In Case They Ever Wonder

All was quiet in our house. Snuggled up with my boy, tucked in between the wall and a bed rail in an old double bed that belonged to his great, great-grandmother, I watched my precious, fierce little man-child moving from drowsy to dreamland, when all of a sudden, the silence was broken. " Stop staring at me!" I don't think he even opened his eyes, but he knew his mama was watching him, and how is a boy to sleep with his mama watching? I already embarrass him with how crazy I am about him. I told him I'd try, and I did... for a minute or two. But really, I couldn't help myself. I let him get a little more to sleep and took another long look. I know that not everyone who sees Will really sees him. I know some people totally miss the wonder of who he is. If you are busy or distracted or disinterested, what's wonder-full about him can be overlooked. With just a glance, you might just see a big kid who loves trains and a good piece of beef. But if you slow down, g...

This is my little "Beach Baby," or more accurately, "Pool Baby," (since we didn't do the beach this trip due to my worries over the oil spill)! Either way, Lillie absolutely loved the water, and she adored being the "only" child for a week. Aunt Tori, Uncle Derek, Tato, and I showered her with undivided attention, and she ate it up! Not only did Lillie experience the pool for the first time, she also enjoyed a long-standing White family vacation tradition - a trip to Lambert's Cafe, complete with "throwed rolls!" Like both her brother and sister, Lillie loved sitting on the porch, listening to the waves crashing on the shore, and she loved splashing and playing in the warm pool in the early evenings. She did have her "taste" of sand (literally and figuratively), but it was at Lulu's - not on the beach! I was so thankful for my little "babymoon" with Lillie. I treasure the one-on-one time spent with my sweet baby gi...

There's no way a big brother has ever loved a baby sister more than Will loves Lillie. Even though I sometimes worry that his "big love" will land us in the emergency room, I am so thankful that Will adores Lillie the way he does. Will believes that every coo, every laugh, every smile Lillie makes is totally directed at him! A thousand times a day, I hear "she cooing at me, she laughing at me, she cooing at me!" Or, "Oh, Lillie, I you broth-o!" And bless his heart, if Lillie isn't starting to adore him as much as he adores her! I still think she gets a little nervous when she sees 40 pounds of love bounding over to wake her up each morning, but Will's declarations are starting to have some truth. She is cooing at him! She is laughing at him! She is smiling at him! Once again, love is growing before my very eyes, and I am so thankful I get to watch it.

As I've said, May 9 is Dad's birthday and this year, Lillie's dedication, but we also celebrated Mother's Day on this special Sunday! And we had no shortage of mothers and children on hand to celebrate! (And if you ask me, either aunts should be included in Mother's Day or they need a day all to themselves!) To church on Sunday, Lillie wore a dress my grandmother made almost 57 years ago for my mom. I have pictures of Sophie in this dress and of course, Mee-Maw has many memories of both making it and dressing her little girl in what would become an heirloom in our family. Lillie wore another family heirloom to her dedication service. She looked just beautiful wearing the same dress I was dedicated in, worn by all the baby girls in our family either home from the hospital or at a dedication service. My great aunt made the dress for me when I was born, and it was worn most recently by Sophie at her dedication when she was almost exactly Lillie's age. Again, a floo...

My best friend in life is Ashley McClanahan . We've been friends since 7th grade, when we were just twelve years old. I have literally done more of my life with Ashley than without her. Boyfriends, breakups, graduations, engagements, weddings, you name it, we've been through it. We have cried buckets of tears together and for one another, but the laughter has far outweighed any sadness. Very few tales I have to tell don't involve Ash. And though a few of those tales include some tears, nearly all include lots of laughter. She is much like the fourth daughter in our family; In my crazy-close, tight-knit crew, she is one of us. We are each other's people. One of the greatest comforts and joys of my life has been that Ash and I have gone through parenting, basically together. Sophie and Jack are just 10 months a part, and then Will, Cole, and Lillie are truly stair-steps, at 2, 1, and new, all with birthdays within three weeks of each other. (It's her turn to have a ...

Our little Lillie is three months old! She is a sweet, smily delicate-as-a-flower bundle! What I know so far: She loves singing! She tries to "sing" along, cooing as sweetly as you can imagine (my mom says Tori did this when she was a baby.) She can't stand the car (much like her older brother and sister when they were babies). She already responds to Sophie and Will, though for now, she is still mama's girl. I feel like she responds to me even more than the other two did as infants. It's like she knows she must capture my attention! She would like nothing more than for me to make eye contact and talk with her all day. In fact, I have to read most of the kids' stories looking at Lillie! She's already listened intently to much of Boxcar Children . She loves her sling (like Sophie did), likes her bath (though she doesn't get very many), and didn't put up with being at school whatsoever. (She's only been to MAFA twice, and both times she wound ...

Will is obsessed with things "fitting." Every diaper, shirt, pair of pants, coat etc. either gets his mark of approval, "this fits" or not, "this too tight," "this hurts," or "no fit." I'm convinced this is a result of him being so crazy-big and hearing me say so many times, "I can't believe this doesn't fit!" It isn't just clothes though, he also decides whether his trains "fit" on his track, if his automoblox "fit" together. He is just obsessed with things "fitting." There was a time when having a little boy did not "fit" in my plan for my life. I imagined myself mothering little girls, just like my mom did and just like her mom did. Never having had brothers or even boy cousins, I just never thought having a little boy was likely, and I didn't understand people who had such a strong desire to have sons. Oh, how thankful I am that the Lord knew just the pieces need...

The events of the past couple of weeks have overwhelmed me. Because I don't ever want to forget all the kindness, mercy and love I've been shown and because I want Lillie to know all the beautiful ways that the people we love most helped to celebrate her entrance into the world, I want to record just some of the abundant blessings of the past couple of weeks in the life of our family. mom arriving in Atlanta almost a week ahead of schedule when my back went out. She lovingly cared for me, Matt and the kids, took care of our house and allowed me to rest enough to be able to have Lillie without a c-section. a relatively uneventful ride to the hospital, free from panic and fear and a doctor who was willing to sacrifice convenience, trusting that I knew my own body. a sister who moved heaven and earth to see my third child come into the world and a brother-in-law who distinguished himself as the best brother-in-law ever by taking amazing care of Sophie and Will while Lillie was bo...

We've jokingly said that we've lived the movie Four Christmases around here the past week! It seems each day from the 23rd on brought with it some sort of celebration! We've opened way more than our share of presents, eaten crazy amounts of good food, and visited with tons of family! We've stayed up super-late, played lots of Wii and board games, and even snuck-in a little after Christmas shopping! Of all the fun times we've shared over the past week, I am most thankful for the opportunity to watch my children interact with the family that I love so dearly. It takes a time of year as special as Christmas to bring together all the people we love at once, and I always treasure watching my children building their own relationships with the people I love most in the world. These are a few of the moments I would like to burn in my brain - a few of my favorite Christmas memories.