Daddy Daughter Time

This past week has been the law school's placement break, so Case and Lizzie enjoyed prime daddy-daughter time every day!  Here are some wonderful shots Case captured of our grown-up little toddler!

Alphabet soup! 

Posing for daddy!

Mommy

Snot-licking,

Tinkerbell-toting,

Pants sagging,

Pinky-clutching,

Belly-swinging,

Sport cones-wearing,

Cousin-loving

toddler.

No job fulfills me more.  I feel so strongly that this role is divine, even in the ordinary, everyday events.  Mine is the name for which my little girl calls when she wakes, when she's scared, when she's in pain.  Mine is the shoulder she cuddles when she's tired or sick.  Although she won't comprehend the depth of my love for her until she, too, is a mother, she does know her mommy will kiss her ow-ies, blow on her hot food, and tuck her in at night.  I am her mommy, now and forever, and I am eternally grateful for this blessing.  

December

Our December... there was more to it, but yet again, we were too busy to actually take many photos ourselves.  You can view some more wonderful pictures on David and Sadie Ferris' last blog post.  For now, these snapshots will have to do.  

Lizzie LOVES her cousin, Maci!

I think this is Maci winning an arm wrestling match.

I'm not sure what Maci was doing here, but given the next picture, I'm almost certain Lizzie interpreted it as an attempted hug...

...which Maci certainly did not intend.  :)

Story time with "Tee-tee-bell."  "Go Dog Go" is a big favorite these days!

Lizzie's first encounter with Santa.  Recognizing him from stories at home, she absolutely insisted on meeting him (despite our efforts to slip home to escape the 30 minute line).  Once we finally reached him, however, her head-to-toe trembling was unlike any I'd ever before seen from her.  Not even promise of candy could get her to touch St. Nick, although she did accept a candy cane when passed from my hand.   

She seemed a little more calm when she had candy in her hands and reassurances that we would not, in fact, make her sit on the scary man's lap.  :)

 I hope everyone had a great holiday season!

Precious Family Time

I just stopped myself from apologizing for these posts being so few and far between because I remembered my reasoning from the beginning that it would be sparse during the school year.  Not only does teaching limit my time to blog, but law school continues to limit Case's photography.  So although I'm sorry I can't share our lives with our distant loved ones more often during 9 months of the year, I'm happy to report that we try to make the most of any time we do have together.  Here are some pictures from one such precious family outing to Thanksgiving Point.

Lizzie LOVED the maze!  She felt like such a big girl, exploring around corners and dead ends all by herself!  She also enjoyed playing run-away-from-mommy-and-daddy.

Ahh, dirt.  Possibly her favorite feature of Thanksgiving Point.  I love how this shot captures her fascination with sifting the grains between her fingers and with watching it fall.  She did not come quietly when it was time to move away from the dirt.

She was clearly torn between enjoying the perch on top of the bear statue, and being nervous that she was sitting on a bear.  In the end, I think she decided things would be safer with Mommy.

Case did some beautifully artistic shots like this one while we explored the gardens.

There was a new garden full of exquisite statues of Christ.  Apparently, they will all become full sized by the time the garden is complete.

You would think the moderately chilly weather would act as a deterrent for a person to get wet, right?  Wrong, at least for this toddler!  I was thankful for her hood to prevent her from diving in completely!  :)