Baby Luke

Our precious nephew Luke Anthony, who was mentioned in an earlier posthttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif is still in the hospital, but he is growing and learning to take a bottle and to nurse. We are hoping to have him out of the hospital by the end of the week - making it a month in NICU/Special Care nursery. His home is in Lafayette, but because his mommy went into labor in Baton Rouge, the whole family has been living in Baton Rouge since before Christmas. What a story. Please remember them in your prayers.


I cannot tell you how proud I am to know and love and be in the lives of Luke's mommy and daddy- Pete and Julia.


What patience, love, laughter, holiness, and joy from this family! I cannot imagine being called to such a battle, but watching them go through this has been so life giving. Not to mention their first born - Liam Kenny


What a gift this family is to us!

Observations of my children...

As we've "added another one to the mix" as some put it, I realize that it's in this mix that I have grown to know my children better. I thought I would share in this post what is so stinkin' great about our children.

John Paul:

A very observant and thoughtful person. All he has to do is make the decision to do/not do something and he's all in. If he is prepared (by the adult) for what is coming he will be the best helper and participant. His love language is words of affirmation. Sometimes he calls to me across the house just to here me say, "I'm right here." He likes to hear us say, "I'll never leave you." If he knows the right thing to do he will enforce it on younger people (i.e. Therese) or else. He is interested in object ("what's that thing called?") If a video is on- he's sitting still for its entirety. He does not like organized or line dancing. He remembers everything. He is a tactile child- he will find the tags on anything. He gives the best hugs and closes his eyes when he really means it. He lies in his twin bed every morning when he wakes up and waits for us to come get him. HE is the reason we are able to sleep until 7:30 most mornings.

Therese:

The life of the party. She is very curious. When John Paul was my only mobile child, I never understood it when moms say, "I can't leave him/her alone for a second" because John Paul is doing the "right" thing 90% of the time. I now understand this statement. If it's quiet in the house, we wonder where Therese is. She is very very thoughtful and fair. She makes sure everyone has a turn; a turn to have a sip, a turn to get a blessing, a turn to make a funny sound, a turn to smell her stinky feet. She loves to sing and dance. She likes to be barefoot and will take her shoes off as often/quickly as possible. She is interested in "who dat?" - People. She wants to know who everyone is in terms of their relationship to her. All pictures of girls are mommies and all boys are daddies. She still loves to be rocked. She is a fantastic tantrum thrower and fake crier. Therese is the child David and I will fall asleep laughing about. She is also the child we pray about most often when needing parenting tips from God. She likes stickers...on her face. If a video is on, she lasts about 5 minutes. She is an oral child (at almost 2.) her love language is quality time. Our spirited child.

Jacob:

Loves his family. He smiles at the sound of T and JP's voices. He loves to converse with his Daddy. Smiles at anyone who looks at him, no need to study them first. He loves to nurse. He loves to be close to Mommy and Daddy (all through the night, hehe). He's patient. He does NOT like the carseat. What else can you know about a 3 month old? All I know is that he is a great gift, indeed.



Thank you, Lord, for our precious children... those born and those yet to come, God willing.

While Therese was sleeping...

With three children, it isn't often that I have true alone time. But down time is the new word I use. Here are my boys during down time...

Cookie Recipe: The New Translation

If you attend the Catholic church, you may have noticed a new translation being used for the Mass. Well... someone did the same thing with a Christmas cookie recipe. It is quite funny. Enjoy!

Christmas Cookie Recipe
(New, Corrected Translation)

Serves: you and many.

Cream these ingredients, that by their co-mingling you may begin to make the dough:
1 chalice butter, 2/3 chalice sugar

In a similar way, when the butter is consubstantial with the sugar, beat in:
1 egg

Gather these dry ingredients to yourself and combine them, so that you may add them to the dough which you have already begun to make:
2 1/2 chalices sifted all-purpose flour, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon vanilla

Mix the precious dough with your venerable hands.

Into the refrigerator graciously place the dough so that it may be chilled, for the duration of 3 or 4 hours, before the rolling and cutting of the cookies.

When, in the fullness of time, you are ready to bake these spotless cookies, these delicious cookies, these Christmas cookies, preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Roll out the dough and, taking up a cookie cutter or stencil of your choosing, fashion the cookies into pleasing forms.

Sprinkle colorful adornments over cookies like the dewfall.

Bake for 8 to 10 minutes, or until the cookies have just begun to manifest the brownness that is vouchsafed to them by the oven’s heat.

May these cookies be found acceptable in your sight, and be borne to a place of refreshment at your table, there to be served with milk or hot chocolate, or with your spirits.

Go Tigers!

We attempted LSU cookies...

For unto us a child is born... seriously.

On December 31, 2011, our sister-in-love Julia Dawson went into labor 6 weeks early. She and her husband Pete (David's brother) live in Lafayette, but we were all in Baton Rouge for Christmas. They decided to go to Woman's in BR and from there decided to stay instead of going back to Lafayette. A C-section at 7ish in the morning brought us Luke Anthony Dawson!


He weighed 4lbs 12oz and was 17" long. He spent 2 days in the NICU on oxygen- one of the biggest and healthiest babies in the NICU I assure you. He is now in the special care nursery where he will stay until he is able to nurse/drink a bottle for at least 2 days. Please keep Julia, Pete, big brother Liam and Luke in your prayers. Luke is doing very very well, but life is a bit upside down for them, so prayers for patience, joy, energy, and strength would be greatly appreciated.

More Christmas pictures to come, but for now, here's a little taste of what Jacob Joseph is up to at 10 weeks...

It's a little dark, so I will tell you this: At his 2-month check-up Jacob was 75th percentile in height (short for our babies) and 90th percentile in weight (big for our babies). He naps well... in a swing, and he can do a 5 or 6-hour stretch at night... sleeping in our bed. His hair is coming in brown and it seems his eyes will be brown. So as of now he looks completely different than John Paul and Therese... oh twist my arm, here's a picture of them...




God is good. I am so grateful for my family. Can't wait to share the generic Christmas post with you!