Advancing in Leaps and Bounds

Wow, it’s been way too long since I blogged last.  I don’t really understand how I get so busy when all I have is one little baby to take care of!  But the teething went up a notch this month and Justice’s first tooth broke through on July 9th and his second one made its appearance on the 24th!!  Already 2 teeth before he’s even 5 months old!  However, this has made him rather cranky lately and he’s constantly gnawing on his fingers and anything else he can manage to get into his mouth.

The other exciting milestone he reached is that he rolled over from his back to his stomach for the first time on July 16th!  We actually missed the first time, as he was laying on the dining room floor while we made supper in the kitchen and all of a sudden we looked over to find him on his stomach!  Since then he has pretty much mastered this art and can roll onto his stomach both to his left and his right.  It’s funny how something so little can make me so proud of him!    When he’s on his stomach, he also does a great job at holding his head up and he sort of tries to move his legs, but I think it’ll take a while longer for him to learn how to crawl.

Other than those two grand achievements, not too much else is new in our household.  However, this weekend we went to my parents’ place for the night and all day Saturday as we usually do once a month, and Justice had his first experience on a riding mower (although he doesn’t look too happy about it - lol)!  It was very cute!    To end, I will simply leave you with a couple more adorable pictures of my wonderful little man.

Thumb-sucking

Well, Justice finally discovered his thumb!!  I think he really enjoys the suction power he has on that one finger as opposed to trying to suck on his entire fist.  I love how he’s holding his thumb in place with his other hand!

 

However, it’s still pretty hit and miss with the thumb – he continues to enjoy many different finger combinations!  He often enjoys a 1-2 combo (thumb and pointer), or a 1-2-3 combo, or as seen in the pictures below, the 3-4, the 4-5, and the 3-4-5.    The purple moustache is from our recent attempt at Gentian Violet to see if it will cure some breast pain I’ve been having.   

  

My Baby Is Growing Up!

Justice has been drooling pretty hardcore for at least a month now, but it appears the teething process kicked up a notch this last week, as he has been rather cranky and has been chewing on his fingers rather intensely!  Well, today he has been especially unhappy and even though I can’t really see anything, when I let him chew on my finger for a couple minutes, I could definitely feel something sharp in there!  My little baby is only 4 months old and already his teeth are starting to come in!  It’s hard to believe he is growing up so quickly and while this is kind of sad, it’s also exciting at the same time to watch him reach these milestones and experience new things.  Hopefully these teeth make their way out quickly though so that his discomfort comes to an end – his little eyes are red from all the crying. 

Weep With Me?

On Canada Day, I heard the news about Dr. Henry Morgentaler, the “father” of abortion in our nation, being awarded the Order of Canada, the highest honor a Canadian civilian can receive. To say that I was grieved and horrified would be a gross understatement. I had hoped those responsible for making this decision would take note of the poll done at the Globe and Mail which had shown that 92% (over 300,000 votes) of Canadians opposed the idea of him receiving this award, but sadly they did not. They also seem to have forgotten about the poll done by CBC which showed that the top wish of this generation of Canadians was to see abortion ended in our nation. I was then confronted with the question – how should I respond??

A friend of mine mentioned to me in a recent email her desire to “stand in the counsel of the Lord” (Jeremiah 23:18) and to be one who is His friend, who hears what is on His heart and what He is saying. This moved me to go before the Godhead and ask them – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit – what is Your counsel for me? I was overwhelmed with so many emotions – mourning, anger, confusion, uncertainty – what was the right way for me to respond to this injustice? There were many options before me – more polls that I could participate in, government officials that I could email or call, ways to spread awareness for this issue and seek to have this decision revoked, etc. I began to ask myself what God’s messengers had done in the scripture and I was reminded of those who stood up to corrupt leadership and spoke boldly against the sin that was taking place in their nations. I thought of the prophets who confronted the spirits of godlessness and rebellion with fiery words straight from God. And then I thought of those who simply prayed…and wept.

I believe that there are those who are called to be a voice before the people, those like Faytene Kryskow of 4MyCanada, who I greatly honor and admire for the ministry she is doing among the politicians and in government circles. I greatly encourage you to write letters to the media, to email and call our nation’s leaders, to make your voice heard on behalf of the unborn who are being murdered daily. This is a completely valid and important way that we as Christians can make a stand for righteousness and holiness and calling the people to return to the Lord. As for me, I may or may not do any of those things, but I am writing this blog post to share with you that last night, as I pictured myself sitting with the Trinity, I heard the Father ask me this question, “Weep with us, Jacquie?”

“Yes,” I replied.

Yes, I will weep with You.

As Joel said, “Let the priests, who minister to the LORD, weep between the porch and the altar; Let them say, ‘Spare Your people, O LORD’.” (2:17) And as Jesus said, “And will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night?” (Luke 18:7)

So I wept.

I wept for the lost destinies of aborted babies. I wept for the soul of Dr. Henry Morgentalar. I wept for the leaders of our nation. I wept for the grief in my Father’s heart. I wept for the brokenness of those women who are suffering from regret and physical pain from their abortions. I wept for the sinful condition of Canada. And I asked Him to spare us and to show mercy. Forgive our sin and heal our land. Relent from Your anger and bring us back to You.

As I cried, I received a fresh revelation of my God – from eternity past, He chose to be known as a loving Father, and this is one of the reasons why His heart is so intricately interwoven with these precious babies who have been lost. He is a Father who loves children, who created each and every one with tender affection, and who had dreams in His heart for them. He weeps for what could have been, and so I wept with Him. I also saw Jesus, the Son, who is always interceding for us, asking the Father with meekness, love and passion to end abortion in Canada, and so I wept with Him too. And then I saw the Holy Spirit, the One who helps us to pray when we don’t know what to pray, the One who also intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express, and I wept with Him also. Seeing this picture of the Trinity – the tender Father who desires to see abortion ended in my nation, the loving Son who gave His life for the sins of the world, and the Holy Spirit who collects the very tears I was crying – it caused my heart to swell with love for Him all over again. He is truly beautiful and good and He will make things right again. As we cry, He will bring justice. As we weep, He will shift things in the heavenlies. As we pray, He will listen and answer.

As I later shared this with my husband, he asked me the question, “Have you wept like a virgin yet?” He was referring to the verse in Joel 1:8 which says, “Mourn like a virgin in sackcloth grieving for the husband of her youth.” Joel was saying that the judgment coming was so severe that they would mourn like a bride who lost her husband on their wedding day. The tragedies are comparable, for we weep for the unborn who never had the chance to live, just like the bride who never had the chance to enjoy the love of her husband. I know I haven’t wept yet with that level of mourning, and yet if this is what is required, then I ask again for the grace to weep.

Whatever you do, I encourage you to stand in the counsel of the Lord. Ask Him how He would have you respond and then be obedient. Whether your voice is heard before the courts of man or before the courts of heaven – it matters.

Here are some links that will give you direction on what you can do practically:

• Cast your vote in online polls & read the article submitted by Faytene Kryskow
• Call or email government officials
• Write a letter to your local media
• Join the Facebook group

Also, if you haven’t already, you might be interested in reading my series “Weep Between the Porch and the Altar“.

Thought of the Day

Song of Songs 4:9

You have stolen my heart, my sister, my bride;
you have stolen my heart
with one glance of your eyes,
with one jewel of your necklace.

Psalm 27:4

One thing I have desired of the LORD, that will I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the LORD, and to inquire in His temple.

I am so thankful that the Lord is captivated by just one glance of my eyes, since this is often all I seem to be able to give Him, yet I find myself feeling the same desire as David, to “behold” the beauty of the Lord. To behold literally means to “hold in view”, meaning that I desire to not only give the Lord brief glances during my day, but I wish to hold Him in my view and keep my eyes fixed on Him for long periods of time. This sentiment is also found in some of the synonyms for “behold”, which are “consider”, “gaze”, “maintain”, “retain” and “wait”. I don’t really know how to accomplish this, but I am asking for the grace to wait upon Him and maintain a sustained gaze on His face.

Happy 4 Months Justice!

Wow!  I can hardly believe Justice is four months old this week!!  The last month has held many new firsts for him and it has been exciting and fun to watch him learn new things and discover the world around him.  I will try to recount some of the milestones and adventures he has had lately…

1.  He has started to laugh!!  I had been waiting rather impatiently for this one and Joe got to experience it before me, but it was fitting because Justice laughed for him on Father’s Day!  I got to hear it just a couple days later and we’ve both had the joy of making him laugh and giggle several times since then.  His laugh and smile are so infectious, you can’t help but grin, even if you’re in the most grumpy mood!  I was thrilled when my mom finally caught a good picture of his smile, since he usually goes very serious as soon as he sees the camera.

2.  He has noticed his toys!!  Before when we would put him in his bouncy chair with the toys dangling above him, he couldn’t have cared less about them and didn’t even realize they were there, but he recently took note and stared intensely at them, watching them move and sway.  He has also briefly held onto some toys that we’ve put in his hands and has tried to bring them to his mouth with limited success, but he hasn’t really started to reach for them on his own yet.

3.  He has met and loves his reflection!  When he’s crying about something and is being cranky, it’s almost guaranteed that if I go to the bathroom and let him look in the mirror that he will burst into a huge grin!  I have to laugh because he goes from sad to happy in an instant and seems to really love smiling at himself!  I wish I had a picture showing this, but I’ll have to get one and maybe post it later – it’s too cute!

4.  He’s learning to grab!  He has grabbed things before, but more by accident than anything else.  Now he is beginning to intentionally grab onto things such as his bib (he likes to pull it aside so he can puke on his shirt instead – lol), my hair, my clothing, blankets, and recently he even got a good grip on his own hair!  His favorite new trick though is being able to grab and pull out his soother on his own.  He will pluck it out of his mouth and then start crying because he doesn’t know how to put it back in yet – lol.  In this next picture, he managed to grab onto a Kleenex nearby and then dropped it on his face like that – it was quite funny! 

5.  He attended his first campfire!  He was mostly oblivious to this grand adventure, but it was a new experience nonetheless!

 

6.  He likes the T.V.!  Not sure how I feel about this one, as I don’t really want him to get addicted to the “boob tube” (as my mother likes to call it) at such a young age already, but there’s no doubt that he is quite fascinated by the moving pictures and bright lights of the big screen T.V. at my parents’ place. 

7.  The leg slam!  Another favorite thing Justice enjoys doing is lifting his legs up in the air and them SLAMMING them down on the floor, his crib mattress, the change table, etc.  This has scared me numerous times as it makes quite a loud bang and I often think something has fallen in the night.  I’m also afraid that when he gets a little longer that he’s going to hurt himself on the change table by slamming those little heels onto the ledge!

8.  Drooling and blowing bubbles!  It appears that Justice is teething, although I’ve heard babies can drool like crazy for many months before any teeth finally break through.  But there is no shortage of drool these days and the extra saliva has also proven perfect for blowing bubbles!  He also seems to enjoy creating these bubbles when I gurgle at him like in this video…

9.  The exersaucer and the Jolly Jumper!  Justice tried both of these new activities for the first time this last month and while he doesn’t seem quite ready for the Jolly Jumper, he sure loves the exersaucer!  It gives him the opportunity to stretch out his legs and attempt to stand, while also being able to look at the world around him – or just stare at the fabric on the seat, which seems to be equally as fascinating!

   

10.  He got cuter!!  I know, you’re saying to yourself, “How can this be possible??”, but it’s true!  He just gets cuter and cuter every day!  I am completely enamored with my son! 

   

First Camping Trip

     

So, this post is coming a bit late, but on the first weekend of June we took Justice on his first camping trip!  My dad’s side of the family was having a reunion of sorts and we all met at a small campground a couple hours away – which also made it Justice’s first long distance car ride.  My dad comes from a family of 12 siblings and 10 of them were able to come out, which was pretty good!  Not too many cousins were able to make it, so Joe and I were the only ones in our age group for most of the weekend, but that didn’t matter to us.  We had some good chats with my aunts and uncles and enjoyed the good weather we had, in spite of the gloomy forecast.

My parents and us shared a “6-person” cabin which was a little rougher than we had expected – haha.  It was about the size of my living room and the four of us adults shared a small room that was just big enough for the two double beds inside, and Justice slept in his playpen in the other half which had a futon, the small “kitchen” and a dining area.  The cabins didn’t have running water, so the kitchen was basically a counter with a few shelves and some basic utensils.  The water in the showers was at least hot, but the room itself was freezing cold!  The heated pool which they had advertised in huge letters was about as warm as a glacier-fed lake – lol!  Joe jumped in with me in his arms and we were both startled by the cold blast and scrambled out of the pool as quickly as possible.

But for the most part we had a great weekend and Justice did quite well!  We got to show him off to everyone and beam with pride as they all told us cute he was!