Month Two

Dear Rhett,

Today you are two months old!! And you are cuter than ever. The best part of this month has been you starting to smile and even the occasional giggle. Bahh, it melts our hearts! It definitely makes it easier to be parents when you do more than cry.

This month you have grown to love your changing table. We don't know why, but when you are fussy, if we lay you on it you almost instantly calm down. We think it's because you love the red lamp on the table. You love lamp. :)

You are so alert and bright-eyed, you take everything in. We love your big baby blue eyes. You love patterns and you kick and grin when we show you anything in black and white.

We took our first airplane ride this month to go see the grands in Kentucky. I was feeling pretty anxious about flying with you being so little, but you were a champ! And you created quite the cross country fan club. EVERY woman, and most grandpas, who got a chance to see you awake and alert LOVED you.

You sleep in your crib now...thank goodness. You still nap in your swing, but finally the crib is doing more than just gathering dust.

Happy two months Mr. Man. We love you!

Mom and Dad

Love is...

Really chubby kissable cheeks.

Your first pair of jeans.

Big baby blue eyes.

Date night without the baby.

We love you Rhett, but sometimes we love the baby-sitter more.

My Fellas

Rhett loved pulling his dad's hair.

I love my boys. :)

Rhett's Blessing

Rhett's baby blessing was supposed to take place on August 22nd when we had both of our families in town. However, I was still in the hospital so instead of delay the blessing we did it in the chapel at the hospital. And the nurses were so wonderful and took me off my IV for an hour so I didn't have to have it in our pictures. I didn't really want that documented.

My wonderful sister-in-law wrote down the key points of the blessing for us to remember.

Rhett's Blessing

• Blessed to grow strong and healthy
• Blessed to remember Thee and remember Thy presence and that he can turn to Thee
• Blessed to know he is loved in this family and that we are grateful he is here
• Blessed to help others
• Blessed to know the importance of staying strong
• Blessed to marry in the temple and serve a mission
• Blessed to continue on the path that is set for him
• Blessed to feel the love that is all around him.

Rainbows

Verily I say unto you, ye shall weep and lament, and ye shall be sorrowful, but your Sorrow shall be turned into Joy.

John 16: 20

I have always enjoyed hearing the story of Noah, his family, and the animals that were saved through obedience to God’s command to build a ship and live within it’s protection for the 40 days and nights of flooding rain. However, over the past month I have come to wonder what a tremendous trial it must have been at times for them to endure such a storm. I can’t help but think that those 40 days must have seemed like years at times as they were tossed and thrown about the raging waters. Their hearts must have yearned for what they had lost…the comforts of their home, the brilliant light of the sun, close family and friends who had chosen not to heed the Lord’s command, and the freedom to walk about a land they must have loved. I’m sure there were days, or perhaps even weeks when they questioned the Lord and his plan…they must have asked “the why’s” and “what ifs”. There may have even been days they pleaded with the Lord to let the storm pass and moments when they begged him to restore the joy their hearts once new.

The storm Noah and his family passed through did end. Maybe not as quickly as they had hoped, and perhaps not in the manner they would have chosen, but it did pass.

My favorite part of this story has become the fact that the Lord was obviously mindful of the hardship of their storm. He was so aware that this mission he had asked them to endure was difficult, unpleasant, and trying that he gave them a beautiful gift…a promise. He sent them a sign…the symbol of the rainbow.

He promised them that they, nor any of their family, or posterity to come would ever have to pass through such a storm again. He created the rainbow as the symbol of that covenant…and still today we see evidence of that promise after each rain storm, no matter the severity of the rain.

He didn’t promise them that they’d never pass through anything hard again, or that they’d never be required to sacrifice again on his behalf, but he did covenant that they’d never encounter the flood again.

I now believe that the symbol of the rainbow was so significant and special to Noah and his family because it instilled an added amount of trust in the Lord. It must have given them a great amount of hope as they traveled through other “storms” throughout their lives…hope that at the end of the storm, there would be a “rainbow”.

Perhaps the reason this story is so special to me as of late, is because I can relate to Noah and his beautiful family. My storm started in August and raged for weeks, and there are still has moments of severity . I've tried to be obedient to what the Lord has commanded me, and find protection in him from the tossing sea. There are days that it seems the storm will never cease. My heart aches some times and I've often found myself on my knees pleading with the Lord to bring an end to the torment I found myself enduring. I wanted so badly to feel true joy again and to see the beauty clearly around me.

My storm hasn’t completely ended, but the rain has become more of a drizzle than an intense, tumultuous down pour.

And the Lord has sent me a rainbow…a sign that he is personally aware of my struggles and heartache. A symbol of his love and goodness. My rainbow came in the form of a sweet, healthy, happy baby boy named Rhett.

Realizing that he is my rainbow has taught me that sometimes what we think are our greatest trials are actually the sweetest blessings.

I know that this rainbow doesn’t mean I’ll never be required to pass through other storms along my journey, but like Noah, it has increased my trust in the Lord’s plan for me and filled my heart with hope…hope that when I encounter another storm and feel it raging around me, that in time...the Lord’s time, there will be a rainbow at the end.

The rainbow might not always come as fast as I desire, or in the manner I would choose, but I pray that I may always have the faith, the trust, and the hope it will require to wait for it.

Our Little Lima Bean

For Cute

We love him.

It isn't hard with a face like that.

From B to D and Back Again

I think this is pretty self explanatory.

Month One

Dear Rhett,
Oh my little boy, you're one month today. When we brought you home I wondered if we'd even survive to see this day. I'm so grateful for your sweet, peaceful and cheerful disposition. You sometimes can be a fussbudget, but you really are a bright-eyed, curious, snuggly little guy. You've definitely humbled your dad and I. We love you, even though we often seem to have no idea what we're doing. I apologize for the incident with the fast flow nipples on your bottles. Your dad didn't realize you wouldn't be able to drink that fast so you ended up with a mouth full of formula and subsequently a face full as well.

You are quite the eater...really you are on the fast track for becoming a little chunky monkey. You weigh 9 pounds 5 ounces now and were only 7.2 when you were born. We love when you go into a "milk coma" and pass out in the middle eating. And when you make your little cooing sounds when you're eating...we can tell you definitely enjoy your bottle and the snuggle time. You love to grab our shirts with your little fists and hold on so tight. I almost hate to put you down when you fall asleep in our arms because you look so peaceful.


You make the best facial expressions. They're priceless. You go cross eyed so often and when you do you usually stick your tongue out too. When your gassy you pull your chin in get a sweet double chin to accompany your goofy grin.

Some highlights from this past month are the 14 diapers you pooped in in one day, your gassy explosion in front of your Dad's boss, and your ability to blow spit bubbles. We're very proud of you. :)

You are the cutest baby we've ever seen and we love you.

Mom and Dad

Post-It-Notes

Jake recently has been leaving a post it note message on our bathroom mirror in the mornings for me to find whenever I make it to the shower.

These are two of my favorites.

"If you were trapped in a tower, I'd tell you to let down your hair. But since you don't have really long hair I'd rent a catapult and fly through your window. Then I would fight the tower guard and defeat the dragon guarding the bridge to save you, my damsel in distress."

I love you, Prince Charming

And

"Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers, but when he asked me to pick I said no way, Julia's all the spice I need. Then Peter said pickled peppers aren't spicy and threw one at me so I got a pickled pepper and Julia. The End."

I love him. :)