 Months

precious girl, you are 4 months old. time is just flying by. before i know it you'll be a little toddler. but for right now, i am really enjoying your infancy. lately, i have wanted this stage to last forever. you are the sweetest baby. i never get bored with you!

here are your 4 month stats:

weight: 11 lbs ( 10-15th %)

height: 23 inches (15th%)

head: 43 cm (25-50th %)

Dr Bubba said you are growing beautifully & that even though you are suffering pretty bad from acid reflux, you are gaining weight appropriately. you are definitely smaller than most babies your age, but we're all ok with that. you are just perfect!

you are definitely coming out of your shell. you smile, coo, talk & give litle giggles all the time. we love to interact with you. recently, you have discovered your feet & you love it. you always want something to hold on to; whether its a blanket, toy ring, paci, bib or someone's finger, you are comforted by grasping something. you do very well in your car seat, most of the time you fall asleep. you still take a paci & i love it. you follow us with your eyes as we cross a room & you turn your head to the sound of our voices daily. we love to see you smile when you see us!

you are fascinated by Jack. i think you wonder why he is constantly making crazy noises, running, climbing, jumping & giving you love. you give him some of your biggest smiles. i'm so excited to watch you grow up together!

you are still a momma's girl. i'm pretty much the only one who can console you when you get really worked up. Jack went through the same phase. i don't mind it. i love the extra snuggles! at least once a day, i hold you while you take a 30-45 minute nap. i'm trying to enjoy every moment while you want to be cuddled. you "talk" to me all day long & i really enjoy it. i wish i knew what you were trying to tell me!!!

as much as you love me, you light up when you hear your daddy. he sings to you all the time & you get so excited. you give him the biggest grins. i can tell that you enjoy getting his attention!! in fact, you want attention from everyone all day long!!

you wear a size 1 diaper & you are in newborn to 3 month size clothing. you have so many little dresses that i just love to put you in! you are finally starting to fit into the socks i have for you, you always have cold feet!

you are a great night time sleeper but nap times are rough. you are just unpredictable during the day & i know that its due to your crazy reflux. you aren't on the greatest routine schedule b/c sometimes you spit up so much that i have to feed you a second time. you will also fall asleep & then wake up spitting up & get so upset. i can't let you cry it out for more than 10 minutes b/c you will spit up so much & then there is no getting you to sleep. lately, you have taken a good mid-afternoon (about 1.5 - 2 hours) and then a 45 minute nap in the late afternoon. you pretty much have to be swaddled & propped up to go to sleep. i have tried to teach you to sleep without it but it just doesn't happen. but, i'm not worried about it too much. i know you will outgrow it eventually. i'm just thankful that you are comfortable enough with a swaddle to fall asleep.

we are still asking the Lord to heal you from the acid reflux. its not fun. your good days are great. but your hard days are so tough b/c we can tell you are really hurting. i'm so ready for you to feel better. you are still on prevacid & that does seem to be helping you somewhat. we are holding out for the day that it is gone!!

sweet girl. you are such a joy. we are so proud to be your parents. you have taught me so much about patience & sacrifice. you have added so much love to our family. i can't imagine not having you. its crazy how much i love you. being your mommy is such a blessing & i thank the Lord for you every single day.

happy 4 months my jovie girl! i love you SO much.

Jack @ 19 Months!!

sweet Jack, you are 19 months old today. holy moly. you are now on the down hill slide to being 2 years old. unbelievable. i still remember the day you were born like it was yesterday. you are such a beautiful little boy & you make life SO much fun!!!

you are quite the active child. everyone always comments on how busy you are all day long. you just keep going until we put you in bed. sometimes, just watching you play wears me out. you are very independent; you can always find something to do on your own & it can usually entertain you for hours. i love this about you! you are also very creative. you can use the most random object & turn it into a toy. you love to look for household items to spin, push around the house, climb in or turn upside down. you still love to hide things all over the house & you can make a mess quicker than i can clean one up.

you are still a great eater, for the most part. you have your picky days but as a whole, you will eat whatever i offer you. but you would always rather have something to drink than something to eat. you would drink 12 cups of juice or milk per day if we would let you. you favorite snack is goldfish, cheez its or fruit. you love chicken & pasta with red sauce. you aren't a big alfredo fan. you are getting better about eating veggies.

you would rather be outside than anywhere else. i can tell that you are starting to get bored being inside on rainy days. we try to take you out a couple times per day to play & burn some energy. your favorite thing to do outside is play with the water hose or toss a ball around.

you are still a great sleeper. Praise the Lord. you take one big 2 hour nap per day & you sleep 11+ hours at night. you go down without a fight, sometimes you even play for awhile before you fall asleep. we love to hear you talk to yourself or giggle in your crib. you have recently started using a pillow in your bed & you love it. we'll be moving you up to a big boy bed this summer.

you love bath or shower time. all we have to do is say the word & you run back to the bathroom ready to hop in. you are definitely a little fish. i can't wait to spend the summer days in the pool with you!

you are getting better with your words. this month you have added the words "hot", "yuck" "la" (for lola), "door" "done" "dog" & "no" to your vocabulary. we are working on some more. you are starting to learn to distinguish colors. we can tell you "Jack, go get me your blue ball" and you are usually right on the money. occasionally you will get it wrong, but not very often. you still love to point out every fan & light in any room. and recently you have fallen in love with turning our box fan on & off 1,000 times per day. you have also learned how to give Jovie her paci, which is a big help. you love to "help" me unload the dishwasher & "fold" clothes. you love to play with straws & try to put them in our cups. you haven't quite mastered drinking out of them. you are great with using a fork or spoon. i think you have 15 balls in this house, they are everywhere. they are still your favorite toy. you also loved any type of stuffed animal. you are starting to figure out how to open doors & i am not loving it. you LOVE music & you love to dance to it. you have recently started running in place & its hilarious. you love the vacuum & get so excited when we bring it out.

you are in a size 4 diaper & size 12-18 month clothing. you wear a size 5 shoe. you are still on the small side, but you are growing so fast.

we will be moving in august & then again in the early spring. we are praying you adjust well to all the changes coming up. but i think you will do just fine.

little boy, you are the most wonderful child. everything about you is a blessing. you are definitely asserting your free will & stubborn streak but it is teaching us so much. i love that your little mind is developing so much. you are a very smart toddler. being your mom is such an honor. i can't think of a better way to spend my day. you are the sweetest big brother & you are so gentle (most of the time!) with Jovie. we really can't get enough of you. your daddy loves you like crazy & you have such a precious relationship with him. we love you SO much & we are so proud of you!! now, no more growing up!

happy 19 months my love. i love you deeply.

Keeping Cool

Jack LOVES to play outside. he walks to the door several times a day, points, & says "dat". that means he wants to go out & play. but the problem is, its been crazy hot the past few days. and humid. yuck. but i hate for him to be cooped up in the house all day long. so, we've been caking him with sunscreen, throwing on the swim diaper & swim trunks & heading outdoors.i usually try to take him out in the morning or late afternoons so we don't melt away.

i was thinking of buying Jack a sprinkler for the yard but the regular old hose has worked wonders for us. he loves for us to hold it so he can run through it or he will hold it himself and spray his face. he is always shocked by the cold water but he giggles & squeals in delight. so fun. i'm so glad the simple things make him happy. sweet Jovie sits in the shade in her car seat. we only play for about 30 minutes at a time b/c its too hot for Jovie & Jack. now that my in-laws have their pool open, we'll be heading over there all the time to swim, splash & wear Jack out so he'll sleep good!!

i love summer days but i gotta be honest, all this hotness makes me a little crazy. this is the first summer in 3 years that i haven't been pregnant so that will definitely make the summer more enjoyable. but i gotta be honest, i'm ready for the cool of the fall!

here are a few pics of our fun times outside:

he is adorable in that outfit!

he LOVED splashing the water everywhere!

sweet Jovie got too hot, so we had to go inside!

Jovie's Baby Dedication

* i've been waiting to post this until i could get a good picture of Jovie in her dress. well, it just hasn't happened yet. so, i'll keep working on it & post the picture when i can get it!

Jovie Claire was dedicated to the Lord on Mother's Day at our church. it was such a sweet time. what a blessing to give our beautiful girl back to Him. she is truly a precious gift from God & we know that we can fully trust Him with our girl.

as a parent, its hard to not worry about your kids. i know i do. i want them to be healthy, happy safe & Jesus followers. i only care about those things. as a mom, i want to take care of every issue in their little lives. i try to make things better, help them get comfortable, keep them healthy & keep them safe. its difficult for me to think about not being able to do those things in any capacity. however, because i belong to the Lord, i can have peace. i know that He is the giver & sustainer of life. He has a divine plan for each of my children. i don't have to worry or be afraid. Jack & Jovie are His before they are mine. i may not always love the things that are happening in their lives but i can trust that His way is greater than mine. i don't have to worry about their futures because He is already there. this all sounds good, but i have to be reminded of it daily. i'm still human & the mommy worry comes out in me a little too often. trust me.

Kim, a lady from our church, put together a sweet video of the babies that were being dedicated. each of the parents submitted a few pictures of their babies along with some basic info about them. i loved the way it turned out. i sat in the service & watched the video with tears in my eyes. i was just so overwhelmed with gratitude for Jovie's part in our family. it also reminded me of dedicating Jack to the Lord just 9 months ago. my oh my, 2 baby dedications in that short of a time makes for one emotional momma!

Jovie was given the sweetest Precious Moments bible. i had one of these growing up & i was thrilled that she got one too! i'm going to have her name engraved on it & save it for the day she is old enough to use it. i can't wait! we stood before the church & offered Jovie back to the Lord. Ben & I had already done this before she was born but it was refreshing to commit her to Him before our sweet church family.

my parents, sisters & their husbands, brothers & grandmother came to the service. Ben's parents were also there. we were so thankful to be surrounded by family. after the service our church held a small reception. then we all headed to lunch at Olive Branch Catfish Company, so yummy. once we got home, all 4 of us took a nap. it was much needed.

Thank You Lord for our precious Jovie Claire. we love her more than she will ever understand. but we know that she belongs to you first. help us to love her & raise her in a way that is honoring to you. please keep her, guard her & protect her. draw her to yourself at a young age & help her to follow you with all of her heart. thank you for the unique plan you have for Jovie's life. and thank you for loving her enough to give of yourself so that she could know you. we are so blessed by her little life. amen.

we love you Jovie Claire. so very much.

our sweet little family

Jovie's bloomers. how cute are they?!

my beautiful boy

with all the grandparents & great grandmother!

the star of the show. she is so precious

They Win on Mother's Day

oh my goodness. my Mother's Day was insane & exhausting. from the time i got up until i went to bed, i felt like i was behind. both my kids had rough days. which creates a long day for mommy. it wasn't the relaxing day i was hoping for, but it definitely caused me to laugh. at the end of the day ben & i looked at each other & said "they win, today they definitely won!"

Jovie Claire spit up more that day than she ever has in her life. bless her. it was ridiculous & SO frustrating. i know its not her fault & she can't help it & its honestly not her that i'm frustrated with, its the situation. it just seems that nothing is doing the trick for her. the prevacid seems to be helping (a little) with her pain level but it doesn't touch the spit up problem. we're just praying & asking the Lord to heal her from it soon.

Jack was so cranky that day. he just didn't get enough sleep, his nap was pushed back b/c we went out for lunch & he's cutting like 5 teeth. he was one fussy little boy. he is trying so hard to use words to tell us what he wants, but he's not completely there yet. he can say a few words but otherwise he will whine or point aimlessly to what he wants. i know he gets so frustrated trying to tell us what he wants & we can get frustrated trying to understand. bless him. he is an adorable little mess. lately, he's become so clingy to me. anytime i am feeding, loving on or playing with Jovie, he wants to be in my lap or have all of my attention. he's so sweet to Jovie but he is struggling a little bit with not having 100% of my time. this is especially hard for me. i'm trying so hard to balance my time with my kids. but this day was more difficult than usual.

my house was a complete & total disaster all day. i just couldn't stay on top of it. every time i would clean one part of the house, another room was dirty. i bet i cleaned the kitchen 3 times that day & i know i did about 4 loads of laundry but if you walked in my house, you wouldn't have known it. i know i shouldn't let it get to me so much but i just get so frustrated b/c i feel like we are constantly behind.

Mother's Day was also Jovie Claire's baby dedication. it was one of the sweetest moments of my life. but, i'll do a post about that later. but it was definitely my favorite part of the day.

Ben & i went to bed completely worn out. i'll be honest, at first i was disappointed. i thought "i sure would've liked to felt pampered & super appreciated today. i need a break" but then the quiet precious Holy Spirit reminded me so gently " you are a mom today & you are so blessed." i immediately felt so convicted. it wasn't the Mother's Day that my mind had envisioned but it was a real day. i just kept thinking "this is the most real that it gets. i had a rough day but i am a mom & sometimes, that just happens." my kids are little & will only be this age once. i have no business to ever complain or pity myself. it is my job to exhaust myself in keeping up with them. i can rest, be pampered, appreciated & doted on when i am older. they are so precious to me.

that night, both of our kids ended up in our bed. only for about 20 minutes. we laid down in our bed with them, just to snuggle & they fell asleep. i had Jack on one side & Jovie on the other. it made my day. how wonderful to end a rough day by snuggling with my babies. i laid there & thanked the Lord for my rough day b/c it taught me to get over my pride & to be grateful for my kids. as i put my children in bed that night, i had tears in my eyes. i really did. i never want to take them for granted or be frustrated with the daily activities of caring for them. i know its ok for me to be irritated sometimes but i really should do a better job of handling it, i don't want to pity myself. i have so much to be thankful for & so much to appreciate.

overall, i'm so thankful for my first Mother's Day with 2 kids. it was long, tiring, busy & humbling. i am beyond blessed to be a mom. its the greatest thing i've ever experienced. thank you Lord, for using my sweet babies to teach me more about your love. help me to draw my strength from you.

I am Mommy

tomorrow is my 2nd Mother's Day. i'm really looking forward to it. growing up, i longed for the day i would be able to celebrate Mother's Day. i knew that the Lord had created me to be married & be a mom. there was no doubt in my mind. i couldn't wait for the day that someone would call me mom. it was truly the desire of my heart.

now that i have both J & J, i can honestly say that all of my wishes, hopes, dreams & aspirations have been fulfilled. Ben & I would like another baby (just not this year!) but even if something happened & we couldn't have one, i am so content with my children. i have a sweet little boy & beautiful baby girl. the Lord has been so good to me & i can not complain.

i firmly believe that one major reason i enjoy mothering so much is because i have a fantastic husband. he gives me every freedom & the upmost trust in how i mother our kids. he has never questioned me or my motives. but he's always there to be supportive, encouraging, helpful & loving. he prays for me everyday as i take care of our children. he isn't perfect by any means but he is sensitive & uplifting. i honestly don't know how single moms survive. i have so much respect for them. i could not make it everyday without Ben. just when i'm about to give up, or fall down where i stand & sleep, he is there to lend a hand. we definitely are partners in the job of raising our kids & i'm so thankful to the Lord for giving me the perfect husband, for me.

Jack & Jovie are incredible. i know i say that all the time, but i don't care. i'm so humbled by them. how can 2 little people, so dependent & so innocent, teach me so much & cause me to drop to my knees & seek the Lord for his grace & mercy?! i've never felt more dependent on Jesus. i could not be a mom without losing my mind if it weren't for Christ!

Jack is the most wonderful little boy. his smile is infectious & contagious. he is so loving, he will kiss you 100 times & give you the biggest hugs. he is curious, determined, sweet spirited, quirky, tender hearted, loving & so much fun. being his mom has been the greatest 18 months of my life. he has taught me how to be sacrificial & patient. i have never loved any responsibility more than taking care of him day in & day out. he is a precious gift.

Jovie Claire is the sweetest baby. she is definitely a momma's girl. i love the way she loves to snuggle up under my neck & fall asleep. she is always smiling, cooing & "talking" to us. she has definitely brought some love into home. having a little girl is amazing. besides dressing her up, we love her delicacy. she has taught me how to trust the Lord when the unexpected comes along & how to rejoice because He always has a perfect plan. i got to experience all the excitement of a new baby again with her & I have truly loved it. i've really learned how to multi-task since she was born!!! she is the most beautiful little girl.

i am convinced that being a mom is the greatest role the Lord could ever give. He actually entrusts us with growing, loving & raising a human being. we are there 24 hours a day, when its ugly & when its fun. nothing is more trying, exhausting, sacrificial or stressful. but its also the most rewarding & joyous experience i've ever had. i know that i talk all the time about how much i love my kids & how grateful i am for them. but i do not apologize for that. this blog is for me & my family. and should they ever read this, i want them to know how much i truly love them & being their mom. i want them to grow up never questioning my motives or my heart for them. i really can't wait for my sisters to have kids b/c i know they will love it as much as i do & i want that blessing for them. its just too wonderful to never experience.

i am so grateful for Mother's Day. not for the gifts, cards or recognition but for what it stands for. i can celebrate the fact that i am living what He created me to do & how much i love it. thank you Lord for blessing me with my sweet children. help me to always have a heart of gratitude as the years go by. Thank you for an amazing mom that taught me so much about giving of myself for my kids & for a sweet mother-in-law that loves me as her own.

Happy Mother's Day to you & me. (and to Brittany who will be a mom in November!!!). please thank the Lord for how blessed you are to have a child. it is a privilege.

Benjamin Jack & Jovie Claire

this week at Kelly's Korner is Show Us Your Life Kids Names. i thought it would be fun to share how we came up with our kids names. i love the names we picked out for our kids, they are perfect for them. naming our kids wasn't the easiest task for us but we're pleased with the results.

this is our Benjamin Jack. (he goes by Jack) isn't he super cute?!

when i got pregnant with him, we began coming up with names. i had a list of about 10 boys names that i liked, including Jack. i wanted his name to be Jack Henry. (i LOVE old fashioned names) but Ben only liked 1 name. he wanted us to name him Peyton. since we couldn't agree we decided to give up both names & pick one together. after a solid week of vetoing names, Ben said he liked the name Jack. and i suggested we give him the first name Benjamin, after Ben of course! so we finally had a name. it seemed like it took us forever! and now that he's 18 months old, i couldn't think of a more suitable name for him! his daddy calls him Pepper Jack!

and this is our beautiful Jovie Claire. i love the southern tone to her name!

when we unexpectedly got pregnant with her we began tossing names around. i tossed out Claire & Grace. but we couldn't come up with good middles names for either name. Claire has always been one of my very favorite little girl names & i was thrilled that Ben actually agreed with me! (most of the time he thinks i have terrible taste in names!) we started trying to think of girl names that began with the letter J. it was pretty difficult. then Ben said "hey babe, what is that girl's name on the movie ELF?" i had no idea! but after a couple of minutes, he said "JOVIE!!". at that minute he was sold on her name. it took me about a week to get used to but i fell in love with it once we placed it with the middle name Claire. i mean, it just goes. Jovie Claire. how sweet. we actually get a lot of crazy looks from people when we tell them her name. some people think its too weird. but i LOVE it. i don't know one other little girl named Jovie. so fun. her daddy calls her Jovie Jellybean. i call her sassy.

i love to tell people my kids' names. Jack & Jovie. it has a cute ring to it.

my two little monkeys!

i never thought i would be the mom that had kids whose names all started with the same letter. but once we picked Jovie's name, we decided to stick with it. so any future kids will have J names. some people think its too limiting, but i think its fun & challenging. plus, we already have another boy name picked out.

Judah will be our next son's name. i suggested Jude before we knew Jovie was a girl & then Ben said that he would want to name him Judah & call him Jude. works for me. i'm pulling for Judah Henry. we'll see how that goes! =)

Jane is my favorite name for another little girl. it isn't Ben's favorite but he likes it. (he's SO picky!!) i also really like Joy. but i don't know what middle names i would pair with them. so, we'll see!

picking out names for kids is so fun & sometimes frustrating!! kinda makes me wanna be pregnant again. HEY, i said kinda.

A New Leaf

goodness gracious. so much is going on in our lives right now. Ben is in school full time, he graduates in December with his masters! YAY! we have a sweet ministry to youth at our church. we have 2 adorably sweet kids & a thriving marriage. we truly have never been happier. this year has been such a year of change for us & it will continue to be until December.

Jovie brought the biggest change back in January. my little surprise blessing. i'm so thankful the Lord always knows what He is doing! just yesterday the Lord so sweetly revealed something to me. i was thanking Him for allowing me to be at home full time with our kids. (its honestly been the desire of my heart since before i had J & J.) if Jovie had not come along then i wouldn't be at home full time right now. when she came, i took a maternity leave. and during that Karrie called to say they didn't need me to keep Macy & Mara anymore. this was a bittersweet decision for her & a bittersweet revelation for me. i knew i would miss those sweet girls like crazy & we would be short a good bit in our budget. but i also knew that the Lord was finally answering our prayers of me being at home. we knew we just had to trust Him. but none of this would've happened if He hadn't given me sweet Jovie Claire. i am confident of that. it just goes to show He always has a will & a plan. her little life is such a blessing.

now that i'm at home full time, i'm completely engulfed in all things mommy. from sun up to sun down i am consumed with my children. the only moments i have to myself consist of hot showers & walks to the mail box. i am home mostly all day every day cleaning, cooking, doing laundry, chasing Jack, disciplining Jack, playing with Jack, feeding Jovie, snuggling Jovie, playing with Jovie and the list could go on forever! but even on the hardest & longest of days the Lord reminds me of how much i have to be thankful for & blessed i truly am. i may not have much of a social life or many date nights with Ben or much money but i can not complain. life is precious.

lately, Ben & I have decided to do a better job with our eating habits. we are just tired of being discontent with our bodies. and we want Jack to see us preparing & eating healthier meals. i have always tried to feed Jack little to no processed foods. sometimes, it happens. but most times he eats fresh fruits, whatever veggies i can get him to try, and chicken. i just don't want him to grow up on fatty processed junk. i know there will be nights that we need a quick fix & chick-fil-a may be the answer but as a whole i want to cook healthy for all of us. we have decided to cut some carbs out of our diets. we generally love all carbs. who doesn't?! but we just need to cut back some. i went to the store this week & bought tons of fresh fruits & veggies. i've even been researching some healthy recipes & side dishes. i'm pretty excited about our dinners for the next few weeks. we both want to lose some weight & just be healthier, for our kids & ourselves.

Ben & I have a small amount of debt. nothing big or insanely overwhelming. but just a few things that have accumulated over the years. but we sat down this week & had a good solid discussion about our financial stability. since i am not working anymore, we are short my income every month. so my hard working man decided he needed to pick up the slack. Ben's family (& us) own several Lenny's Sub Shops in memphis & little rock. so, ben has decided that once school is out he'll be working at his brother's store a few days a week to earn extra money. he'll be taking phone orders, delivering the catering & handling some marketing issues. he won't have set hours each day or week. but he will just be used as needed. in return, he will be paid a certain amount each month that will make up for me not working. i'm so proud of my husband for his creativity to come up with a way to provide for us. he works so hard & does such a good job. i'm also super thankful for my in-laws who are providing a way for our needs to be met. the Lord is so faithful. we sat down & planned it out & we will be completely debt free by November 14. yes, we have a date! what a HUGE blessing. the Lord always provides.

also. if you know our family, then you know we have more exciting things a brewing! all i can say is that we are looking forward to reaching people. i wish so badly that i could be really specific but b/c i'm not sure who all reads my blog, i can't. if you are curious, just ask me & i'll be thrilled to share with you. we are excited & we see the Lord moving in BIG ways in our life. He is able. (and no, i am NOT pregnant!) in the next 7 months Ben & I will be making some big decisions & seeking the Lord in very specific ways. we are thrilled with how He is revealing himself to us & we want to constantly seek His will for our family. but needless to say, i'm super excited.

when i step back & think about this year i have so many emotions & thoughts. its actually a pruning & teaching time in our lives. we are sacrificing a lot, living on a super tight budget & waiting. but we are also having a blast. we are learning so much. we have become so much more open & honest in our marriage. we are raising 2 insanely wonderful kids, we are forming very tight friendships that are going to last many years to come & we are becoming debt free within the next 6 months. and hopefully with the healthier eating, we'll look better too!

Thank you, Lord Jesus for your unwavering grace in our life. we are so unworthy. we are excited about the rest of 2010 & looking forward to 2011!

Then & Now

i want to start doing some comparison shots of J & J. maybe i'll do them monthly. who knows. but i just thought it would be fun to see them at the same stages. it will help me remember Jack at Jovie's age. i can see who is bigger (so far Jack at every stage except birth), who kept their hair & how they filled out. i think it will be fun. plus, i love getting out old pics of Jack. he was/is such a cute boy and we all know that Jovie is beautiful!

so here is both Jack & Jovie at age 3 months in the bumbo seat!!

Jack looks so much bigger in his but i think its b/c its a close up picture. they are so fun!!!