The Pacifier

One unexpected perk of parenthood is that God often uses it to catch my attention.

On Sunday afternoon, on our way out to celebrate Easter dinner with family, Ford began crying hysterically in the backseat. This is not, by any means, an unusual situation; in fact, it is quite the norm for him. Defeated by the screaming, I decided to sit in the backseat with him and try to soothe him (yes, I am one of THOSE parents). I immediately picked up the pacifier, a tried and true method of calming him, and put it into his mouth. He instantly calmed, but after a few seconds, he grabbed the pacifier out of his mouth and began screaming again. He had such a tight grip on the pacifier, that it took both of my hands to gently pry it out of his (very strong) right hand. I finally got ahold of the pacifier, returned it to its home in his mouth, and he was...well, pacified. However, a few seconds later, we repeated the cycle...and so on...and so forth...until we reached our destination (a mere 15 minutes later).

Aren't we kind of like babies in our own lives? God is sitting in the car beside us, throughout our journeys, waiting for us to relinquish control over our wants/needs so He can use us for His glory. We spend our lives in hysterics, while hanging on ever-so tightly to our jobs, our families, our finances, our dreams; and all the while God is saying, "Let go. Let me show you what to do with this. Let me guide you to peace."

I am a bigger handful for God than Ford is for me, anyday! I am so thankful to have a loving Father who gently teaches me lessons because He loves me.

Ford praises the Lord...

Some of you may have already caught this on Facebook, but if you didn't, check out Ford on Youtube, praising the Lord. :) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f0qBCNjD0YU&feature=youtube_gdata_player

Ford's Dedication

Yesterday, April 10th, Ford was dedicated at church. We were asked to do two things in preparation: 1) write him a letter for him to read 18 years from now; 2) choose a Bible verse to read over his life.

Life scripture: Romans 12:1 (The Message)

"So here's what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life--your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life--and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for Him."

Life Letter: 18 years from now...

Dear Ford,

Mom and Dad love you SO much! As much as we love you, you have a Heavenly Father that loves you more than you can conceive. In every step of life, in both your successes and your failures, draw your strength and motivation through His love and grace. The Bible says, "For the mountains may move and hills disappear, but even then my faithful love for you will remain." (Isaiah 54:10)

The bottom line is this: If you can grasp even half of God's love for you, and love Him in return, then you will be pleasing to both us and your Heavenly Father. We love you.

Love,

Mom & Dad

Month three.

Ford turned three months yesterday, April 6th. What a combination of joy and hardwork it has been! His personality was evident from the day of his birth and he continues to show a strong-willed, personable personality. He loves people, LOVES being held, and loves watching his daddy.

Some milestones:

~He rolls over from belly to back

~He smiles, babbles, and laughs often

~He sleeps 7-9 hours straight at night (only waking up once between 8:30pm-8:00am)

~He grabs at his toys

~He talks to the animals that appear (specifically the duck) on his Baby Einsteins video

~He loves all of his cousins because they keep him entertained

~He is still exclusively breastfeeding and seems to have established a solid eating routine

~He loves bath time (I think it is his favorite part of the day) and splashes around in the bath until the water gets cold (or mommy/daddy get tired of being splashed)

Some un-milestones (if you will):

~He HATES car rides and screams during the entire trip

~He only naps 1-2 times per day for about 20-30 minutes each time

~He, as his daddy says, is "high maintenance," which means he requires being entertained most of the day

We love Ford Edward so much. He lights up my life, as cheesy as that may sound. I am with him 99% of the time, and the 1% that I am away, I miss him. The breaks are nice, but when I see him again, I truly feel happy!