the best part

"Mommy?  We should obey God needs to obey us."

"We need to obey God, hun?"


"YES.  We need to obey God.  Because....because...because of Jesus."

"Because it makes Jesus happy?"


"YES.  Because it makes Jesus happy in my heart."

"Jesus is in your heart?"

"YES."  (feeling her skin over her heart).   "UMMM.  I don't feel him!"

What a great opportunity.  "Yeah, but He's there!  Even when you can't feel Him or see Him or hear Him, He's there!  And He can always hear and see you!  Any time you talk to Him or need Him, He is there.  And He loves you!"


"Like you?"

"Even MORE than Mommy.  Because He MADE you!!  And I asked Him for you, and He gave you to me!  And every day, I say thank you!"


"He gave you me?"

"Yes!"


"And He gave me to me?"

"Uhhhhhh..."


"No, God gave you to me?"

"YESSSSS."


Looking at her heart and talking really loud: "THANK YOU JESUS."

oh man.  There has been no sweeter part of motherhood so far than sharing precious conversations about the Only One who loves her more than I do...the One who takes care of Lily better than I'll ever be able to.   Lily's starting to know Jesus, and it makes both she and I so happy...

big weekend

 We might be on our own, but that doesn't mean this weekend hasn't been busy! 

 Lily, singing to Boone and "putting him down for his nap."

Ready for church this morning, wearing their kind-of matching dresses from the Renners that Lily INSISTED they both wear.

 There is no child so wonderful that Mom doesn't love that they're sleeping :)

 Then playing outside, Sofie getting into the groove with her bouncy-chair-thing the Grissom's sent years ago for Lily!

 Lily, going from her bucket...

 ...into her house...

 ...and then jumping into her "swimming pool that Boone doesn't eat"...over and over!

 ...then sharing with us riveting tales of the scary ducks (pictured above) and the good ducks (pictured below.)

 or-ner-y!

This afternoon, surprisingly for the first time, Lily says, "Mom?  Where is Shay?"  

I wasn't sure what to say, so I told her that Shay was in heaven.

"Hevn?"  she says.  "What's that?"

"Heaven, where Jesus lives.  And Grandma is with Him.  And Shay."

Lil says immediately, "I want to go there!  See Grandma, see Jesus."

"I want to, too, hunnie," I said, choked up by her child-like faith and matched desire.  "We'll go to heaven someday when it's time and be with Jesus and Grandma and Shay.  Sometimes, when someone is sick, like Shay was, then they die, and if they love Jesus they can be with Jesus in heaven."

"So when I'm sick I can go to heaven?" she asks.  

Then this evening, starting around 5 pm, Lily kept begging to go to bed.  Finally, around 6:15 with Dodo and Bubba and Junior over for dinner, I say, "LILY!  Why do you want to go to sleep so bad?  Are you tired?"

"I wanna go to bed 'cause when I wake up, Lisa is coming!"

Too cute...She's had an emotional weekend with Grandpa leaving and Daddy being gone...she doesn't understand why if everyone "wants to be with me", everyone is leaving.  Having Lisa this week will be MARVELOUS..."Just us girls, no Uncle Adam, no Poppy, no Grandpa, just us girls, us four ones....and candy."

That's my girl :)