24 Hours With Claire: Part I

Friday and Saturday Judy and I had a wonderful opportunity for "extended babysitting" with our granddaughter Claire. She has spent a lot of time with us, but this stretch of nearly 24 hours incorporated all aspects of her typical daily and nightly schedule. That made it a valuable learning experience and bonding time for her and for us.

As you can see, there is no "separation anxiety" when Jennifer and Matt depart. Claire's ready to party.

She's ready to "get down." Even if it means lying on her tummy, which she has generally disliked.

"Help! I've fallen and I can't get up. Just kidding."

With those strong little arms, she finds tummy time is not the difficult chore it once was. As long as she doesn't think about it, that is.

"You use your camera your way, I'll use mine my way. This is actually quite tasty-- for molded plastic."

"Yes, I can stand on my own two feet. Just keep that big mitt of yours on my belly, Grandpa."

"Mirror, mirror, in my hand, who's the fairest in the land?"

"Well, DUH! Who do you THINK?"

"Hey, everybody-- gather around the keyboard and I'll play ya a few tunes."

"For my first selection, How about Grieg's Piano Concerto in A#?"

"Here's my little bumblebee rattle. It's good for keeping the grownups awake when their attention starts to lag. For that matter, it's good for keeping me awake."

"By the way, some of you are looking a little drowsy. I'm gonna save the rest of my story and pictures for the next blog post. Now go take a nap."

"I'll let you know when I need a nap. But not yet!"

Brianna is one . . .

Brianna is ONE YEAR OLD!
Sunday, April 18 was her big day and she was surrounded by her family.
If you know Brianna, you would agree that the statement "Brianna is one. . ." could be completed in a variety of ways.

Such as:
Brianna is one happy gal!
Brianna is one sweet young'un!
Brianna is one lucky child!
Brianna is one little bundle of love!
Brianna is one adventurous soul!
Brianna is one non-stop crawling machine!
But whatever you choose, Brianna IS one!

Turning one is a new experience. It only happens once. Grandma knows what's going on, but Brianna isn't quite sure.
Grandpa Steve (Stephen's dad) assures her this will be painless.

"What do you think, Cousin Claire? There are only two of us, and a whole kaboodle of the big people. Can we take 'em?"

Little does Brianna know of the treasures that await her!

Just in case someone wandered in off the street and didn't know the purpose of our gathering. . . .

As much as she loves her banana, this shiny, floating balloon arouses her curiosity.

A crowd gathers to watch Brianna finish eating so they can start partying!

Creative Amanda put together umpteen cupcakes to form a numero uno. Some had a "1" and some had a "B." (for Brianna or Birthday?)

Brianna was a little hesitant to dig into her cupcake with her hands. Normally she might be told that was a no-no. But when Daddy offers it, it's definitely okay!

"So once a year I get to play in my food, right?"

A special tub of rhythm instruments from Aunt Jennifer, Uncle Matt, and Cousin Claire. Thoughtful gift or sweet revenge?

"Don't worry, we'll share with Claire! Hee-hee-hee."

Aunt Gail says, "Your Mommy always loved her 'blank.' Here's one just for you!"

And to make you think of your Aunt Gail, a special "Noah's Ark" book.

Can you tell the suspense was unbearable?

This spiral raceway from Granny and Grandaddy was a favorite for both Brianna and Claire. Brianna spent half her time standing. . .

and half her time sitting down to clap for the music she had triggered.

"Now that I'm ONE I'll be opening my own mail, thank you very much."

"And how convenient that Grandma and Grandpa gave me my own private mailbox. I just hope our mail carrier can find it."

Now Brianna has her very own "Very Hungry Caterpillar," too.

And speaking of hungry, "Daddy, I love my family, but I'm glad they went home so I didn't have to share my bottle, too."

Emma says, "Brianna, I think you got better toys for your birthday than I did."

Says Claire, "Birthday, huh? I think I might be interested in having one of those sometime."

Judy and Ken love the fact that there are more birthdays on their calendars than ever before!

Below is the video of everyone singing Happy Birthday to Brianna, plus her adventure with her birthday (cup)cake. About 2 minutes. Sing along if you wish!

On the Blog Again

I know. I should be whipped with a wet noodle. Last blog post was April 3, the day before Easter. Much has kept me busy since then, but I was determined to blog today, before two full weeks could pass. I'm well-armed with excuses, but mainly-- I didn't get around to it!

Right after Easter, I headed to Atlanta for a visit with my brother and Dad. I had a wonderful time, including three evening singalong/recitals for Daddy and his friends. It was a blast and is sure to be a regular part of future visits.

I returned home to surprise visits from both Brianna and Claire. What joy! The following week (that's THIS week) I've had my hands full cutting grass, tilling the garden, moving the last loads of firewood from "the swamp" to the yard, and transforming the front porch from winter (woodpile) to spring (swing, rockers, toys). I like spring!

The following pictures are a sampling of other goings-on of late.

Our North Carolina nieces, Emma and Jessie, posed for a whole array of lovely Easter snapshots at Sandhills Horticultural Gardens.
Near where I have been cutting wood, I discovered a sizable patch of wild irises. Judy and I walked down to see them and found even more. Sometimes I enjoy the unexpected things more than those I know about in advance.

I expect other new flowers in the coming weeks, along with butterflies, more birds, and so on. That's what Spring's all about.

Judy and I made a belated visit to her Grandma McKenzie's house, where the arbor of wisteria has been in bloom for several days.

One of the most historic houses in Moore County, its rustic beauty is accentuated by the hanging floral display.

If this were my house, the wisteria would have already taken over the roof and be growing down the chimney and through the cracks in the pine floor. My wisteria is very unruly. But Grandma McKenzie's seems to know its boundaries, and adheres to them year after year.

Somehow, I took no pictures when playing with Brianna Wednesday afternoon, but we had the MOST fun. We're always making up new games nowadays.

I DID remember to snap a few when we spent a couple of hours with Claire, however. Note that every expression is unique. Jennifer has placed many on her blog, and I don't think I've ever seen two "looks" that are identical.

"Got any good baby gossip, Grandma?"

"Brianna did WHAT!?"

"That is so RICH! We girls simply must get together more often!"

"Okay, Grandpa. GUYS, too. Sometimes, at least."

"I kinda like this cherry flavored one."

"Of course, the blueberry is quite good, too. And I hear it has lots of anti-oxidants."

I'm a long way from having next winter's woodpile complete, but I have hauled everything I've cut down in "the swamp" up to my backyard woodlot.

Most of the logs I hauled need only to be cut in half to be stove length. About half of it is large enough to need splitting.

It's nice to be temporarily ahead on next year's wood supply. You can never have TOO much firewood!

And of course, it's nice to be blogging again. You can never blog TOO much! Thanks for dropping in.

Brianna, the Video Kid

Brianna has always had an eye for the camera. In the following five video clips, you'll see a variety of her antics. You'll see that one of her new favorite activities is clapping. For EVERYTHING! And when she learns to make her little radio play and light up, she becomes obsessive about pressing the little yellow button incessantly. You'll see her delight at crawling through "the tunnel" under my knees. Once again, she just can't stop crawling back and forth. It's a primal urge, I suppose. And lastly, she was startled when I rolled an Easter squeaky toy under my legs into her lap. Startled, but not frightened. She thought it was hilarious. Every time I rolled it we got big grins, laughs, and squeals of joy. She really hammed it up for the camera. Hope you enjoy these.

How about a big round of applause for Brianna, the Video Kid. And do you happen to have a banana to share?

God Makes No Misteaks?

Does God ever make misteaks? I don't think so. How about people who post church signs? Sometimes they do err, and folks are eager to let them hear about it.


However, the spelling error in the picture above is intentional. You know how I love paradoxes. When our church sign "letter-er" recently told me people had accused him of grammatical or spelling mistakes, I suggested he post this message. If he is questioned, he can truthfully say, MAN makes mistakes, but GOD makes NO mistakes.

That belief is foundational to all Christians. It can be accepted on faith, or rejected.
Did God make a monumental mistake when He allowed His Son Jesus to go to the cross of Calvary to die for the sins of all men? Did He miscalculate?
No. While it grieves God that multitudes have, and continue to reject the precious and costly gift of salvation, God knew this would be the case. While it is not His will that any should perish, He continues to allow us the free will to accept Christ's sacrifice or reject it.

When the Angel of the Lord rolled away the stone from Jesus's tomb on Easter morning, the resurrection was unveiled as victory over sin, death, and the grave. Many people know who Jesus is, or know about Him. But this requires no faith and has no saving power.

In I Corinthians, Paul says

For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. . . . For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not know him, God pleased through the foolishness of what was preached to save those who believe. . . . For the foolishness of God is wiser than man's wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than man's strength.

I believe this. If you think God has made a mistake, any mistake at all, think again. Read his Word again. Meditate on it, pray over it, and Truth will be revealed anew.


Maybe you think I lean a little too far to the right on this matter.

But I promise you, I'm on the level.

Allow to close by sharing the words from one of our hymns that touched me deeply on Palm Sunday. I hope your celebration of Easter will be meaningful to you this year.

He Is Lord

Emptied of His glory, God became a man,

To walk on earth in ridicule and shame.

A Ruler, yet a Servant; a Shepherd, yet a Lamb;

a Man of Sorrows, agony and pain.

Humbled and rejected, beaten and despised;

Upon the cross the Son of God was slain.

Just like a lamb to slaughter, a sinless sacrifice;

But by His death His loss became our gain.

Satan's forces crumbled like a mighty wall;

The stone that held Him in was rolled aside.

The Prince of Life in glory was lifted over all;

Now earth and heaven echo with the cry.

Refrain:

He is Lord, He is Lord!

He is risen from the dead and He is Lord!

Every knee shall bow, every tongue confess

That Jesus Christ is Lord.