Carter Ashton Turns One!

One year ago:

Today at his Dr. Seuss First Birthday Party!

What a precious gift from God!!!  More updates on my big one year old after his check up tomorrow!

Because the World Needs More Carter Videos

Here's a couple of recent videos of Carter.  The first was at the park today.  He LOVES to swing!  The second one shows that our son may likely be a preacher though you will notice at the end he may have to watch closely for the edge of the stage.  :)

And...We're Done!

We went to the orthotist today for Carter's next round of head measurements.  We have been on this journey since February 2nd.  When we first went in, Carter had a 17 mm difference between two measurements that needed to be corrected.  Here's a look at his head before we had the helmet:

Today Carter is only measuring a 9 mm difference which means his head has rounded out by 8 mm!!!  We asked about how much longer we needed to continue.  She said that at this point it is really up to us.  His head will not get any worse.  As he grows it may even continue to naturally round out through his 2nd and 3rd years.  His ears are closer to symmetrical now, so concerns about glasses fitting in the future are no longer applicable.  Also, he shouldn't have any trouble getting hats to fit either.  Our major concern about stopping too soon was whether or not his forehead would start bulging again.  When we started this process, Carter was beginning to show signs of a forehead deformity because that was the only direction his brain could find to grow.  That is no longer an issue, and since his head will stay as it is or get better then we do not have to worry about that either.  In the end, she left it up to us.  We left the clinic and talked a little bit.  We are ready to be done!!  As it gets warmer he's getting sweat rashes where the helmet touches, and when that happens we have to take it off until it gets better.  His growth spurts are likely to slow down quite a bit since he will be one next week, so that will make his progress slower.  Taking all of this into consideration we decided we were ready to call it quits.  We were ready to see our sweet baby's head without the helmet and SO ready to cuddle without all that plastic in the way!  Here's some similar shots of his "new," rounder head:

We are SO thankful for our orthotist that took us through this process.  She was fabulous, and Carter loved her!  It was nice to have extra protection on his head as he learned to crawl and pull up.  There may be extra bumps and tears now, but he's also gained a lot more strength and balance during this time so that will help a lot!  And, no matter how his head looked/looks he will always be my perfect little gift from God!

Here's a silly shot for the fun of it!

Parenting

I've been spending a lot of time recently reading books about parenting, marriage, and being a woman of God. I know there are some out there that will laugh at my desire to read so many books about parenting right now while I have my first. I definitely do not believe that reading books about parenting (or marriage, etc.) will make me a perfect parent. What I know about myself however, is that what I read helps keep my thoughts on the intentionality with which I long to parent. It's the same with reading the Bible. The more I read the Bible, the more likely I am to have His word at the forefront of my mind. It's that whole idea of good-stuff-in-good-stuff-out. Having said all that, I am reading an incredible book right now. It's called Family Driven Faith by Voddie Baucham. There are things that I don't necessarily agree with, but what an amazing book that is speaking into the need for families to be the basis of Christian development in children not the church. I'm still working through it, but here's a quote I read recently that perfectly captures how Taylor and I desire to view our job as parents:

"Is it wrong to want good things for your children?  Not necessarily.  Unless in our effort to attain 'the best for our children' we ignore their God-given gifts, talents, abilities, and passions.  The key is to understand that our children don't belong to us - they belong to God.  Our goal as parents must not be limited by our own vision.  I am a finite, sinful, selfish man.  Why would I want to plan out my children's future when I can entrust them to the infinite, omnipotent, immutable, sovereign Lord of the universe?  I don't want to tell God what to do with my children - I want Him to tell me! When I allow my will to take precedence over God's will, I have not only given way to a rival - I have become one."

Blessings

DISCLAIMER: I typed this up to show the song in a poem style, but somehow it's coming out all crammed together on the blog. I don't know why, and I couldn't fix it. I apologize. Hope you enjoy anyway! Several weeks ago I discovered a wonderful Pandora music station called Praise Baby. I had seen Praise Baby CD collections at Christian book stores, but it was so much fun to create this Pandora station. It plays all kinds of Christian music for kids, but it's not so kiddy that I get tired of it as an adult. In fact, there are times when I listen to it even when Carter isn't with me. It was while listening to this station on Pandora that I first heard Laura Story's song Blessings. What an incredible song!!! It is just so fitting to the season we are in and the lessons I have learned since coming to Albuquerque. It's my favorite song right now. If you haven't heard it or haven't paid very closely to the words, here they are: "We pray for blessings. We pray for peace. Comfort for family, Protection while we sleep. We pray for healing For prosperity We pray for your mighty hand to ease our suffering. But all the while, you hear each spoken need Yet love us way too much to give us lesser things. Cause what if Your blessings come through raindrops? What if Your healing comes through tears? What if a thousand sleepless nights are what it takes to know You're near? What if trials of this life are Your mercies in disguise? We pray for wisdom Your voice to hear We cry in anger when we cannot feel you near. We doubt your goodness. We doubt your love. As if every promise from Your Word is not enough. And all the while, you hear each desperate plea And long that we'd have faith to believe. Cause what if Your blessings come through raindrops? What if Your healing comes through tears? What if a thousand sleepless nights are what it takes to know You're near? What if trials of this life are Your mercies in disguise? When friends betray us When darkness seems to win We know that pain reminds this heart That this is not, this is not our home! It's not our home! Cause what if Your blessings come through raindrops? What if Your healing comes through tears? What if a thousand sleepless nights are what it takes to know You're near? What if my greatest disappointments, Or the aching of this life, Is the revealing of a greater thirst This world can't satisfy? What if trials of this life The rain, the storms, the hardest nights, Are Your mercies in disguise?"

Wordless Wednesday