"He shall feed his flock like a shepherd: he shall gather the lambs with his arm,
and carry them close to his heart, and shall gently lead those that are with young." Isaiah 40:11

Monday, August 9, 2010

Smiles!!!!

I'm an extremely happy dad (yes, this is David).  At lunch today as I was holding Rachel she smiled at me while she was awake!  And not just once but a bunch of times, in that "i'm just learning how to use my smile muscles" hesitant kind of way.  We've seen her smile in her sleep before but never consciously like this.

I've been glowing ever since.  It is one thing to have a baby whom one loves.  It feels like another to have this baby consciously respond to you, to be granted a heart-stopping baby grin in response to your affection.  It's a great start to our holidays!

Speaking of which, to kick off our holidays together we took Ethan and Abigail to see Toy Story 3 in the theatre and then went out to eat at Peter's Drive In.  The kids were hardly able to watch the movie and keep their hearts beating and lungs breathing at the same time, they were so engrossed.  We had a great time!

Shalom,
David and Kendra, Rachel and Abigail and Ethan

ps - (This is Kendra now) This evening Rachel lifted both her arms above her head and yawned.  It was so priceless!! Also, we have started adding a bit of rice cereal to her milk to thicken it. (along with prune juice for constipation) The rice cereal seems to lessen her reflux and it slows down the flow so that she doesn't gag as much.  Saturday night to Sunday morning we were actually quite concerned because she was only able to drink 20 mls the whole night!! (lots of gagging) and slept about one hour.  So far it seems to be helping.  We'll see...Her eyelashes are also super long.  A nurse from the Cardiac ward said she has noticed that cardiac babies seem to have long lashes. 

7 comments:

Janet said...

PRAISE JESUS! What a wonderful blessimg of a moment that must of been.A babies smile is always very sweet,& moves our hearts.I can imagine how you must of felt.Daddy's baby girl giving you that BIG smile. :) We love you guys..I can't wait to share that with our church.Bless you
Janet M :)

Carol Taves said...

Oh, that is so exciting and precious! So did you get the first real smile? Or has she smiled at Kendra many times before, but this is the first one for you??
That is so great - enjoy every smile and take pictures!!
Love you.

Wodzisz Family said...

What a beautiful feeling. God is great and He always gives us signs that He is nearby. Your family is always in my heart and prayers.

annamarie saarinen said...

Still thinking of you all, almost every day. Here for whatever you may need...and so happy for her victories. Annamarie & family (in MN)

fiona said...

what a gift that smile was :D we were just on a holiday with our kids too . . . it was good to slow down and just enjoy being together - funny how hard that can be in everyday life. this morning as i was praying for you, the verse that came to me was something along the lines of "though weeping may endure through the night, joy comes in the morning". i pray that may be true for you. lots of love!!

paige said...

Ahhhh - smiles, yawns & stretches & no pictures for the readers;)

Brenda Funk said...

That is awesome! We rejoice with you in every little victory. And it sounds like you had a great time with Ethan and Abigail. I would have liked to watch them watch the movie!!