Springing to a new season

Whew! What a crazy busy 2 weeks!

I started my new job, went through and very.... thorough orientation. Most days I drove to the downtown campus. Mix my disdain for driving + big city rush hour traffic + never quite leaving "on time" = stressed adrenal glands and a (slight) overcomsumption of chocolate covered almonds.

Did my first 12 yesterday, and aside from achy feet, I surivived! Seeing has how the last 12 I did was back before Eliaya, I saw this as quite the accomplishment. The phrase "the calm before the storm" takes on new significance in labor & delivery. The board looks great on a Monday morning... uh oh, you know craziness is about to ensue. But kudos to the team, we made it out alive. Shout out to BHE L&D.... miss you guys!

Jarrod and I have been, well, honestly it's been a very rough past few weeks spiritually. While in seminary-land, and even before really, we heard of problematic theology and the rise of "liberal" thinking in the church, but had not experienced it firsthand. It's been a bit of a reality check, and to prevent becoming one of those bloggers who rants-on-the-verge-of-gossips-online-instead-of-addressing-problems, I'll leave the details out. The Lord is using this to stir passion in us to search out His Word and find answers and work on clearly communicating them. I HIGHLY HIGHLY HIGHLY (caps intentional) recommend Mark Dever's book The Church: the Gospel Made Visible. He draws out false thinking, ie if something is not essential for salvation it is then unimportant and dissmissable, and works through why we should care about the practices in the church. Paring Scripture with every point, he speaks plainly and unapologetically  I have learned so much, and I'm only 1/2 way through. Read it.

This kid is almost 1 year old!!! Holy smokes. When did that happen?? She's been a busy-bee, here's a list of new accomplishments:

- now we can climb... everything.
The stairs, on the coffee table, and her favorite, the rocking chair -->
She pushes it up to just below the window, climbs up and just laughs and laughs as it wiggles back and forth. I'm sure at some point she'll come tumbling backwards and I'll don the cape and rush to the rescue, vowing that she'll never do it again (first time mom after all) and we'll snuggle till she's better. But for now, I'll enjoy as she enjoys and be thankful.

- we're making the jump to regular milk (praise the Lord the pumping days are done!). She didn't seem to mind.... too much, so long as the milk was warmed. We're learning she's quite particular, not about taste or texture, but the temperature of her food.

 - She LOVES books. They probably fall second on the list only to goldfish. She'll pull one out, open it in her lap and start reading "bah bah da bah ba" -turn page- "da ba ma ma bah". Precious. Then when she's done she will come find your lap and give you the book to read. It's neat to see her attention span increase day by day. A month ago we could read maybe 2 pages in a kids cardboard book before she would lose interest. Now she'll watch and listen through 2-3 pages of the Jesus storybook Bible!


Perhaps the most exciting update... drum roll please........
She can walk! She took her first steps last Monday (11th). Standing next to me, I threw her paci onto Jarrod's chest (he was reading on the floor), she looked at me, then step-step-step, crouched down to pick it up, then stood up and looked back gleaming "look mom, I can get that!". Once she realized what she accomplished, she promptly fell down. Such has been the case since. If motivated by paci, milk or the dog, she'll waddle around, but once cognizant of the situation, quickly returns to crawling. Awesome.

We're in the midst of birthday preparations, tons of pictures to come. It's a "goldfish" theme (how appropriate, I know) and it is single-handedly responsible for me caving in and joining pinterest! Here's the first creation ------>

Straw wreath (14"), 170 7" balloons, 200 floral pins, 2-3 feet of ribbon, cardboard for the hat and a picture of baby girl. Took about 3 hours for this uncrafty lady to finish it all. I really like it!

Alright friends, nap time is just about over. I hope you have a wonderful day and to my Christian brothers and sisters, I pray that you would seek the Lord steadfastly and would stand firm in Truth, unswerving in the throws of popular opinion. Our God is true, mighty and so worthy of praise. Romans 11:33-36 says "Oh the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and how inscrutable His ways! For who has known the mind of the Lord, or who has been His counselor? Or who has given a gift to Him that he might be repaid? For from Him and to Him and through Him are all things. To Him be glory forever, amen."

with love,
-the Reeds

Messiness is close to holiness, right?

It's been a busy month in the Reed household, here are some highlights:

We went to our first kid's birthday party. What an adventure! Jarrod and I debated on the way there... what exactly does one do at a 1 year old's party? Our curiosity was quickly enlightened: it's much like being at a petting zoo. If you want the animals, or in this case, newly-and-nearly 1 year olds, to come up to you and play, simply hold out food! The appetizers of choice were of course goldfish and cheerios. The kiddos were rather indiscriminate regarding who they are fed by; even Eliaya who normally shies away from new people was quick to speed-crawl to the nearest open palm.

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This was perhaps my favorite activity. Pack n play + plastic balls = impromptu ball pit! Brilliant. As you can see, Eliaya was holding her own with the boys :) E had a blast playing with her friends (there was even some sharing going on!) and Jarrod and I enjoyed time with friends who are in similar life-stages.  The idea-board is rolling... E's FIRST BIRTHDAY is only a few weeks away! The craziness of this truth is mind-blowing  What a fantastic year. Lots of blessings. Definitely gonna celebrate :)

Valentine's day was an adventure... bravery (or perhaps insanity) was the overriding sense that morning and Eliaya and I made edible finger pain. Oh what fun ensued. She "painted" some valentines for Jarrod and family. I couldn't help but smile as she timidly spread her fingers in the pink goo, smiled, then fiercely rose and plummeted her hand back into the puddle of paint. Splatters shot everywhere: her face, the stove, the floor. Then a full-fledged belly laugh. Pure joy.

In the midst of our painting festivities, she discovered the edible nature of our paint. And, of course, Eliaya is a great eater. So... we were pretty much done making valentines and went more for a face-painting/eating routine. My inner clean-freak wanted to halt all craziness, but she was having so much fun. So, after all the paint had begun to dry and I had one content kiddo on my hands, we headed for the shower. Luckily, it all washed off, no problem, and even came right out of her clothes. Perfect! 

*Recipe for edible finger paint:  (taken from http://thekrazycouponlady.com)

2 cups flour

1/2 cup of sugar

2 teaspoons of salt

2 cups cold water

2 cups hot water

Food Coloring

Slowly mix your flour, sugar, and salt into a bowl and stir in the cold water. Once it is mixed well, stir in the warm water. Divide the mixture into separate dishes and add 2-3 drops of food coloring per dish. Stir well until the color is the hue you wish it to be. 

You are ready to begin!

I made this in  a half batch, and it still  made a LOT for one child, consider making 1/4 recipe for 1-2 colors, and a half batch for 3 or more colors. They also keep for a week or so in the fridge if you, like  me, make to much at first and wanna save some for later 

Jarrod and I went hiking for our valentine's getaway. It was so refreshing. He found a neat preserve a little south of where we live and we did between 6-7 miles. Every time we get time together outside of the business of normal life, I'm reminded of how important it is for us to make time for us. To stay best friends. To be silly. To explore. To  have fun.

I've been reading through the book of John recently, and this verse has been on my mind continually:

Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him. (John 3:36 ESV)

Believing in the Son leads to eternal life, believing inherently entails obedience. For those who do not obey, they rightfully remain where we all deserve to be: in God's wrath.

I hope you have a marvelous week, believing God and living as ambassadors for His kingdom!

-the Reeds

Oh the things we can do....

I've decided that with mobility comes the inevitable proclivity towards repetition and destruction (and repetitive destruction).  How have I come to this conclusion you ask?  Let's recap the past 24 hours......


Yesterday was a laundry day, not much unlike any other. Eliaya and Simba like to lay on the clothes while I fold them so the three of us were having just a grand old time. Here's E trying on her clean hat:

While putting clothes away, E scampered into the bathroom and started playing with her bath toys. All good. Then came the silence.... the kind that settles in the pit of your stomach as you just know something outside the realm of expected in happening. Walking into the bathroom, and Eliaya is still playing with her duck.... in the toilet. Blech! I promise, the lid was closed. It's always closed. How this kid managed to hoist it up.... not sure. But the skills of this almost 10 month old are far from limited to such trickery as lid-opening.......

So we cleaned that up, and while I was putting clothes away in the closet, she was playing on the floor a mere 6 feet away. Seems safe, right? Not only did duckie go for a swim.... but E decided it would also be good for him to take a cave tour through our VCR (yes.... we still have, and use, a VCR. Finish laughing..... okay, now to continue). So I excavated the rubber duck, then picked up E and we put clothes away together.....

Fast forward to dinner time.... We've picked up the toy minefield so daddy could walk through, and are in the kitchen cooking. Eliaya chases after Simba back towards the living room. I call her saying "it's time to eat"... and there's nothing... the eery silence again. Mind you, this child normally breaks land-speed records to get to food. I mean, she REALLY loves to eat. So this silence was all the more concerning.

In a matter of seconds, the minefield had been entirely recreated. This kid's really got some skill. We played for a while, the went back to dinner. Oh well if the biscuits were a little on the done side.... we had fun :)

taking our very important call

The last houdini adventure, that I know of.... was this morning. Not wanting E to go to kindergarten still being swaddled to sleep, we've been working on going to sleep (and more importantly staying so) without it. Last night was the best sleep she, and therefore I, have had in a long time. I go in at 7 to get her, she's all smiles standing in her crib waiting to be picked up. Just like normal, we head to the dresser to get changed and dressed for the day. Upon opening her sleep sack, I find a naked baby! Her diaper was crumpled up in the bottom corner and she just giggled and clapped. How she managed this one? Still have no idea..... Anyway, she went straight into the tub for an emergency bath (no diaper meaning a rather messy child) and so another day began.

I say all this in jest, and mostly out of admiration for the amazing, talented (houdini skills are hard to come by you know) and fun baby. I cannot imagine a better blessing. I am so thankful. Yesterday was an awful anniversary in this country, 40 years since abortion was legalized. Becoming a mother has made this atrocity hit so much closer to home. I think about the children, who will fight for them? For their rights? I think about the women and the aftermath they must face as consequence for this choice. I read a very convicting article, here's a snipit: "The ending of abortion cannot be separated from the raising up of an adoption movement. Both concern wanting and loving children, born and unborn—and loving them enough to make them our own sons and daughters if they are left fatherless. In the Father’s house, there are no unwanted children."

I am so thankful to our church in Louisville for the passion for defending the fatherless they showed me. So thankful for a husband who faithfully fathers our daughter. So thankful to be adopted by my Father. So thankful for Christians around the world who are leading the way in living out "pro-life". So thankful for friends who believe children are a blessing, even on Mondays. 

I pray this would stir your heart too. Stir your heart to hug the children in your life, to verbally encourage other parents when they're tempted to see the hardship and not the gift of children, to serve in the church nursery, to really pray about adoption. I will be right there with you.

-the Reeds

ps: growling means happiness.... right?