Laney's Baptism

Our little girl was baptized this weekend. I had the best of intentions to write a little about infant baptism. But my mind is mush and I don't know what to say. I had a million things to say a few weeks ago, but I can only remember one of them now. It was something I learned back when Sam was baptized. (You smarties out there can correct me if I'm wrong...) Before Christ came, when a man put his faith in God he and his family(sons) were circumcised as a sign of being in the covenant family. Once Christ came to this earth, the old covenant was gone and we had a new symbol of being in the covenant family. So now, a believer and his family are baptized as a sign of the covenant of grace whereby they are saved (thanks to the pcanet.org for wordage). You can see this in Scripture in the book of Acts. There is so much more to say about this, but I'll sum it up by saying I have cried at each of my children's baptism. Praise to the Lord, the Almighty for having His hand on my family...

Mike sure put the water on thick. At one point Laney let out a gasp for air. She and Ron ended up a little on the soaked side...

My girl is so ladylike. She's spitting bubbles...and she loves sticking her left leg in the air.

I made this jacket and dress especially for Laney's baptism. I worked on it a good part of the day Saturday, staying up until midnight, and about an hour Sunday morning. Talk about getting it done in the nick of time! (Christine, thanks for your help on the tough parts...)

Christmas weekend

We have had a handful of guests over the past week and have enjoyed every minute of it. The Philleys arrived Christmas day shortly after my family headed home and the McIntyres came on Saturday. We enjoyed a long weekend with them. They helped tons with the kids and in the kitchen. Today was a jolt back to reality as I took care of my three kids all alone. I guess I was spoiled a little over the weekend.

Luke and Jackson enjoyed playing together after their bath.

Sam had fun playing in the fort Aunt Jen and Uncle Stannon gave him.

Luke and B snuggled up together at church. Both grandmoms LOVE his dimples...

Laney was baptized; more to come on that... (Thank you, B and Pops, for coming back in to town for this special day.)

Jackson got his first hair cut.

All the kids in their ULM shirts. ULM is where Ron and Freddie ran track and cross country. They both graduated from there, where as I just attended for a year or two. I met some cute boy and quit school so that we could get married. But that's a story all on it's own...

Christmas morning

Pops and B spent the night with us; they got to be a part of all the morning fun... meltdowns and all.

Sam got the PBS computer games and has had so much fun playing with them.

Luke has had fun playing with his stuffed bulldog. He throws it on the ground, jumps on top of it, and says "Aargh...Ruff..." like he's wrestling it. So funny!

Sam and Luke have both been playing with their new kitchen.

Christmas Eve

I snagged a quick picture after bathtime before we put the kids to bed...

Luke had a major diaper emergency so I tossed Laney in Sam's lap and asked him to watch her for a minute. When I came back, I found him holding her and watching TV. The best part?...he was rubbing her fingers so sweetly!

Baba Dee made this blanket for Laney. All the kids have enjoyed playing on it.

Luke's stocking

I finished Luke's stocking just in time for it to be filled with goodies on Christmas morning. To be exact, I finished it 2 days before Christmas and let Sam hang it under the mantle. He and Luke pushed some chairs over and said "cheese" for the camera...

I guess I need to wrap up all my posts from our Lousiana trip. We don't go often, so I end up taking quite a few pictures.

me, Dee, Grandee and Laney

uncle Renard and Laney

Laney LOVES her thumb

her new doll

a "Cars" fishing game

Dee got a new bicycle and Sam enjoyed the fan on it...

We had a great time. Can't wait until next year...

food...

Last weekend at Baba Dee's we had lots of good food. (These pictures are for you, Glenn.) 2 dessert tables, 1 appetizer table, and the big meal spread throughout the kitchen counters.

"God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him." -John Piper

the indoors

there were many indoor games as well...

...even time to steal kisses

the outdoors

Baba Dee lives on some land... a lot of land. I don't know how much, but I know it's plenty of room for kids to roam. There are fields to farm in, lakes to swim in, even ponds to grow catfish in. Yep, Ron's grandpa was a longtime catfish farmer. Sam and Luke had so much fun playing...

(Cousin Gretchen and her son George are in the background.)

on the road again...

Grandee and Pappy were thrilled to have all three of the boys in the car with them as we went to Baba Dee's. Here we have Luke, Jackson, and Sam ready for their big 2 1/2 hour trip to Enterprise. Rebekah, Jeff, Ron, Laney, and I took the van. It was so nice to visit with them without all the boys stealing our attention.

We took our annual trip to Enterprise, LA this past weekend to visit with Ron's extended family. Before joining the boys (who were with the Philleys in Clinton, MS) we got a few shots of Laney. She's just so precious!

our 6 month old...

Laney turned 6 months old yesterday. I had the whole day with her, all alone since the boys were in Mississippi. And what did she do on our one day to party without the boys? She slept. Two naps totaling 7 hours. I didn't get to play much with her, but I did get some things done. Then we met Ron for dinner at Surin and reminisced about the days when Sam was little and we could easily go to nice restaurants. (Surin may not be the nicest, but it is a little more reserved than Santa Fe and Rosie's.)

We couldn't imagine life without her. She has softened our hearts and home...

We love you Laney.

prayers for my boys...

Nothing is wrong; don't worry. The boys are heading to Clinton, MS today with their Pappy. It's a six hour drive, so I'll be praying for their safety most of the day. If you think about it, please keep them in your prayers. (Feel free to pray for Freddie as well; this is the first time he's had both of them in the car by himself for 6 hours.)

** They made it! Freddie had to make several stops and change a few diapers; I'm sure they're all glad to be settled.

Luke can have fun doing just about anything, including playing in his hamper.

I remember opening a gift when Laney was first born and finding this adorable little outfit. It's a sleeper with bunnies on it. I can't remember who gave it to me, but I remember thinking "It'll be forever before she can fit in to that". As silly as it seems, I looked forward to her wearing it. Well, it happened too fast! My little girl is 6 months old today and is indeed filling out her clothes. Whoever you are, thank you. And if you read my blog, feel free to remind me where she got this cute outfit from... ☺

this shirt was made back in 2005. sam and luke both posed in it. i decided it was laney's turn. here's to you, aunt bekah... we love you!