This morning when we pulled out of our driveway and headed to church, we got to do so as a family of four. What a sweet thing to take our baby girl to Sunday church for the first time! God gave us a lot of grace and our morning was much calmer than I thought it would be. We were only five minutes late and we still got to make the obligatory stop at Shipley’s Donuts.
Here’s Annabeth in her first Sunday dress. I can’t even describe the joy I felt when I got her all dressed. She was the most precious thing since Jackson on his first Sunday. Do I need to tell you how much I love those Mary Jane socks?
Ready to go!
While Curtis was in the Shipley’s getting our breakfast, Jackson asked me about my wedding rings. For some reason I thought it would be fun to try to explain marriage to my three-year-old. I said, “One day you’ll find a pretty girl who loves Jesus and loves you and you’ll marry her.” Then his face lit up and he asked excitedly, “Who is it? Who is it? Who is it, Mommy?” He must have said it ten times. I told him I didn’t know, but Jesus already has her picked out. I hope I remember to tell that story one day at his rehearsal dinner. Okay, I have to change the subject now before I get emotional and have to admit to my husband that I’m crying about our son getting married.
On the way home, we were right behind my parents’ car and I thought about all the years that my original family of four drove that same route home in Dad’s grey Impala. And now there we were with our family of four. It was simultaneously weird and wonderful. I could go on about how the years will pass like the blink of an eye before my son and daughter are doing the same thing with whoever it is Jesus has picked out for them. But I changed the subject, remember?
Here’s my little two-month-old with Big Pink Bear. She didn’t cry this time!
In fact, we got smiles! These are the first real ones I’ve ever caught on camera. 
Amanda, I remember when my son was 4 months old. It was his first Christmas and his grandmother had given me a CD, called songs for Moms and their sons. Well there was a song on the CD that talked about how my son will grown up and give his heart to someone and will marry the love of his life. I sobbed for hours, looking at this sweet innocent baby and thinking about him getting married and leaving me. I laugh about it now. My handsome baby boy is almost 16 and close to 6 feet tall. He is still sweet, gentle and has the kindest heart I have ever met. He has had his first big crush and survived, and still says his wife to be has to love the Lord and be kind and funny. I love him to pieces. So cherish these moments, they don’t last forever. Write everything down so you don’t forget. Your daughter will grow even faster then your son, and you will deal with all the same things on a much deeper level. After all she is your baby girl. LOL
THE JOURNEY CONTINUES ~
PRECIOUS ~ PRECIOUS ~ PRECIOUS!!!
I told my sons the same thingmany years ago when they asked about our wedding rings!
They are still asking me ~
“mommoo, who is she?”
and “where is she?”
Patience my sons, PATIENCE!!!
With “Heaven Bound” blessings,
Kim Safina
check out my sons on our family spring break trip at my blogspot
http://www.kimsafinathejourneycontinues.blogspot.com
Boys do love their mamas and there is nothing like it, but look at all that adorable pink! I have 3 sons and want to buy that chair for my house every time I see it in a picture. Can anyone say “thou shalt not covet”? Grin. Annabeth has grown so much. Thanks for sharing the pictures…so fun!
Love this post!
Precious son, growing up so fast.
Precious daughter, showing us smiles.
Life is good!
Yield to pink~
She is ADORABLE and that little smile of hers just made me laugh outloud! Too cute!! And SO happy to see her smile next to Big Pink Bear! I thought the child might be scarred by him! 😉 It also shows us how much she’s grown!! And that Jackson…how cute was that?! That will be a great story to tell at his rehearsal dinner, for sure!
The pictures were all so cute…thanks, as always, for sharing! 🙂
Missy
I didn’t know where else to say this, so will just tell you here:
PRAISE REPORT!
Remember a few months back when you’d asked for us to share anonymous prayer requests and the LPM staff would divvy them up and pray over them with us?
My prayer request was about a huge debt (over $15K) that my husband and I had been swindled into. In the last year, we’ve lost sleep over it, shed tears, and just felt hopeless and overwhelmed by it.
Well, please tell whoever was praying with us over that request that God has answered it in a BIG way…
We got a letter in the mail a few weeks ago saying that the debt has been cancelled!! We don’t owe it anymore, and even got an apology letter from the company.
PRAISE YOU JESUS! We give YOU all the Thanks and Glory for working out a hopeless situation, and cancelling that debt, just like You cancelled our debt at Calvary.
And Thank You to whoever at LPM stood with us in prayer during the last few months.
much much love,
your siesta
these pictures are THE cutest!!! What a precious posting – thank you !
What a sweet Sunday of memories!
I had a memory today of when mine were little. Got a little teary eyed myself. Man time really does fly. Enjoy it.
Loved every picture and especially loved Jackson’s response to hearing about his future bride. What a story! Thanks for sharing, Amanda.
PRECIOUS!!! Love the photos and your sweet heart.
Thanks for sharing.
How cute is she?!! And Jackson too.
Okay Amanda… you should have changed the subject MUCH earlier, because I am sitting here all teary-eyed just thinking about my little man gettin’ married. Jackson and my son are only a few months apart in age. So girl, I’m not at all ready for that conversation.
And she Looks JUST PRECIOUS in her first little church outfit. I am so glad it was a GREAT day!
Groovewoman
Simply the most awesome pictures ever!! Thank you so much for sharing – we love it!!!
Dairy Queen Nana
Oh my goodness! Are those rolls on Miss Annabeth’s legs? Can you get enough? I want to eat ’em. So sweet.
Amanda,
What a sweet post. Those “first” moments are all the more sweeter when we know that the “lasts” aren’t that far behind.
You have a beautiful family.
Kathy
CUTE! CUTE! CUTE!!!
(totally unrelated to this post, but I read today about Beth’s friend Belinda passing away. Praying for her family and friends as they prepare for the service Thursday. I wish I could’ve known her.)
Laura
Absolutely precious! Thanks also for the reminder to pray for our kids’ spouses!
Love from Michigan
Angie xoxo
Precious! That girl is a doll and those mary jane socks ARE the most adoreable thing! You and Jackson are a sweet pair in those pics. I love seeing all the photos you post. Makes me feel like your bff and part of the family. Thanks for sharing, it always warms my heart.
Beautiful Pictures! You are so blessed and thanks for sharing!
Oh, she’s so beautiful! And you’re right. The time flies by so fast!
It would have been okay to go ahead and tell him Ella. 🙂
Amanda,
You brought tears to my eyes when you were telling about talking to Jackson about his future wife. I know exactly what you mean. My son is now a man but when he was still a little baby one day I was rocking him and I remember vividly thinking how he would one day grow up, get married and be on his own. My husband came in the room at that moment and asked why I was crying. I explained my future thoughts and he just sort of smiled. Well, my son will be getting married in the near future. How quickly those years have passed! I know you are enjoying and treasuring every day with your children.
Thanks for sharing that story. It brought happy memories and tears to me!
Annabeth is A-D-O-R-A-B-L-E!!!! Thanks for the pics…baby smiles just make my day! And those socks rock…I’ve given them to friends before 🙂
Annabeth is precious!
So glad to hear all is going well with the Jones’! Something I did want to say. As I was reading the part about Jackson’s future wife, I thought – Oh, Lord, please give him a wonderful and godly wife at the proper time. BUT – my hearts desire since I was 9 years old has always been to be a wife and mother – and I’ve never been either. At 45, I’ll never have biological children, and have almost given up on ever being a wife. Not sure why this has been God’s plan for me, and I try to trust God in it, but there are no guarantees – even for when you do your very best to be all that God wants you to be. I sure hope both of your children enjoy the blessings of a godly marriage, but it doesn’t always work out the way you think it will.
SHE IS SUCH A DOLL! And so is that little Jackson. Thanks to my hormones I seriously almost cried over this post…even though those were NOT my memories. 😉
My baby (well almost 4 yr old) said she wants to be just like Anna Beth…little!
Hey, Beth, were you actually singing up there on stage with Travis! Why you go girl! And that was a very precious, impressionable little girl with you. Who was she?
“I told him I didn’t know, but Jesus already has her picked out.”
It would be lovely if Jesus did pick someone (a human mate) out for each of us. Sadly, that is not true. He is the One that has been picked out for us.
This baby is just adorable cute… So’s her momma and bubba, too…
Your little girl is adorable! Thanks for sharing the pictures! Just want to throw something out there, not to be negative, but to give a perspective from an almost 40-something (!) single person. I think it’s great to talk to kids about future marriage, but maybe to add the caveat if “if God has that for you”. Because. . . what if He doesn’t? It kind of sets kids up to expect that marriage is the only plan, and. . . apparently it isn’t, always.
absolutely precious!
Dear Beth
I just finished doing “Esther”. I so loved it, and so thank you! In my 60s now, and the thought that the LORD will still use ordinary women…even aging ones!…to change the course of history thrills my heart! Bless you today. What a comfort is His Providence in these troubling times.
I’ll see you in Portland!
Precious, precious, precious.
Sweet, sweet, sweet.
How lovely.
Beautiful.
Uhmmm…..I can’t ever get through a single post with these pictures b/c of the darling bows on that precious baby’s head!
I feel a need for puffy sleeves today.
PRECIOUS………….
oh my goodness.. . .
you need to come to knoxville and let me photograph them! they are SOOOOO cute~! i love the clothes she has on, and her socks, oh my! ADORABLE!!
jessicaleighphotography.com
I know this is lengthy, but couldn’t resist posting this on the siestas blog…
A man is driving along a highway and sees a rabbit jump out across the middle of the road.
He swerves to avoid hitting it, but unfortunately the rabbit jumps right in front of the car.
The driver, a sensitive man as well as an animal lover, pulls over and gets out to see what has become of the rabbit. Much to his dismay, the rabbit is the Easter Bunny, and he is DEAD .
The driver feels so awful that he begins to cry. A beautiful blonde woman (think Beth Moore) driving down the highway sees a man crying on the side of the road and pulls over.
She steps out of the car and asks the man what’s wrong.
“I feel terrible,” ! he explains,
“I accidentally hit the Easter Bunny with my car and KILLED HIM.”
Beth says,”Don’t worry.”
She runs to her car and pulls out a spray can. She walks over to the limp, dead Easter Bunny, bends down, and sprays the contents onto him.
The Easter Bunny jumps up,
waves its paw at the two of them
and hops off down the road.
Ten feet away he stops, turns around and waves again, he hops down the road another 10 feet, turns and waves,
hops another ten feet,
turns and waves,
and repeats this again and again and again and again, until he hops out of sight.
The man is astonished. He runs over to Beth and demands, “What is in that can? What did you spray on the Easter Bunny?”
Beth turns the can around so that the man can read the label.
It says..
(Are you ready for this?)
It says,
“Hair Spray
Restores life to dead hair,
and adds permanent wave.”
Happy Easter!!! :O)
SO precious! My baby girl, Faith, has that same shirt and the same box of those maryjane socks 🙂 SO cute. I found myself a shirt that matches exactly for myself haha
She is just so adorable Love: mikayla the girl who gave you the cross
so cute
Where in the world do you get those bows?
I just have to say, those babies of yours are precious!!! I can’t see what kind of Easter hats and bows Annabeth will be getting!
I love what you said to your son about marriage. Think I will steal that one from you! Yesterday in preschool, they were talking about how church bells ring for weddings. My 3.5yr. old, Caleb, informed his preschool teacher that “I am already married”
“Oh, really Caleb? To whom?”
and my little darling said, “To my mommy.”
You had better believe that went into the baby book. pronto.
Amanda, I’ve looked for other ways to contact you, but haven’t had any luck. I’m not normally a blog commenter, and this is a trivial comment, but I just have to know where you got the pillows in the cute photos of you and Jackson! They would be perfect in my living room. If they were custom made, do you know what fabric company. I seriously love that print! I too am a lover of Trumpette socks for my sweet baby, as well as the Target knock-offs that look like ballet slippers!
she is just so dog gone cute LOVE:MIKAYLA
These pictures are sooo great! I love them. Thank you for sharing them with us. 🙂 The baby is sooo beautiful!
Bibby eats them up, doesn’t she!!
Amanda, Annabeth is so precious. I have a very dear friend and prayer partner that delivered her baby one day after Annabeth was born.We even took delight in that fact when we found out.Two weeks ago her little angel was diagnosed with retinoblastoma that has spread to her brain. She has undergone one chemo therapy treatment already at 8 weeks old and has been in the hospital more than in her own little Pooh crib at home. The doctors have said little Regan Eva will lose one of her eyes.
Her mom has had incredible faith knowing that God is giving them the strength to get through this.
If anyone is interested you can follow their amazing story in her journal at
caringbridge.org/visit/regan2009. You have to sign up with a username and password but it is well worth it. They covet anyone’s prayers.
So Amanda, please give sweet Annabeth an extra hug for Regan and her parents.
much love to your family,bunny
She is soooo cute!! I still think she should marry one of my twin boys. 😉 But I guess we’ll have to see what Jesus thinks about that. lol
Too cute, Little Momma!! Love the outfit on Annabeth! What Jackson said was sweet too-I do pray that he meets that pretty girl that loves Jesus-the one picked out for him:)
katiegfromtennessee