Convention, Creation, and Caves

Check out that alliteration! Can you tell I spent last week at a convention of Baptist pastors?
We had a wonderful week in Louisville at the Southern Baptist Convention! My only regret is that I don't have a lot of pictures from the week. I've learned something about what happens when Matt is in charge of the camera. He takes pictures of things, not people! My philosophy is that the 100 year old monument to Abraham Lincoln's birthplace will look exactly the same in twenty years as it does today. Our children won't! So on our next trip, I'll be confiscating the camera!
One of the best parts of going to the convention every year is that Matt's parents, his sister and brother-in-law, and their children attend as well. Although I enjoy getting to be a part of convention life, I have to admit that one of my main motivations for attending each year is getting to spend time with family.

We were even able to help Sarah celebrate her 3rd birthday while we were there. She makes such a cute cowgirl!

You call it the Executive Committee Report, I call it naptime!



I was a little worried about how Lily would handle the trip, but she was an absolute angel. We would take the shuttle to the convention hall in the mornings and attend a little of the session, then spend some time in the exhibit hall. Afternoons were reserved for naps, and in the evenings we played it by ear. What did Lydia and Nathan do during all of this? One of the great things about the SBC is the wonderful childcare that is provided. Lydia, Nathan and Jim went to a special children's conference each day. Lydia loved every minute of the conference and refused to miss a session. Nathan wasn't quite as excited about it as Lydia was, but at least he has a counselor who sympathized with his need for a nap!

No trip to Louisville would be complete without a trip to the Louisville Slugger Factory. I will have to say that Matt and Nathan enjoyed this trip more than Lydia and I did. Nathan hammed it up in front of the giant bat outside the factory, then he and his dad posed with Mickey Mantle's bat.

After leaving Louisville Thursday morning, we drove to Petersburg, KY to visit the Creation Science Museum. It's a wonderful place and certainly worth the trip. Our only complaints were that we didn't have enough time to spend there and that it was extremely crowded. The museum starts with Creation and the first Adam, goes through the fall of man and the flood, and concludes with the last Adam: Jesus Christ. I hope that when our kids are older and better able to understand all the subject matter that we will be able to take them back. It would be an incredible field trip! There is a petting zoo outside the museum, and I wish that my camera had been ready when this camel stuck his head into Lily's stroller looking for something to eat. He did get a mouthful of her burp cloth before Nathan showed up with some real food!

We had planned a stop at Mammoth Cave in Kentucky on our way to Louisville, but when we stopped and saw the crowds and that the tour we wanted was sold out, we decided to buy tickets in advance and stop on our way home. Everyone enjoyed the cave but Lily. I don't know if it was the cold clammy air or having to ride in the front carrier, but she let it be known that there wouldn't be many caving expeditions in her near future. Lydia's favorite thing about our tour was the "cave bacon," a rock formation on the cave ceiling that looks a lot like raw bacon. Nathan's favorite thing? Not the beautiful rock formations or the underground lake--oh, no! It was something dear to any four year old boy's heart--cave crickets!

I-65 between Nashville and Louisville is littered with tourist attractions. We didn't drive five miles without seeing a big brown sign directing us to this cave or that museum. Between Louisville and Mammoth Cave, we couldn't resist stopping in Hodgenville to see the birthplace of Abraham Lincoln. After leaving Mammoth Cave, we stopped at the Shaker Museum and Historic Site. I would have included these stops in my alliterative title, but somehow "Confederacy Invading President" and "Convulsers" just didn't fit!

We had a great trip, but it was so nice to pull into our driveway Friday night and know that we were home!

On The Road Again

Today has been a busy day at our house! We're getting ready for our first big trip since Lily was born, and while the population inside our van has grown, the storage capacity has shrunk.
We're leaving early in the morning and driving to Louisville, KY for the Southern Baptist Convention. On the way there, we're planning a stop at Mammoth Cave in Kentucky. On the way home, we're planning to drive a little out of our way to visit the Creation Science Museum just outside of Cincinnati.
We are praying for safety as we travel, that the Lord would bless this time we have together as a family, and that He would be honored in the workings of our convention.
I don't know if I'll have time to post while we're there, but I'm sure there will be lots of stories to tell when we get home!

Prayer Request

Paula Holliman is the grandaughter of one of our church members. She and her husband, Kirby, have visited our church several times and her daughter Bailey was on Lydia's t-ball team last year. Paula died in her sleep early this morning. She was 37 years old. She and Kirby had three children--Bailey, who is Lydia's age; Carlie, who is almost four; and Jackson, who will turn one in two weeks. Please be in prayer for this family as you read this. I cannot imagine the suffering that they are experiencing tonight. I keep thinking about those precious children, two of which may never remember their mother. They are so in need God's grace and comfort in this time of need. Thank you all for taking the time to read this and for taking the time to lift this family before our Heavenly Father.

Lily At Three Months

I am three months old today, and a lot has changed since I was born! First of all, I've gotten kind of fat. I started out big and just kept going--just look at these chubby thighs!

I've realized that I've got it pretty good here at my house. I have constant love, hugs, and entertainment with my big sister and brother around.

I occasionally have to let them know when I've had enough, but most of the time they're pretty cool to have around.

I've discovered that I have hands and that they're good for lots of things. I can suck on them when I'm tired, which helps when I can't find my paci and mommy's not there to give it to me. I can also grab things with them, like my crib mirror or my sister's hair.

I can even rub my little eyes with them to let mommy know that I'm ready for a nap. Which is another neat thing that I've discovered in the three months I've been alive--I can take a nap! Mommy was especially excited when I made this discovery. I don't have to stay awake all day and fuss, fuss, fuss. Now that I'm a big girl, I go right to sleep when it's nap time! I am also learning to sleep all night long. I don't do it every night (I've got to keep those parents of mine on their toes) but more often than not, I let them get a good night's sleep! Mommy says I'm a pretty good baby. Not much upsets me. I love to look at me in the mirror. I also like to sit in my bouncy seat and watch everything that's going on around me. My bath is lots of fun, especially when Lydia and Nathan come to watch me.

There are a couple of things that I don't like. The first one is tummy time. I think it's a ridiculous idea, but I think I've found a way to get around it. I'm trying really, really hard to roll back over when Mommy puts me on my tummy! The second thing I don't like is the vacuum cleaner. It's so scary and loud.

There is one thing that I haven't quite managed yet, and that's laughing. I try so hard, because everything around here is prettty funny, but it just won't come out. But I'll keep trying. Well, I hear Mommy getting a bottle ready for me, so I had better go. Blogging is fun, but eating is better. And after that, I'll have a nice long nap--it's good being me!

Happy Father's Day!

I've never been great at keeping up a baby book. Instead, I write down my kid's milestones and cute sayings on our calendar. I save each year's calendar so that in years to come I can look back on a snapshot of what our life was like that year. A few weeks ago, I was looking at the calendar from 2005 and came across this gem.

Apparently, Lydia (who was 2 1/2 at the time) and I were discussing marriage.

"You need to marry someone like your Daddy," I told her.

"Okay." she replied. "I'll marry Jesus."

As Christians, our goal should be to be like Christ, but in the mind of my two year old daughter, Christ was like her daddy. If it is true that children form their perceptions of their Heavenly Father based on their relationships with their earthly fathers, then my children are blessed beyond measure to have Matt as their dad. I know that I am a better person because I am married to him! I am so thankful that my children have such a wonderful Dad to celebrate on Father's Day.

For those of you who are concerned about the timing of our Father's Day celebration, I know that Father's Day is actually next weekend. We are going to be out of town, so we decided to do our celebrating a week early!

Matt does a great job keeping our lawn up. He has lots of theories and strategies on how to keep the grass looking nice at all times. When the kids and I saw lawnmower cupcakes in a magazine, we knew they were perfect for Matt's Father's Day cake. I decided a layer cake would be easier than cupcakes, and Lydia and Nathan had fun making the little lawn mowers. We did manage to eat quite a few of the lawn mowers before they made it onto the cake!

Lullabyes

What did you sing to your babies when you rocked them to sleep? What did your mother or father sing to you?

As I rocked Lily to sleep tonight, I found myself wondering about the songs we sing to our children; wondering why it is that some songs are so much more likely than others to be sung as lullabyes.

I don't remember, but I have been told that my dad sang "Rock of Ages" to me when I was a baby. Perhaps that's why I've found myself singing it to all three of my children. I wonder if his mother sang it to him? Or if one day Lydia, Nathan, or Lily will sing it to their children?

Another favorite of mine is "Near to the heart of God." Perhaps it's the first line, "There is a place of quiet rest" that makes it seem so appropriate as a bedtime song. Or perhaps it's the thought that, as I am holding my child close to my heart, my Heavenly Father is holding me close to His.

At the conclusion of particularly difficult days, when it seems like I've failed more than I've succeeded, I find myself in the darkness of our little nursery singing, "Grace, grace, God's grace. Grace that is greater than all my sin." These hymns are as much my prayers as they are Lily's lullabyes. How I need to be reminded that His grace is sufficient for all my needs!

I'm not much of a singer. It's hard for me to believe that the sound of my singing voice could soothe or comfort anyone. But perhaps as my children hear these great hymns of the faith, as they hear the name Jesus sung over and over again, they will start to realize that there really is "something about that name."

If you're reading this, and you have a moment, I'd love to hear your lullabye stories. What is or was it that you sang to your children, and why?

Forgive me for not posting a more recent picture to go with this post. I started to take a picture of Lily while she was sleeping, but sleep is hard to come by, and I'm not taking any chances!