My story for the day is that I just started getting the girls ready for their bath, and as I ran the water and started taking Danya's clothes off.....Shea literally dove in head first, clothes and all. She loves the bath and couldn't wait. She's too short to get in the right way, so she bonked her head and was soaked head to toe before I could get to her. Needless to say, she freaked out, but not for long. She LOVES the bath! Here are the girls, post trauma, enjoying some splishing and splashing.

Such a happy girl

I haven't written much about Shea or posted many pictures of her, so I thought I put a few up that show what a great, happy personality she has.

Picture potpourri

It really has been too long since I've added pictures. So much has been going on around our home.

Nana Jewell came out for a visit at the end of August. Here we are on a walk on our greenbelt.


There are tons of ducks along the greenbelt, so we brought them a snack. As Danya was throwing the bread to the ducks, one of them got a little anxious and ate the bread before it left her hand. Danya told me the duck bit her and that she was scared of the ducks now. It took a little effort to convince her that the silly duck had just kissed her finger and wasn't scary after all.

Sisters

Now that Shea is mobile, the girls have started playing together in Danya's playhouse in her room. It is so sweet to see them interacting and enjoying being around each other. Danya will go into her room and call for Shea. Shea will yell back and book it crawling down the hallway to go play.
Here's Danya getting Shea a cup of coffee.


Here are the girls all ready to leave for Church last Sunday.




I have been trying to get a picture of Shea's long lashes since she was born...this is the best one I've been able to take.


And finally, here is Danya all ready to go shopping. She's such a woman of the world!

The Man with the Pig

Today I got out one of Danya's toys for her that had been in storage for a few months. It's a barn that sings songs and plays animal noises, in a girl's voice. I left Danya's room and went out to make breakfast. In a few minutes, Danya came out and told me, "I don't like the man in there. The man is scary." I had no clue what she was talking about, so I asked, "What man?". "The man with the pig is scary." Still confused, I went into her room and pressed the pig block down on her barn and this is what I heard:


After gut laughing, I took it into the office and replayed the scene for Josh. Who knew that the batteries going out in a toy would change it from a high pitched girl to James Earl Jones. We both gut laughed and felt so blessed that Danya could be so verbal and express what was scaring her. I think the guy's pretty scary myself!

First Prayers

Danya just laid down for her nap, and asked if she could pray. We told her that she could...her prayer touched our hearts. We hope this is the start of a life-long conversation between her and God:

"Dear Jesus, thank you for Papa Dave. Thank you for mom and dad and Shea and Danya. Help me to obey. I love you. Amen"

Simple Pleasures

Every morning, once the girls' get up, the three of us go outside to the back porch to enjoy the cool morning. We sit at the table, read, eat, drink our drinks (coffee for me and milk or water for Danya), and wake up slowly. Shea, for now, sits in her exersaucer, but soon she will be old enough to join us at the table. After we have had our "quiet time", we stay outside and play while it is still cool. We play with bubbles, play dough, markers, and crayons. We slide and swing. We make "dinner" out of rocks, sticks and weeds. Who could ask for a better way to greet the day? I love it, and I know the girls do to.

Shea's growing up so fast

Here is my baby, Shea, and yet she's not much of a baby any more. She's just passed her 8th month birthday, and she's changing and growing every day. She's sitting up on her own (only throwing herself back randomly every once in a while), scooting on her belly, log rolling to get across the room, eating big-girl food and beginning to interact with her sister (who is her rock-star!). I love this age. Everything is exciting and fun for her. She's eager to try new things, anxious to be mobile like her sister, and getting more and more chatty each day.

Every day I am becoming more and more aware that time moves so fast! I'm trying to pay attention to each moment and cherish every step along the way. Before I know it, she's going to be crawling and walking and talking! So, today, I am just going to go enjoy my chubby, happy, rolly-polly girl.

I hope this post lets you enjoy her, too!