North Carolina Visit

The grandparents/in-laws flew Josiah and me up to North Carolina for the weekend. We planned around Jonathan's call night so that he wouldn't miss us too terribly.

Josiah on his first plane trip. He didn't actually ride in the seat. Children under two can travel as lap babies, and you don't have to buy a ticket for them. So he sat, content most of the time, in my lap. For 3 of 4 legs of the trip, we didn't have anyone in the seat next to us, so we could spread out.

The nice man next to us took our picture to document his first plane trip.

The flights went pretty smoothly. We were supposed to just have a one-hour layover in Charlotte, but it turned into a three-hour layover, due to weather in the North. Josiah did amazing though! Through each leg of the travels, I could see God providing for us and prayers being answered. Here are a few pics of us waiting for the flight.

Josiah took a nap.

I spread out a blanket for him to play on the floor. People kept commenting on how well he was behaving. "Grace of God," I'd reply. He's got an easy disposition, and that's by God's grace, but it would have been tested by the circumstances, and God was gracious through those too.

We finally arrived at RDU and headed straight to Providence to visit the staff. Josiah was really sleepy by that time, but he was still a good sport.

With Kristie, my former boss.

And Laura, my old "roomie." We shared an office for almost four years, so I'd always joke that I saw her more than Jonathan.

He really liked everyone's security badges. As this picture is being taken, he was actually wetting Laura's jeans. Oops! She was very understanding though.

Then we made it to the Moseleys and hung out with the family.

Grammy had borrowed all these great toys. This mirror made sounds every time Josiah touched it. She also got this great crunchy block that he liked.

Grammy and Anna encouraging Josiah in his tummy time.

Flying with Granddaddy (or "Gram" as we were considering for his official name).

Playing with Uncle David, who was wearing a soft gray fleece like Josiah's daddy always does.

Grammy showing him how to make a drum out of a popcorn tin.

Granddaddy teaching Josiah how to play the piano.

Saturday morning we gave him a sink bath. He really liked it.

Aren't you glad you don't have an audience like this when you bathe?

Then we went to a fun baby store nearby. Anna entertained Josiah while Grammy and I shopped.

And she found the best hat! Grammy also indulged me and bought Josiah this great children's book. It has a storyline of Ramses going to a basketball game at the Dean Smith Center and goes through all the campus landmarks, so we can tell Josiah all the places Mommy and Daddy used to hang out.

Dad Moseley had this entrancing power to get Josiah to take a nap. If he's sleepy and Granddaddy holds him, he's out in under three minutes. It's amazing.

On Sunday morning we headed out to Providence first for Sunday School and to introduce Josiah to some friends. Our church in Birmingham is really casual, so I had to buy Josiah some church clothes. He looked SO CUTE in this sweater vest outfit, so we took a picture.
After Providence, we went to Christ Baptist to show him off to all of the grandparents' friends.

Then the Pikes and Fishers met us at Red Robin (the most kid-friendly restaurant ever).

And then we headed back to the airport. We were glad to get back to Daddy!

Tummy Sleeping Paranoia

Last night and during his past few naps, Josiah has flipped over and fallen asleep on his tummy! It scares me to death, but each time the doctor who lives with me reassures me that at six months his risk of SIDS is very slim. Then the Christian who lives with me reminded me that I can't watch my child 24/7, but the Lord watches over him always.
And Mr. Giraffe is also there to monitor his breathing.

Waking Up

I wanted to get a picture of Josiah's face when I go to get him after a nap or in the morning. He just lights up and grins; it's the sweetest thing. This is pretty close to it, but it doesn't quite capture what it does to my heart when I see it.

And then he resumes playing with/eating his monkey.

Hurray for Consignment!

My friend Kristen tipped me off to some local consignment sales. I wasn't in need of clothes, but Jonathan and I were thinking that Josiah might benefit from some more advanced toys (since he is nearly six months old now).

I had checked out Babies 'R' Us and realized toys are expensive! It just seemed ridiculous to me, especially considering you're never sure if the child will like them or how quickly they'll lose interest. We hadn't really had to buy any yet because everyone has been so generous. So I perused the consignment sale on the 50% off day, and there were still plenty of fun toys to be found.

A little Mozart in the making...

As you can see by the surroundings, he is really short on toys.

"I am king of these blocks."
The disinterest in playing was shouting "nap time, nap time!"

The truck has balls that pop up when you roll it, and the turtle talks and makes noises.

I came home to Jonathan and said, "Am I a Proverbs 31 woman or what?" All four of these toys together were just $8! The exact same piano was 10x as much at BRU.

New Things Lately

We've started using the high chair for him at meal times. Even though he's not eating solids yet (2 more weeks), we like having him at the table with us.

He's finally started flipping without any provocation from me.

He's also kicking his legs and lifting himself up high during tummy time. He's also started moving around, forward and sideways, to get objects he wants.

The tongue is back in vogue now.

He really likes this set of cups. I was holding off on them because they were labeled for age 2+. I figured that was a developmental labeling instead of a safety hazard, and he always wants to see our cups, so I figured I'd give them a shot. He really likes them - I don't know what the appeal is, but he's fascinated.

We hosted a mom and tots group where we decorated Valentine's Day cards. I broke out the floor puzzle for the occasion, and he seemed to like it already. The 2-year-old in the room liked it as well, so it's good to know it'll grow up with him. He's also holding this cool giraffe toy that Anna gave him, which he also likes a lot.

He got his first Valentine's Day presents (Thanks Mimi and GP!). The bibs say "Hold Me, Love Me, Feed Me, Change Me" which, knowing my dad, is a reference to the song, and "I should be in a commercial for cute." He liked the bear too.

And he got his first few Valentine's cards, all of which he enjoyed gnawing. He should be in a Hallmark commercial here.

Geocache Attempt #1

Yesterday we took advantage of the pretty weather and Jonathan's day off to try geo-caching. If you don't know what it is, it's like a modern-day treasure hunt. People hide small trinkets somewhere public, yet hidden (hollowed tree stump, for example) and then post the longitude/latitude coordinates online. People then try and find the treasure using a GPS. Ours was a multi-part cache...

First we had to find out what year Harvey went home from this plaque.

Then Jonathan did the math (because if I did it, we'd end up in Mississippi) and plugged in the new coordinates.

Josiah helping Daddy.

"I think I see it Dad. Over there!"

After we found the next location, we looked around in every nook to no avail. We figured the treasure had been stolen by pirates. We found out when we got home that we hadn't printed out all the clue. We were actually looking for another number to plug in to find a new coordinate.

So I said, "OK, let's go home." And Jonathan said, "Don't you want to climb that hill first?"

Yes, that hill.
With Josiah in his arms.
I've learned to trust my husband's adventurous spirit, so up we went.

At the top of hill, where we found the Avondale Villa (nice, but not as glamorous as it sounds) and took a family picture. Later when we checked the clue again, it seemed the cache was probably at the top of that very hill, so we'll have to go back another time.

Hi Mom! Dad is so much fun!

But I'm getting a little sleepy from all this adventure...

I just liked this picture.

Do You Like My Hat?

Well I don't!

Sorry for the picture blur. It was getting dark outside, but I wanted to get a shot of him doing this. I tried to get him to wear this hat to shade his eyes during our walk...

It's not that he really didn't like it, I think it was more the incessant need to inspect all objects and place them in his mouth.

Stinky Game, Wonderful Company

The Stewart family kindly invited me over to watch the Carolina/Duke game last night. Not only was it my first rivalry game outside the state in nine years, but Jonathan was on-call. I was grateful to be able to watch it with some fans and friends. Kristen made some yummy game day food. It was such a blessing!

It was a bit late, even with the game on Central time, so Josiah was in his pjs, but donned the Carolina hat to keep in spirit.

Josiah had such a good time with Kate and Lexi. He thought they were so funny. He giggled at them all night, and they kept playing with him. The last times they've seen him he's been sleeping or a grumpy, so this was really fun. It's amazing how babies are less intimidated by children.

We'll have to teach Josiah about playing nicely though. He pulled poor Lexi's hair (as he does mine all the time), but she wasn't expecting it and it hurts!

I think Mike was glad to have some additional testosterone in the house. He's a Carolina fan by marriage, but I was greatly impressed by his disdain of Duke (and that's saying a lot).

My Sweetie Sent Me Flowers

Just to speak my love language. I luv him...

Daddy's Shoulders

Josiah may seem a little young for this, but he loves being up on Daddy's shoulders. He loves doing anything with Dad really. It's actually starting to become hard to feed Josiah when Jonathan is nearby because Josiah is always looking around for him.

Jonathan also took Josiah on his first outdoor adventure the other day. For those not familiar, Jonathan loves to go off the beaten path to explore random places. Yesterday, he pulled off the side of the road in Irondale and started walking through the woods. Josiah loved the adventure; Mom trudged along, trying not to worry...

The above was not the adventure, but illustrates the point a little.

An Encouragement

"He tends His flock like a shepherd:
He gathers the lambs in His arms
and carries them close to His heart;
He gently leads those that have young."
Isaiah 40:11

Isn't God's Word so rich? I've had this verse underlined in my Bible for years, but I had never noticed the last part. There is always something new and applicable for us, despite how many times we've read it.

I ran across it this morning as I was struggling. God knew just what I needed: He carries me close to His heart, and He gently leads me as a mother. He is good to us.

Quick Visit

Mom and Dad came over for a quick, but fun, visit yesterday.

Play time with Mimi. Josiah really likes rolling this ball and seems to have pretty good reflexes. And yes, it is a UNC ball - Carolina everywhere!

Giving Mimi a kiss.

Giving GP a kiss.

And then Josiah took a bottle! Nah, just kidding. We tried and he allowed it into his mouth, but proceeded to make his trademark motorboat displeasure noises while it was in his mouth. It was really quite hysterical, thus Mom's expression.