Tuesday, December 14, 2010

The Lord is at the helm


"Do not Fear."
"What? Not even a little?"
"No, do not fear."
"Surely I may show some measure of fear?"
"No, do not fear."
Tie this knot tight around the throat of unbelief: "Do not fear." "Do not
fear" today. "Do not fear" tomorrow. "Do not fear" any day of your life.
When fear comes, drive it away and give it no space.

When the weather is rough, passengers on a ship can be comforted by the
captain's calm behavior. One simple-minded soul said, "I am sure there is
no cause to fear, for I heard the captain whistling." Surely if the captain
is at ease, the passengers can be at peace. If the Lord Jesus is at the
helm singing, do not fear. "Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for Him"
(Ps.37:7). "Be strong, do not fear! Behold, our God will come with
vengeance, with the recompense of God; He will come and save you"
(Is.35:4).

--Charles Spurgeon


*Reposted from the GirlTalk blog for my own benefit and yours

Sunday, December 12, 2010

Sleep

I don't want to jinx anything by writing this post. But I don't believe in luck anyways so here goes! 
This little snuggler is sleeping 6 hours at night! 
He goes from about 10:30 to 4:30 and then again to 7:30.
YEAH!! 
I know, I know, some of you who are reading this, your kids slept 8 hours at 8 weeks. But in the Minton household this is a BIG deal!! 





Snow Bunny

We saw our first snow flurries in Memphis this morning. Good thing Grandma brought Jed a snow suit! It's a little big, but as fast as he's growing I hope it makes it until spring!
Getting ready to go to church in our new snow suit Grandma bought

Worn out after nursery and Happy Mexican

OUT

I had to get him out of it, he still stayed asleep

So sweet, glad I didn't have to worry about him being cold!

Busy weekend

Grandma got to hold Jed all weekend!

The Tree

Love the candy cane sleeves!

Attempting to take a family photo

Much cuter by himself!!

Picture with Grandma!!

My mom came down this weekend and I am so thankful. I finally got my tree decorated.We've had it for a week now. I also got all my Christmas presents bought and wrapped and sent to Little Rock in the Whale. Joel was also super sweet Saturday morning. He got up with Jed at 7:30 and let me sleep in until 10. Then he made French toast and bacon, my favorite So thankful for Joel and my mom serving me this weekend!! It was very restful and productive weekend.

Advent 2010

This is the first year that Joel and I have celebrated Advent in our home. Advent means "coming" and is meant to prepare our hearts for the coming of Jesus on Christmas Day. We were very encouraged by this blog post and have been using the "Born a child,yet a King" devotional. It has been so worshipful. I've had this centerpiece for awhile and it works perfect to represent the Advent season. Each red candle represents the weeks before Christmas and the white candle represents Christmas day. This is a pic from our first Sunday. May we be faithful to keep gazing at Baby Jesus, King Jesus this busy Christmas season!!

Saturday, December 4, 2010

Turkey Day

Here are a few pics from Jed's First Thanksgiving:
Morning nap with Grampaw Jay

Sweet Potato

Rocking with Mamaw


Uncle Kyle before he woke him up

Aunt Leah and Uncle Dustin

I think my Grandad sang him every hymn he know before he fell asleep

Cereal

 So the Doc said we could feed him cereal. He said it was best if we spoon fed him so he would learn how to eat baby food later on. We decided to try while we were in Little Rock for the week. Here are the results:



Add a Caption


This is my Mamaw's favorite face that Jed makes. It amazes me that kids come out knowing how to pout. Talk about depravity. 
P.S. Notice that Uncle Kyle is holding him...

2 month shots

Nov. 19th- Getting ready to go to the Dr. for 2 month shots

Chillin' in the Bumbo

Waiting in the Dr. office. He looks like he knows what's coming.




Jedidiah did so good with his shots. I think it was worse on me than on him. He only cried for about 3 minutes and then fell asleep. I made Joel hold him for the torturing, I just couldn't do it.  I had a lot of reservations about immunizations. Is it too much for their little bodies? Does it cause SIDS, autism, seizures, etc? What am I exposing him to? After much prayer and talking with 3 pediatricians we decided that we should vaccinate Jedidiah. This is the verse that I clung to and am still clinging to for the health and safety of our son.

[4] I sought the LORD, and he answered me
and delivered me from all my fears.
 (Psalm 34:4 ESV)

Smiles!!






This little boy cannot stop smiling! I absolutely love to see him SMILE!!

Really??

Nov. 8th- Laura goes back to work and Jedidiah decides he hates to eat from a bottle.
This is the result!!

I am writing this post, not because I want to complain...but I want to be able to look back and laugh at myself for what I thought was a big deal at the time and to remember the Lords kindness through it. Let me start back...way back when Jed was 6 weeks old. 
After we brought Jedidiah home from the hospital, he would cry every night, around 9:00. And by cry I mean arching back, red in the face,inconsolable mess. I thought "this is just what newborns do." I had read about colic and it stated that babies would cry for 3 hour stretches, more than 3 nights a week for more than three weeks. He never cried that long. He would just cry like that for 45 minutes to an hour and then pass out for the night. I just thought it was his regular fussy time, like most babies have. Well, when he was 6 weeks old he started refusing his pacifier and would scream every time we tried to feed him. He also had 2 swollen lymph nodes between his ear. Me being the nurse that I am, diagnosed  him with an ear infection and called my pediatrician. They told me it sounded more like thrush but to bring him in. 
Well, I was wrong about the ear infection and they were wrong about the thrush, but what we did find out was that my sweet baby has acid reflux. Baby heartburn. While we were in the office Jed got hiccups. Like he got ALL the time in the womb and almost everyday outside of it. The doc happened to come in while he was fussing through the hiccups. Totally God's sovreignty. He asked us if this was a normal occurrence and we said yes. We also told him about his fussy time, that he was gassy, grunty and refused to be laid on his back. Apparently the combination means...acid reflux. The Dr. put Jed on Zantac twice a day. (p.s. the stuff smells and taste like Listerine and is compounded with alcohol) Good for baby right??
I was like, are you sure it's not an ear infection? Are you sure we have to give him medicine? We decided to give it two weeks and see if it worked. AND within a week...no more fussy time! I mean I don't think he's really even gotten into a wail since then (except for the shots). Best. Baby. Ever. Guess docs do know what their talking about sometimes...
So things were calm for about 2 weeks. Then the weekend before I went back to work, he decided he didn't want to eat anymore. He would scream everytime we tried to feed him. AGAIN. So where did I go...The Internet. (note to self-DO NOT read the internet for baby advice.) They said sometimes a bottle strike is because the baby doesn't like the type. Well as you can see above we have an arsenal of bottles now. Did any of them work? NO. So if anyone needs any bottle for your newborn, we''ll hook you up! After about a week I was at my wits end. I called the ped. You know what they said?...space out his feedings to every 4 hours. Basically..."new mom, feed him when he's hungry and stop trying to force him to eat." GENIUS. Why didn't I think of that?? So now if he only eats 2oz that's OK, he's not going to starve. I mean look at these cheeks!!

All that so say.. Jedidiah is a great baby. He's had few issues, but so minor compared to most. I am so thankful that the Lord has given him to me and I just wish I would worry so much about the small things. Lord, help me to enjoy this precious gift you have given me and be a good steward over him. This has been the verse I have leaned on during these "trying" times.
[5] If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him. [6] But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. [7] For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; [8] he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways. 
(James 1:5-8 ESV)

God has all wisdom. Ask Him and He is faithful to answer. He has already given us everything we need for life (all parts of life even bottles and babies) and godliness in Christ Jesus.

Family Portrait

Nov. 1st- Mintons miss directory photo at church (big surprise)
Self-Portrait taken at home with an auto-timer and e-mailed quickly to Erin C.

Three Months

This sweet blue-eyed boy is 3 months today!
  • 13lbs even on the bathroom scale this morning
  • 23.5 inches long at last doctor visit.
  • I'm sleeping one 6 hour stretch at night PTL!!
  • I'm still taking about 4 ounces every 3 hours
  • Mommy just washed all my 6 month clothes this week
  • I love my pacifier and snuggling with momma
  • I've had my first major holiday
  • I had my first round of shots
  • I've had my first cold(still have it)
  • I can hold my head up despite never having tummy time!
  • I am batting at and reaching for things
  • I coo,gurgle, and "talk" constantly
  • I am obsessed with my hands
The last has month has flown by and I have blogged NOTHING...I'm gonna try and catch ya'll up today...we'll see how that goes!!

Friday, November 5, 2010

Two Months


I can't believe this little guy is two months old already! It has gone by so fast. Doesn't he look like his Daddy in this pic? Joel loves to dress him! I never realized boy clothes would be so fun, I love to dress him like a little man. Actually, this picture was taken Sunday and someone told Joel his son looked like a 30 year old man! I'm sure Joel took that as a compliment. Here are some stats on our sweet boy!
  • Jedidiah is now 11 pounds 2 ounces. 
  • He is taking 4 ounces every 3 hours (even through the night) We're working on this  
  • He will finally take his pacifier, but is also working on his thumb. 
  • He loves to talk and discover what kind of noises he can make
  • He loves to be sung to
  • He didn't cry at small group this week
  • He falls asleep instantly when being held by my mom or grandmother (I need to learn this trick)
  • He loves riding in the car
  • He HATES hats
  • He is a great baby, usually only fusses when he is hungry or tired. Nothing some snuggling and a rocking chair can't fix!

Thursday, November 4, 2010

Getting Ready for Winter


Monday, November 1, 2010

Lil Pumpkin

Sweet Pumpkin

Gangsta' Pumpkin

Dancing Pumpkin

Sleepy Pumpkin

Sick of Pictures Pumpkin

Saturday, October 30, 2010

King Jesus

I've been reading through Matthew most of my pregnancy and since Jed's been born. I love how Matthew proclaims Jesus as King over and over again. But nothing is as sweet as hearing it from Jesus himself. Just read this the other morning:
 11Now Jesus stood before the governor, and the governor questioned Him, saying, "Are You the King of the Jews?" And Jesus said to him, "It is as you say."
It is so comforting to have such a good and gracious King!

7 weeks

  • I am 10 pounds 13 ounces
  • I am starting to smile and coo pretty consistently (especially at 5 in the morning)
  • I am starting to notice my hands and trying to work on getting my thumb in my mouth
  • I'm starting to hold up my head better, but refuses to have tummy time. I'd rather cry with my face in the floor than lift up my head!
  • I finally have somewhat of a scheduled that begins at 730 everyday
  • I do not sleep through the night (nowhere close)
  • I love the sound of my daddy's voice and the new Lecrae CD
  • I am spending every waking moment being held by mommy because she goes back to work in week!

The Word


"The grass withers, the flower fades,
but the Word of our God will stand forever."
Isaiah 40:8

There are two things that are eternal. The souls of men and the Word of God. This is Jedidiah's first Bible. It was given to him by a sweet couple at our church. This couple has been reading, meditating and loving the Word of God for many years. This couple actually prayed for Joel's salvation when he was young and we trust that they are praying for Jedidiah's. We believe that faith comes from hearing and hearing through the Word of God.(Romans 10:17) We also believe that God will accomplish all He desires through His Word. (Isa. 55:11) We are praying that God uses his Word to work great salvation in to the soul of our little boy. May we be faithful to talk of the Word when we sit in our house, when we walk by the way, when we lie down and when we rise up. (Deut. 6:7)