Kate 4-22-08 3 years 4 months

To my dearest Kate,

This month you and Claire stayed at grandmommy and granddaddy's house for 5 days! You had a great time but I sure missed you. The house was so quiet without you. I was so happy to see you when I went to pick you up. You ran straight for Henry though and just loved on him for about 5 min before you gave me a hug! You are so sweet to him.
You seem so old to me now; you are becoming a little girl. You are very protective of Claire and Henry. If you get something, you always make sure Claire can have one too. You say all the time, "I'll take care of my sister."
You are starting to reason and it is sometimes very funny. I was getting your shoes out the other day and you said, "Mommy, it makes more sense for me to wear my Crocs because I can put them on and take them off by myself."
You also have good taste. We were parked next to a BMW convertible today and you said, "That looks like a FUN car Mommy!"


When Claire was an infant, I used to find you sitting on top of her saying "giddy up claire!"


Imagine my surprise when I heard "giddy up" a few weeks ago and you were now saying it to Henry! I had to include that picture with your letter this month because I thought it was so funny.
You are my joy and treasure. I love ever minute that I spend with you. I'm so glad I can be home with you. I love you and I am so thankful for you.
Until next time....
All my love-
Mommy

Henry 4 months 4-3-08

To my dear Henry,

Today you are 4 months old! You are a joy and a blessing and I am thankful for you. You have blue eyes right now but that might change. Your hair is coming in and it's very dark like Claire's. I love you at this age because you smile all the time. I'm glad God created babies to smile early. It makes me happy when you smile. You've settled into a schedule with is nice. You go to bed at 7pm with your sisters and wake between 6:30-7:00 am. Then you take a morning nap from 8:30-10:00 and an afternoon nap from 1-3:30/4:00.
It's different for me to write you these letters. When you read them, you won't be concerned with the same issues as your sisters so my advice and thoughts to you have to be different. I must write them though because of my deep love for you. It is greater than you will know.
Someday I'll share my thoughts with you on how to be a good husband and father but for now you are still my little baby and my little boy. I will stick with the first things.
John 6:47 "Most assuredly I say to you, He who believes in Me has everlasting life." Your father and I will spend our eternity in Heaven and we want you with us. More than anything, we want you with us.
The second most important thing is that we love you. We will love you always and forever.
I love you my dear son-
Mommy

Henry 3 months 3-3-08

To my dear son,

Today you are 3 months old! Time goes by much faster with each child. I am trying my best to hold on to each moment with you. I probably hold you more than I did Kate and Claire only because I know how quickly time passes. I just carry you around with me and go about playing with your sisters and getting my work done around the house. In fact, I'm holding you now...even as I type this letter.
3 months is a good age. You smile every time you see me, you sleep great, you only nurse so I'm not having to prepare food for you, you let me kiss you as much as I want to, and you want me to hold you! What could be better than that! Soon you'll be squirming to get down and play with your sisters but for now you're content with me and I like that.
You have the cutest little ears and sweetest smile. You are a good baby and are a blessing to your family. I truly enjoy every second that I have with you.

I love you with my whole heart,
Mommy

Claire - 20 months

My dear Claire,

You are now 20 months old! You are such a joy to your family. I can't believe you will be 2 in just 4 months...the time has gone by so quickly. I chose this picture to save with your letter this month because every picture we have of you recently looks just like this. I think it's such a funny smile and wanted you to see it.

You have now been a big sister for 2 weeks. You are so sweet to Henry and love to hold him and cover him up (although you always cover up his head)! I have to watch you though because you'll ask to hold him and will hold him for about 2 minutes and then as soon as you are finished, you just push him off your lap. There's no warning...just a push. But you sure love him and kiss and hug him all the time. He's blessed to have such sweet sisters.

You are talking a lot now. It's fun because you and Kate have conversations all the time. You still call her "T". You can say Kate but prefer T so we'll see how long that will stick. If you both wake up at the same time in the morning, you and T will talk for a little while and then as soon as Kate leaves the room, you start screaming "NO T, NO T" because you don't want her to leave the room without you (you're still in a crib so you can't leave by yourself.) It's sweet.

Your favorite songs right now are "Jesus love me", "The B-I-B-L-E", and "Go tell it on the mountain" and you know all the motions we made up for that song.

You can feed yourself now which is a big help to me!! You love to run around and spin around in circles until you get dizzy...that's pretty funny to watch. You LOVE baby dolls and are attached to your doll "Mary" and to your blanket. We never leave you anywhere without your blanket!

I love you my baby and can't believe how big you are getting! You are a blessing to me.

Love always,

Mommy

Claire - 15 months old - 7-19-07

Claire,

You are now over 15 months old and you are the cutest sweetest baby girl I know! Over the past month, you have begun to interact playfully with us in a way drastically different from the previous months, and it has been a great joy to me. You have an awesome smile and every time I see it I cannot help but smile back and think how beautiful you are.

I am amazed at how well you understand what we say. If we give a command, you follow it no matter how difficult to understand the command may have been. We’ve had people tell us that they are amazed at how much you understand. I cannot wait for the day you will begin having conversations with us because I can tell a lot of thinking is going on inside right now.

When I look at you, I see myself. Your dark hair and everything else about you, reminds me of what I think I would’ve been like at your age. It’s really funny to watch you play with Kate, especially when you take something of hers and run off. It has been a great pleasure to have two baby girls in the family.

We found out recently that our new baby will be your brother, and as excited as we are to have a son coming into the family, I would never ask God to have done anything different than what he has already done in giving us children. You (along with Kate) have been a joy more than I can explain. To watch you grow, transform, and learn is a special treat that parents receive, and I look forward to the coming years. I continually ask God to strengthen you physically and spiritually specifically asking Him to not only bring you into the kingdom, but to also make you a servant above all others. My hope is that God will be gracious unto you in such a way that you surpass the faith of both your mother and I.

I love you and am praying for you. May the Lord be with you!

Claire-10 months old-02-19-07

Dear Claire,

You are 10 months old now. This has been a big month for you! You spent your first night away from us this month while your father and I went on an anniversary trip. You stayed with Boo and Papaw for 7 days! I actually was thinking you wouldn’t remember me but you did and I was so happy to see you! I missed you very much while we were away but we had a great time with each other and I am thankful we were able to take the trip. I think every time I want you to do something, I’m going to send you over to Boo’s house! I was still giving you 5 bottles when I left (I know…way too many) and now you are down to 2!! Also, I’d be trying to teach you to drink out of a cup with no success and now you drink out of a cup perfectly!! I am so proud of you.
You still sleep from 7-7 and take 2 naps. You don’t eat any baby food any more and you are such a great eater! You love everything!! You have 4 teeth!
You and Kate are playing together some which is cute. You’ll both just start laughing sometimes when you are playing which is fun. You are becoming more independent but still like to be near me. You can wave, clap and blow kisses. You are walking along furniture but aren’t ready to venture out by yourself yet. You can say UH-OH! And love to drop things and say it. You can say “dada” and just started saying “mama” this week. You’ll only say mama though when you are crying and grabbing my legs trying to get me to pick you up but that’s OK because I love to hear it! You say also say “bye bye” and “hi” when prompted.
You can say “BURRRR” and I know you know what that means because you only say it when it’s cold outside or when I’m changing your diaper! It’s pretty cute.

I love you my baby,
Mommy

Kate-2 years 1 month old-01-22-07

My dear Kate,

This has been a busy month for you! I guess the biggest thing is that you are potty trained (you do still wear a diaper at night.) I started the Monday before your 2nd birthday and just stopped putting you in diapers. You had 3 accidents the first day, 5 the second and then you’ve been fine since then. Now you will tell me when you need to use the bathroom and you’ll tell your nursery workers at church too! I’m so proud of you. Of course I think it was a lot harder on me than it was for you. I think I had to train myself to take you! Now EVERYWHERE we go…you want to check out the bathroom.

I hear, “What ya doing mommy?” all the time now and “What’s that?” You also love to sing and know a ton of songs. You love to go to Bible Study with me each week because you get to sing songs AND do the hand motions!

Everyone always tell us that you and Claire look exactly the same. I guess we’ll see in a few years if you still do. The 2 of you play together now which is really fun. Claire has this little tunnel that both of you crawl through and just laugh. You are always concerned with where she is and will ask if you can go “check on Claire” when she is taking a morning nap.

You are truly a joy to me and I am so thankful for you. What a blessing to have you my sweet baby girl.

I love you now and always,
Mommy

Claire-9 months old-01-19-07

Dear Claire Elizabeth,

Today you are 9 months old! Right now you have a cold (as do Kate and I) so we're just trying to get over that. You are a sweet baby but you don't like being sick...you just want to be held all day...I can't blame you for that. You'll cry and Kate will say "Claire Elizabeth wants her mommy" She calls you that now..."Claire Elizabeth." I hear that quite a lot these days..."CLAIRE ELIZABETH...THAT'S MINES!!!" You are helping me teach Kate to share so I thank you for that. The two of you "play" some together now which really is so sweet. You can wave, clap your hands and pat..pat..pat. You make noises that sound like "dada, bye bye, boo" and a few other things. Of course these are just babbles but I love hearing your little voice. It won't be long until you are saying, "KATE O'KELLEY...THAT'S MINES!!!"

One of my favorite things about you being 9 months old is that you still have that baby smell. There is something about the way a baby smell...your skin, your hair, your little baby breath. I guess it's a way God created for mothers to bond with their children. Sadly, it disappears and I won't remember it. So for now I am taking it all in. You are a good baby and a good crawler. You love to pull up now too. You still love to crawl to me and will follow me around. You cry if you can't see me and sometimes if you can see me and I don't pick you up. It's a hard balance between letting you cry and holding you but I'm glad I get to work on it with you.
I love you my baby and you make it fun to be a mom.
All my love now and forever,
Mommy

Claire-8 months old-12-19-06

My dear Claire,
Today you are 8 months old! This has been such a busy month for you! You were baptized this month and it was so wonderful. Your father and I are so thankful for you and it was great that you and your cousin Sam could be baptized together. Also, you started crawling this month which has made things harder for me! Now I'm chasing Kate and YOU around! It has been so much fun. You also can pull up so we've had to lower your crib mattress.
You also can do a "trick." When I say "pat, pat, pat", you'll pat whoever is holding you. You also are learning to wave. I'll tell you to wave and sometimes you'll raise both of your hands which is funny. Every once in a while you'll wave your hands. You are such a happy little girl and you love to play.
This month you got your first ear infection which we are still battling. It's always hard to know when to take a baby to the doctor to get checked out. I know that something’s wrong with you when you wake up in the night or don't take a good nap.
You are also eating very little baby food now. You've almost totally made the switch to "real food." I still use it some now when it's easier. You are a great eater and love food! I don’t blame you because anything’s better than baby food! I still nurse you 5 times a day but this will probably be the last month. Your father and I are going out of town in February to celebrate our 5th anniversary which was this past August so I’ll need to be finished by then.

I can’t wait for each new month with you and I am so thankful for you.
I love you baby girl…..

Mommy

Kate-23 months old-11-22-06

My dear Kate,

Wow! I can’t believe you are almost 2 years old! You’ve been sick a lot this month which has been hard. We keep passing stuff back and forth. You are such a sweet girl and you love to sing and to color. You can sing your “ABCs” now except you leave out T-U-V. You LOVE to play with makeup!! You still sleep from 7pm-7am and take one nap from 1pm-3:30 or 4pm. You are such a great big sister to little Claire and the 2 of you are interacting more and more now that she can do more things. Sometimes you try and share a toy with her but you take it right back. It’s hard to learn to share!
You love to pray each night and you say you need to “get on your knees.” Sometimes I think it’s a stall tactic not to go to bed but you do like to pray and thank God for everybody. It’s so sweet and I love to hear you say “I love you God…I love you Jesus.” How I pray that you will always say so.
I’m in a bible study each week and you get a little lesson while I’m in class. You learn bible stories, sing songs and have a memory verse. Right now you know, “Do not be afraid…your prayers have been heard.” Luke 1:13 It’s sung to a little tune which is helpful. You say “do not be afraid…your CARES have been heard.” It’s really neat though because I’ve been able to use it with you lately because sometimes you are scared of different things and I’ll say your verse to you. What a great verse to know and how great to learn it so young.
We have an exciting month coming up! Tomorrow is Thanksgiving and we also have your birthday party! I am thankful for you Kate and I do love you.

I love you now and always,
Mommy

Claire-7 months old-11-19-06

My dear Claire,

Today you are 7 months old! This month I took a picture of you and me together. I always think it is fun to look back at pictures of my mom when I was a baby and so maybe you’ll feel the same way when you see us together.
You sleep from 7pm to 7am and take 2 naps during the day; one from 8:30-10:30am and one from 1-4pm. Your black hair is getting a little lighter now and turning dark brown. Your eyes are still blue so I’m thinking they will stay that color now. Also, some big news…You cut your first tooth this week! I’m still nursing you 5 times a day and you eat baby food for breakfast and dinner. I am going to start feeding you lunch this month too. Also, I think I’m going to stop feeding you baby food in the next month or 2 as well. One of the good things about being the second child is that I’m a lot more laid back and that baby food is gross so you’re going to get regular food! You’ve already had some and you do great with it.
You say “rah rah rah” all the time and you make this clicking noise too which is funny. A few days ago you started squealing which is extremely loud! You haven’t started to crawl yet but you do get into the crawling position and lunge forward. I’m sure by my next letter, I’ll be chasing you around everywhere.
You are very tough because Kate likes to push you over (I think I’ve finally stopped that), try to pick you up by your neck, and sometimes when you get into a crawling position, she’ll get on your back and say “Giddy up!” You never really care what she tries to do to you. She just thinks you are interesting and likes to figure you out. You girls love each other already though and sometimes I’ll find the 2 of you just laughing about nothing.
You are a joy to me and I am thankful for you. I pray that you will learn to be thankful for Christ and for all that He has done for us and given us. As much as I love you my baby girl (words cannot express), Christ has died for you and loves you with a perfect love that is far greater. I pray that you will know this and be thankful for this your entire life.
Until next month…I love you now and then,
Mommy

Kate-18 months old-10-22-06

Dear little Kate,

Today you are 22 months old! Right now I am watching you dance around the room. It is so funny and a wonderful thing to watch. There are few things in life more fun than watching that. You are such a good talker! You speak in sentences all the time now so we have some funny conversations. You’re new favorite sentence is “I think so.” I’ll ask if you want to go somewhere and you say “I think so.” You are also picking up on things and understand a lot more than we think sometimes. Your father was explaining to you how to paint and the next day, I turned my back for 30 seconds (I wonder how many more stories will start with that…) and I heard “helping daddy paint!” I turned around and you had taken the lid off of the paint can and had dipped 2 paint brushes in the paint can and there was paint on the kitchen table and on the floor! I wish I had taken a picture but at the time, I was in a panic as to what to do! One day this week, I was having “one of those days” and was pretty tired. You had gotten into the paint, fallen off of a chair, Claire was screaming because she was hungry….but then out of no where, you looked at me and said “I love Jesus.” Sweet, sweet Kate…I love Jesus too. Right now I think your favorite thing to do is to go get candy at Boo’s house. You are always asking to do that. You love your aunt Sarah and she loves you. She helps me out a lot and I hope that you and Claire will be as kind to each other and she is to me.
This month we went to the zoo, the pumpkin patch and the playground (a LOT.) At the playground, you are becoming bolder and you like to try hard things like climbing up ladders and once you do it you’ll say “all by myself” or “I’m so proud of you.” You are also becoming more scared of some things like the bathtub, riding lawnmowers and noises you’ve never heard, so we’ll see what happens with that. I will write to you again next month but know now I love you and I am thankful for you.

I love you more than you know,
Mommy

Claire-6 months old-10-19-06

My dear Claire,

Today you are 6 months old! I can’t believe how fast the time has gone. You are such a sweet little baby. You are eating and sleeping great. You sleep from 7pm-7am and I am still nursing 5 times a day and you eat baby food twice a day. You can sit all by yourself now. The longest you’ve gone has been around 30 min. I’ll put some little toys in front of you and you’ll pick them up and play with them (by playing with them I mean you’ll chew on them!) Also, you’ll stop chewing on your toys to look and see what Kate’s doing which is sweet. You also grab everything so I can’t do anything holding you without you trying to take something from me!
With Kate, I used to always wonder and anticipate when she would reach the next “milestone.” When would she sit-up, crawl, walk, talk, etc. Not because I didn’t like the particular stage she was in but I guess just out of excitement to see her grow and learn.
It’s a little different though with you. I know how fast you will grow and how this time next year, you’ll be a little girl walking around everywhere and saying little words. So this time, I really do try and enjoy everything and not wonder what’s coming next. I just want to hold you and see you smile.
I pray that the Lord will give you a little girl; (maybe you can read these letters to correspond with her age) then you will know how I feel about you. I don’t think, well, I know that there are no words to describe my love for you. They do not exist. I cannot explain the feeling that comes over me when I look at you and when I hold you. To see that smiling face (with no teeth)…there is something physically that happens to me. I can’t explain it but that’s why I hope you will have a little girl of your own some day so that you will know what I feel for you. The bible says “He who did not spare His own Son but gave Him up for us all, how will He not also with Him graciously give us all things?” (Rom 8:32) Loving you and knowing the depth of the love that a parent has for a child, helps me wonder at my Savior even more.
My mother says I will love you more and more and that this moment is not even close to the peek of my love for you. That must mean that there will never be words that I could find to express my love for you.
I love you and Happy 6 months…..
Love now and always,
Mommy

Kate-21 months old-9-22-06

My dear Kate,

Today you are 21 months old! I can’t believe you are almost 2! You are so much fun! You love to dance and you talk all the time! Your favorite sentence right now is “That sounds good.” Anything I say to you, you’ll respond with, “that sounds good.” You also say “Mommy/Daddy/Claire’s coming too.” So wherever we go, you’ll say, “Mommy’s coming too?” We basically don’t have a quiet moment around here. You are always saying something.
You are still screaming every time I leave you at the church nursery but you always have a great time and will yell “BYE FRIENDS!” whenever I come to pick you up. You take a nap in the afternoon from 1pm until between 3pm and 4pm and you sleep from 7pm-7am. You are a good helper and will help me “pick up” all of your toys each day. You love Pop-Tarts and whenever I go and get you up from your nap, you ask for a Pop-Tart and some water!
You close your eyes (at least for a few seconds J) when we pray now and say “AMEN” at the end. We were all praying at church Wednesday night before dinner (about 300 people were there) and you started off holding our hands, quiet, with your eyes closed and then all of a sudden we heard “HEY SISSY!” and you started talking to Claire.
One day you’ll probably feel like I do that you just have a hard time staying on top of the ironing and keeping the house perfect. My mom tells me that’s normal. I have 2 sweet little girls to take care of and sometimes after diapers, feedings, baths, and playing, things like ironing get put on hold. I do straighten up each day though before your father gets home (you help) so he can come home to a straight house. I think that’s important. We have a couple of big toy buckets that you can put your toys in so that way they are all together and can easily be pulled out or put up. I try to do different chores on different days so it’s just a few things to do each day. I’m going to start doing that with the laundry too. I just seem to get a pile of ironing otherwise. One month, I’ll share with you what my schedule is. I asked my mom and she helped me out a lot with some good ideas that I’ll share with you. I think it’s important for mom’s to teach their daughters all sorts of things and I’ll do some of that in my letters to you.
The weather is getting so nice now so I can’t wait for this month because we’ll be able to go to the park and zoo!

I love you now and always,
Mommy

Claire-5 months old-6-19-06

My dear Claire Elizabeth,

Today you are 5 months old! I can’t believe how fast the time is going by. Everyday with you is a gift and a blessing. I asked my mother all kinds of questions when Kate was born about when she would do certain things so I’m going to try and tell you each month about the new things you are doing so you’ll know when you have your children. This month I have started carrying you on my hip (I know that sounds funny but I think it’s a pretty big deal!) Also, you can “tripod” sit on your own now for a few minutes at a time. You are eating some baby food now in addition to your cereal and you really like it! You can still only roll over from your tummy to your back (and you have started doing this early in the morning which is waking you up and well as me and your father…see your Bible verse for this month!) We’ve had to get up the past few mornings and go roll you back over so we can all go back to sleep so I’ve been practicing with you to teach you to roll the other way! You sleep straight from 7pm to 7am (except when you roll over at 5am) and take 2 naps during the day. Your naps are normally from 8am-10am and then from 1pm-4pm. I normally have to wake you up from both naps because I want to make sure you’ll sleep well at night. You still nurse 5 times a day and eat 2 “meals.” You’ll eat cereal at breakfast and then cereal plus a fruit or vegetable at night. Kate is becoming attached to you now and every time we go anywhere (out of the house or even in the house to another room) she’ll say “Claire’s coming too.” You are pretty attached to me this month and seem to want me to hold you all the time. Our days are fun and you are a joy. I love your big smiles and the little baby noises you make.
I love you now at 5 months old and I’ll love you always.

Mommy

Psalm 57:8
Awake, my glory! Awake, O harp and lyre!I will awake the dawn!

Romans 8:25
But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience.

Kate-20 months old-8-22-06

My dear Kate,

Today you are 20 months old. I thought I’d run out of things to say to you but there is so much to write. You are starting to speak a few sentences which is really cute. You say “Where’s the other ____(bear, cup, shoe, etc)” all the time. You can say “I don’t know”, “Claire’s hungry” (which you say every time she cries) and many others. It’s amazing to watch you learn and grow. You love when I scratch your back and you’ll say more scratch “mo skatch.” If I’m only using 1 hand you’ll always look at me and say, “2 hands.”
Your favorite thing to do this month has been to go swimming “swimmy” at aunt Sarah’s condo. You can count to 4 (well almost). You’ll say 1, 2, 3, 4 SHUT THE DOOR!! I was watching the news one day this month and you said “no news” and I said that I wanted to watch the news for just a few minutes and you looked at me and said “2 minutes.” You sleep with your 2 little blankets that you just love! You also rotate between sleeping with either 3 bears or 3 bunnies. I don’t know why you like to have SO much with you.
Today you have 2 ear infections (again.) You’ve had a lot of these and always seem to get them in both ears at the same time! You got that from your father I’m sure because I’ve never had an ear infection and he had them growing up.
Claire can hold your thumb now so you love to hold hands with her.
You’ve really started to follow me around and always want to be right with me doing whatever I do. It’s very sweet and I really enjoy this time with you because I know it will go by too soon. Please know when you are reading this that I love you. You are a joy and a delight. Besides your father, I love you and your sister more than anyone else.


I love you and I’m thankful for you,
Mommy

Here is the verse your father picked out for you this month.
Deut 6:4-6
“Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one! You shall love the Lord your
God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength. And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart.”

Claire-4 months old-8-19-06

My dear Claire Elizabeth,

Today you are 4 months old! You have changed and grown a lot this month!
You’ve started to suck your thumb, you grab your feet, you are laughing, eating cereal and no longer like to be held like a baby (which is a little sad)…you like to sit up on my lap (with my help of course!) Your daddy always comments how much your hair is falling out and that you are paying attention to things around you more. I guess you are just interacting with the world which is fun to see. Kate keeps getting you sick but then you’ll turn around and get her sick (which isn’t a fun cycle.) You went swimming for the first time this month at aunt Sarah’s condo which was really fun! EVERYONE we meet, says you look just like Kate but see your uniqueness.
It really is amazing how quickly you grow and change. I always like to think of what you learn about God from having children and this month I really thought about how creative and powerful He is. He is the one who keeps you alive each day. He has given you your personality and your looks. He is the one who enables you to grow and learn new things. It’s really amazing to watch. It’s also a glimpse for me as to how He loves me. I am your mother and of course I will always take care of you and feed you and give you everything you need. How much more will God take care of us as He is the one who is the giver of all things? Our purpose is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever and I do think that you help me do that.
I will always love you-
Mommy

PS. Here is the verse that your father has picked out for you for this month:

Gen 1:27-28a & 31b
“So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. And God blessed them…… And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good.”

Kate-19 months old-7-22-06

My dear Kate,

You are 19 months old today. What fun you are! Your favorite song to sing is "Happy Birthday." I'll sing the song (and you'll try to sing along) and then I'll stop at the part where you say who's B'day it is and you'll say someone's name. It is really funny. Your favorite person to sing Happy Birthday to at the moment is Daddy, so we sing Happy Birthday to Daddy all the time.

You have known for a while now how to say "please" (peas) and "thank you" (ta chu)but in the past 2 weeks, you've started to say "thank you, you're welcome" (ta chu u welkum) at the same time. It is very funny. I'll give you something and you immediate smile and say "thank you, you're welcome." I guess you are just extra polite.

We were on vacation this past week and we all slept in the same room and you decided that you'd like to wake up every night at 2am. Well, normally I wasn't very happy about this, but one night I awoke at 2am to you talking and yelling at Claire, "wake up baby"(week up bebe)! Thankfully, Claire did not wake up but I had a good laugh in the middle of the night.

You still mostly call Claire "baby" (bebe) but one of the first times I heard you say her name on your own was also when I first saw some jealousy. I was holding Claire and talking to her saying "hey claire" and you came up to me and said, "No Hey Claire" (no hey clee-o) Another time Claire was in her bouncie seat and I left the room to hear a scream from Claire and I came back in the room to find you laying down completely on top of Claire in the bouncie seat! But about 99% of the time, you are as sweet as can be to her and love to touch her and say "hey baby."You still sleep from 7pm-7am (except on vacation I guess), take a 2 hour nap in the afternoon and sometimes will still take a nap in the morning (I still try to put you down everyday though.)You are a joy to us and we love having you in our family.

I love you now and always,

Mommy

Claire-3 months old-7-19-06

Dearest Claire,

Today you are 3 months old. Your father and I love you and are thankful for you. You love to smile and talk to us. You can hold your head up well too. Also, this past month you've started sleeping from 7pm-7am which is great of course! When you cry, you will almost always stop if I place you in front of Kate...apparently, she's fun to look at! You are still an easy baby and you love to be held. I am writing you these letters and taking a picture of you each month to one day compile and give to you. I don't know how long I'll do it monthly but I hope to keep writing to you until you leave our home. I want you to see how you've grown and know all the things you've done as well as tell you things that are on my heart.

The bible charges your father and I in Deut 6:4-9:
"Hear, O Israel: "The Lord our God, the Lord is one. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates."

We love God's word and will do what it tells us to do. When you are all grown up and leave our home, we hope you will be a woman who worships God and obeys His word. Sometimes it will be hard for us to be diligent in teaching and in discipline. It will sometimes be hard for you to learn to obey but we will continue in our work because we love you...but most of all, we love Christ. We will remain in His word so we can learn to love Him with all of our heart, soul and might and so we can learn to teach and love you as we should.
Know you are a blessing and a gift.
I love you always,
Mommy

Kate-18 months old-6-22-06

Kate,

You are 18 months old today and you are so adorable. You talk ALL of the time! You can walk, run, sing, dance and do just about everything now. Everyone always commits on your beautiful eyes and your long eyelashes. Your hair is dirty blonde and has cute curls in the back. In the last 2 weeks, you’ve started to resist taking 2 naps a day so it looks like we’ll be spending more time together during the day. You love your little sister and are very sweet to her. I am beginning to teach you the children’s catechism and was so proud when you started consistently answering the first question correctly. Q: Who made you? A: God. I then moved on to teaching you how old you were. You were doing pretty well at that but the other day I asked, “How old are you”? and you said “God.” It was so cute. You obviously you don’t really know who God is or how old you are but you will. You LOVE “Veggie Tales” and “Barney” and you like to color. We are beginning to discuss now when to start potty training you and when to move you into a “big-girl” bed. You are growing up so fast and soon will no longer be our little baby girl. We are enjoying our time with you at this stage in your life but I must admit, it is moving too fast. You are beautiful and funny and happy.
Your father and I love you now and always,
Mommy