Aging. It’s a funny thing, isn’t it. We humans try desperately to cling to the remaining vestiges of our youth in an attempt to ignore the inevitable. As I’m practically a babe in the woods still, I don’t have much experience with aging. And yet, I find it knocking on my consciousness in unexpected ways. At Youth Retreat, when I watch all the sixteen-year-olds cavort about and I just want to go to bed, suddenly I feel old. When I…
Lakelyn brought the score to an even five nieces/five nephews, and she has been such a fun baby. She is not a year old yet, so there’s still much to learn about her personality, but she already has a great sense of humor, and I look forward to hearing what she has to say when she learns to speak. She grew herself four little bunny teeth, and they make her cheesy grin completely heart-melting. Lake is energetic and bouncy and vivacious,…
Alyssa was born in the yard, too anxious to see the world to wait on the ride to the clinic. The winter she was an infant was a crazy one for her family, involving multiple moves, and fights with house mold and pneumonia. But she was the most serene baby you could have wished for through it all. She is not too quick to make friends, but when she deigns to grace you with a smile, and even better, when…
When Leilani Skye was born, the second of the cousin triplets, I fell in love with her name before I even met her. Leilani means “Heavenly flower”, and if you’ve met her, I think you’ll agree she is aptly named. Ani is delightfully sweet, and just as adorable as can be (in my completely unbiased opinion, of course). She is also beginning to talk, and is at such a fun stage- repeating words in her tiny little voice, and spouting…
Before Hudson was born, I knew Roman and Mimi’s children would be completely darling. I was not mistaken. Hudson is serene and placid and super laid back, seldom getting his feathers ruffled. He makes friends easily, and if he takes a fancy to you he might come running up with his arms outstretched, as if you’re his best ever friend. He also loves dancing to music or to the sound of the KitchenAid mixer- whichever is available. Basically, he is a…
Judson got a rocky start, as a fussy baby, but has made up for it since then with his hilarious personality. He refused to speak for a long time, but made his meaning clear with his personal tonal language. His lack of speaking never deterred him from being a complete dork though, taking after his father. He cracks me up constantly. He has strong opinions about clothes, which include wearing pants backwards, and mixing prints. He’s adventurous and sweet, rambunctious…
I think Alannah must have been born into this world for the purpose of spreading beauty into all the corners she can, and I have to say, she’s done a pretty good job of it already. She was a pretty baby from the moment she was born, and she hasn’t ever stopped since. She is petite and graceful and easygoing, and full of the kind of questions only a three-year-old could dream up. I think Alannah can best be summed up in two…
If you ever need entertainment, just listen to Declan “read” the book “Make Way for Ducklings”. Once you’ve heard all the ducks “querwacking with their little querwackers just as loudly as they can querwack” you’ll never read the book quite the same way. His memory is amazing, and he can sing obscure songs and quote whole books just like his Uncle Philip could. His imagination is lively, his personality is quick to make friends, and his red curls and freckles…
The brown boy was an exceedingly sober baby, and making him smile was really an accomplishment, as he preferred to just stare at you with his big brown eyes. He had a large vocabulary, and at a tender young age, instead of just saying “Bag”, he asked me, “Is that the purple bag you use when you drive very fast in your car for a very long time?” Brandon has left his solemnity behind now, but not his love of…
I think Tirzah looks a bit elvish, with her golden hair and her dusting of freckles, and I love that her ears stick out just a tad, like her uncle’s. She has one of the most giving personalities I’ve met. She is quick to make friends, and if she takes a fancy to you, you might be gifted with stickers or drawings of heart surgery (her father is studying medicine after all) or precious stones she has found. When you…
Weston was the first nephew on both sides, and the day he was born, his Coates and Troyer aunts and uncles spent the day painting a room and anxiously waiting for the phone to ring. Boy, was there ever celebrating in that room when I answered the phone and relayed the news. A few weeks later when his uncle Isaac beat us all to Heaven, his delightful baby cuddliness was exactly what we all needed as we tried to process…
It is only fair I warn you of what is coming next. Before Weston was thought of, I didn’t quite get what all the hype was about. Sure, nieces and nephews were great, but it was just funny when their aunts and uncles got all mushy about how adorable and sweet and perfect they were. I mean, c’mon, it’s not like they’re actually that cute and certainly there are many other babies in the world that compare. And then Weston was…