Classic kid stuff! One of Emily’s classic phrases we are hearing now days – “I do it, myself”. It is really cute and a good description of her current state of mind. The longer I hear it, the more she means it. Today, she literally ran me out of the bathroom, so that, she could potty and ‘do it, myself’. In the end, she did do it herself. I guess this is just the first step of my letting her go.

After church on Sunday, we and the grandparents caught a yummy lunch and then spend some time by a fountain for Emily to play in. The day was a little cooler than our normal hot August days and made for a beautiful day to be out in. Emily, like usual, was a little skittish about getting wet. She enjoyed playing ‘Hokey Pokey’ and sticking hands and feet in the water with her Mommy. The game she loved most was getting her feet wet and then running out to visit with a grandparent and then returning to the water.

A cousin of mine sent some dress-up clothes for the girls. We got them out and played with them en masse one day. Emily was in heaven! Julia seemed to really enjoy herself, too. Emily’s favorite costume was a Cinderella dress, “glass” slippers, jewels and purse. To that she enjoyed adding cheerleading pompoms and a Blues Clues hat. Julia spent most of the time in a little pink tutu chewing on purse handles or pompom madness.

We finally talked Emily into trying other costumes on like a Snow White and Sleeping Beauty dress. But in the end she was most interested in the oversized blue Cinderella dress. She wore it to dinner after we talked her into leaving the shoes off. The shoes had become a slipping hazzard. For bedtime, we were able to revert back to a nightgown.

For Halloween, Julia is going to be a lion and with the addition of these dress-up clothes she is going to be a tutu wearing lion. I think it will be adorable. The jury is still out on Emily for Halloween. I was thinking originally about a pirate, but maybe it will be Cinderella.

Emily discovered that she liked to play with a cold pack. This is somewhat problematic because it warms up pretty quickly, takes a while to re-cool, and we only have one. In a moment of inspiration I discovered some frozen colored ice treats in the freezer.

We didn’t open them, but each girl got a colored frozen stick to play with and chew on. I’m going to keep them handy for days filled with teething pain. The girls seemed to really enjoy playing the same game together and swapped them at one point.

How sweet is this? The girls were playing with their bears and posing for a photo together.

We dedicated Julia on August 23, 2009 at our church Christ Chapel. The act of dedication a child is not a requirement, but an outgrowth of our absolute reliance upon God to help in the raising of a child. We are so grateful and humbled that God gave us the wonderful gift of Julia. While she is made of pieces of her father and mother, she is her own unique creation. She is already a blessing to her family and will be one to the others she meets in her life.

We surrender her to God. In our own strength we can not be her best parents, we can not protect her from all dangers, we can not teach her heart to love, nor can we order her steps. With God’s strength and wisdom we will nurture, teach, comfort, counsel, direct, discipline, and love Julia. We thank God for making a path for her in the world. For being her companion and never leaving her side, we are eternally grateful.

We commit to remember that Julia is a gift from God and teach her of her Heavenly Father, of the love and salvation of Jesus, and the companionship of the Holy Spirit. We pray that God will give us the strength to do this and that our friends and family will encourage us in our lifelong effort to do so.