she turned two

We celebrated another birthday...her second. You're all picking yourselves back up off the floor about now I'm sure. It's hard to believe it's been ten months since my last blog post! So much has happened in our lives...so much joy...so many sweet sweet moments...some hard times and some very scary moments too. God has been so faithful in the good times and scary moments. He has been our fortress...our strong tower! One scary moment occurred with this little sweetheart back in January. We're so grateful that she is completely healed and doing so well. We're thankful that she is healthy and full of life! I'm sure over the next several months I'll be hitting the rewind button on our lives and posting things that have happened over the past ten months. But for now, we've got a two year old to talk about. She's not a baby anymore. I always say that our kids are babies until they turn two. She is our strong-willed little girl. We thought we experienced that a bit with Caedmon, but we really had no idea what strong-willed meant until this little girl came along. :) Can you see the little bit of attitude in her face in the picture above?

She can certainly hold her own with all the pestering she gets from her older brother. She plays so well by herself. I will find her many times sitting contentedly with a pile of books...she loves books. She loves when mommy sings to her.

We celebrated her birthday with family at a park on a gorgeous day in August.

Deacon (8 months) with Aunt Krista

cousinsGrandma Ruby
I love her sweet rosy cheeks and smile in this picture.
Not sure what this was all about or what I was thinking? I'm guessing that Luca and Deacon were being loved on by family and I was experiencing a rare moment of freedom. Give me a little bit of freedom and I don't know what to do with myself!OK, back to mothering and acting like an adult again. I gotta blow out these candles quickly so she doesn't grab one and burn herself.
With cousin Emmi...cousin Lexi looking on from behind. :)

I really enjoy making cakes for my kid's birthdays. It's fun finding cakes to match their personalities...letting them be involved in the planning and choosing. There's a lot of love that goes in their cakes...but there is a bit of stress involved too, you know...you want it to turn out perfectly and you certainly don't want to disappoint the birthday child. :) Most of the cakes I've made have been a success. I do remember watching Caedmon's Lego cake go crashing to the floor. Luca's cake was fairly easy. I chose a different icing than what was used with the original recipe. Probably should have stuck with the original. My icing turned out a little too soft and slowly started sliding off the side of the cake at the park. The heat didn't help. We turned it around for pictures and all was good. As you can see here, it was gobbled up in no time. :)
Since a very young age, Luca has had a fear of people...even family members...even grandpas. It's been a joy to watch her slowly overcome her fear and enjoy those that love her so much. A gift from us...a classic Doctor kit. We have great aspirations for her. ;) In all seriousness..my prayer for each of our children is that Kevin and I would apply Proverbs 22:6...train up our children according to their “bent”...encouraging and recognizing their God-given personality and giftedness. It's fun to imagine what they may choose to pursue as an adult. She loves books...maybe she'll be a librarian. :)A tea set from GrandmaLooks like the birthday girl has had all the birthday fun she can handle for one day. Thank goodness for grandmas!And so has this little guy. I should explain my mom's face...bless her heart. She took a tumble earlier in the week and landed flat on her face. Thankfully she has healed nicely.

Happy Birthday, my sweetness!