The Minute

He said, "I didn't think I would get teary eyed."


"But the minute I held her I did."




Day two he said, "I got teary eyed again. Every time I hold her, I tear up."


As we closed our eyes tonight, Lolli prayed and gave thanks.

And Pops said (he said), "Life is changed forever."

Amen

Welcome to our world...


Mackenzie Lynne
02.27.10
7 lbs. 10 oz.
19-1/2"







Yes...life IS changed forever.



Amen

Lil' Miss M...it's almost time!

Lil' Miss M,

We are thinking that the time is near that we will get to meet you. Mommy is SOOO ready.



Another party was held in your honor this weekend, this one was hosted by Mommy's friends. They are a precious group, that love Mommy deeply - and you will be spoiled by all of them!



Nana was so gracious to be the host home...and everything was perfect!



Another beautiful cake



LOTS of precious gifts





Here is your first outfit that Lolli bought (Lolli - who may need a part time job to support her buying for Mackenzie habit). I can't wait to see you in it! It has the cutest little hat with a GREAT BIG flower...sugarpie...you should see all the bows that Lisa made for you! You are set!



And, the first thing I painted for your room...



(photo will enlarge if you click on it)

Mommy and Daddy picked out all the scripture to coordinate with each letter of your name. It was such a blessing and honor to do this for you (and Mommy & Daddy).

Perfect love sometimes does not come until grandchildren are born. Welsh Proverb



Endie and I spoke this morning, we are doing our best to be patient grandmothers. (I'm not sure either of your grandmothers received many of those "patience" blessings...) Mommy, Daddy and God are all taking really good care of you. We are all so lucky to have each other.

Lolli prays for your daily, I'm so ready for you to come out and play!

Little Valentine

Mackenzie, tomorrow is Valentine's Day. Lolli and Pops have invited the entire family over to celebrate with all our LOVEs and the February birthdays.

We will have a big old lunch after church. Lunch after church is a valued tradition of some "mature" Southern women , we look forward to when it is our turn. Whether the "tradition" of Sunday lunch began as a gaurantee to get your family to go to church together, or whether the family begged the Mom or Grandmother to cook - who cares, both are great ideas! It is something I have looked forward to all my life, and I'm glad it's finally my turn. The only thing that will make it better - when you and your brothers, sisters and cousins fill the house.

Wow...Sunday morning, church, lunch and everyone together...it will be a precious time for my heart.

"From the heart of a godly grandmother,
Living water flows...
Refreshing the lives of her family." Unknown

Your Mommy's birthday will be celebrated tomorrow, she asked for Mummy's strawberry cake, and she shall receive. That was one of Mummy's special gifts to the family - you got to pick out your cake and she would make it from one of her yummy recipes. Your Pops loves Mummy's strawberry cake, too, it may be his favorite!

As badly as we all want to hold you, I must admit it's a little unsettling to see your own children become parents. Where did the time go, in the blink of an eye, they were grown...









And I LOVE this one of Mommy with Grumps...the perfect Valentine photo.



Your Mommy is beautiful as a woman, but as a little girl, doesn't she just knock your socks off! And look at that charm...bet she could bat those big eyes and have the world at her fingertips.

We are all fairly confident you will have those same abilities. Yes, you undoubtedly will be precious - but I'll tell you right now, you've got a fairly easy group to control...we will be putty in your sweet little hands.

Life does teach us to treasure our time together.

Next month will be your birthday. And I have a feeling that this little family, as deeply as we love one another, have not a clue about the love to come. That Mackenzie kind of love...can't wait!

I've got to get busy making the cake now. Today, I'll be thinking about when we can bake together...we should get matching aprons!

Lolli and Pops love you sweet Mackenzie. We pray daily, God hears your name each day. The days are close when we can pray for you, as we hold you.

Cake, Tutus & Baby Shoes

Here I am...did you miss me?

We are getting so excited, you are growing SO fast...we are thinking we may get to see you a little early. We will be ready when you are!



Aunt Nicole and Uncle John threw a party in your honor. It was called a baby shower, and they really did a beautiful job. Look at them with Mommy and Daddy, and look at that beautiful diaper cake and the "real" cake!







You received LOTS of presents...





Mommy and Daddy opened them for you, with the assistance of your sweet cousin Aiden. She is going to LOVE you, she will feel like the big girl when you are born.







Twin brother Brayden was way more interested in Thomas the Train and coloring, than in pink tutus and precious shoes (BTW...a girl can NEVER have enough of either)!





Everyone is excited you are arriving soon.

I've got tons of photos from the shower, we'll look at them in a few years and Lolli will tell you all about it.

Auntie Nicole gave me a cute button that says "Future Grandma." I keep it attached to my purse, just in hopes that someone will ask me about it!

Mommy and Daddy gave me a precious book at the shower entitled "Words to Warm a Grandmother's Heart." I love it! It is full of sweet quotations and scripture, all about appreciating the blessing of grandchildren.

One of my favorite quotes comes from Amy Carmichael. I am unfamiliar with her works, but I do love these words...

"Let us give all that lies within us...to pure praise, to pure loving adoration and to worship from a grateful heart - a heart that is trained to look up."

And listen to these words from Gracie Faulkenberry (age 5).

"I love to open my door and see my Granny standing there. It's like opening up a gift from God."

Well Miss Mackenzie, let me tell you...I would like to borrow those words from Gracie, but the gift from God (the way I see it) is you.

I want you to know that I feel about you the way she feels about her Granny. I do think my heart skips a beat when I speak of you. I am going to do my best to never make God regret allowing me to be your Lolli.

I have so many examples of incredible grandmothers in my life, including your great-grandmother, Mummy. She has set the standards high, and we are all blessed for it.

I'll be back soon...we are going to look at your nursery together. It is precious, Mommy and Daddy have had great ideas and have done a beautiful job. You are just going to love it.

Until I return, remember Lolli loves and prays for you daily. This is one of my daily prayers...

"Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it." Proverbs 22:6

I love you little lady... ;p

LCBM (last Christmas before Mackenzie)

Mackenzie, Lolli and Pops have been really loving on friends and family during this Christmas holiday. Much like Thanksgiving, you were a popular topic of conversation. We, with everyone else, will love having you here NEXT Christmas! YIPPEE!

There is so much for us to talk about...remember I told you that Pops and I were going to practice with five little friends and a gingerbread party? We might have had more fun than the kids did...but look what we made!





We had so much fun, and can't wait until we get to make gingerbread houses with you and your (hopefully many) brothers, sisters and cousins!

Mommy and Daddy lovingly told everyone that anything for you would make a great Christmas present. BIG MISTAKE...they got very little...YOU got alot!

Lolli and Pops bought this (so you can come and stay here ALOT)...



Dad, Pops and Uncle John had to assemble it, and yes - they ultimately did have to refer to the directions (they HATE to do that you will learn).



Auntie Nicole went CRAZY and bought you some precious clothes, actually ALOT of precious clothes. Your Mommy may have had more fun unwrapping them than anything else she (ahem...you) got.



And Lolli won out where you were concerned as well...



Opening my first present...look what I (ahem WE) got!



Lolli got a bag for when we are together...look it says LOLLI! And, for some reason Mommy and Daddy also thought I would want this great photo clutch...wonder who they think I'll be carrying photos of ;p

And look what Pops gave us to create those photos...really big YIPPPEEE! (I "practiced" alot this Christmas...just ask anybody) ;p



Pops and I have this precious friend named Beverly...she is a grandmother extraordinaire! Look what she gave US!



And, I can keep adding all our other grandchildren as they come into our family...isn't it cute?

Auntie Nicole and Uncle John gave US a great book...LOOK, don't you love it?



And look inside...aren't the illustrations just beautiful? We will have fun learning how to play the games, sing the songs and learn the poems...it is a very special gift and I know your Auntie Nicole spent alot of time to choose the perfect book - it is one of my favorite things, for sure!



And speaking of learning games and singing songs, cousins Shelly and Gennie made this CD for all of us...can you imagine how much time they spent making this for our family? See how much you are going to be loved!



There are so many fun photos from our LCBM (Last Christmas Before Mackenzie), I can't possibly fit them in...so, I'll pick a couple of my favs...







All of us girls wore matching jammies and socks, and can't wait until next year when we get to all match with YOU! Although the manly MEN of the family wouldn't totally play the game, they did (because they love us so much) agree to this family pose. We plan on posing like this each year....it will be such a fun way to watch our family grow!

We did have a great LCBM, but Lolli wants to remind you that Christmas is really about a big birthday party to celebrate the birth of Jesus. It will be such a gift to teach you about Him...

God loves you so Mackenzie Lynne, and soooooo does Lolli! We're counting the days until you arrive.

P.S. Speaking of counting the days...you haven't even heard about Grumps & Endie's LCBM yet! You are one lucky little girl!

Storytime

Oh my, Mackenzie...look! It's the first "official" present Lolli and Pops have bought just for YOU. I know I should have hid it till Christmas...but I just can't wait!

One night, with the Christmas lights on the tree, the mantle looked warm and cozy...Lolli and Pops sat and talked about THE book that meant the most to us at Christmas time when we were children. Of course, our Bibles, the story of the birth of Baby Jesus is the most important book to all of us...

Another book that both of our families spent hours and hours and hours with was The Night Before Christmas.

The book we have for you is illustrated by Mary Englebriet, she is a very colorful, very happy artist that regardless of your age...she just makes you smile. I trust you will love her work, just as Lolli does. There are many artists, with many styles that makes Lolli smile...we'll just have to find the ones that make you smile! What a journey, what fun we will have...

So, Lolli and Pops will let Mommy and Daddy unwrap this book for you on this Christmas. I hope your Daddy will read the book to all of us on Christmas Evening.

As you hear your Daddy's voice read the story, I hope you are awake and can hear the magical tale. I would love it if you started kicking Mommy's tummy as you hear the story! But if you're taking a nap...no worries.

We'll just have visions of sugarplums...dreaming of holding you next year as we tell the same story.

God loves you Mackenzie, and so does Lolli.

Lolli and Pops Are Rehearsing

Mackenzie look at your Mommy! And look at you, you little sugar pie, you are just perfect and beginning to grow!



We've all been getting ready to celebrate Christmas. Every time Pops and I go shopping or get ready to decorate, we find something we want for you, everything makes us think of you and how special next Christmas will be! Fun, fun, fun, fun, fun and full of lovin'!

This week Pops and I are going to "practice". I'm pretty sure we won't need too much training to be your grandparents, but practice makes perfect. Lolli and Pops have invited five little friends over to make gingerbread houses and drink hot chocolate with marshmallows. I'll send you some pictures later. We are excited, everyone is wearing their Christmas pajamas, we're taking pictures, reading Christmas stories and singing Christmas songs. Can't wait sweetie till we can do that with you!

And you only deserve the very best grandparents in the whole wide world. Grumps and Endie already are in good shape, they have "practiced" with your cousins Aiden and Brayden...you are gonna love them, and they are gonna love you! There are so many people angel that can't wait for your arrival.

Some of those people are Lolli's friends, because I am driving them nuts! They know more about you than they might care to know, oh well...can't help it! Actually, I haven't even made an effort. I've waited a lifetime for you!

Auntie Nicole is getting excited for you, too! She is planning a very special party next month in your honor. At this "shower" you will receive many things that will be frilly, cute, beautiful, sentimental and uncomfortable. Yes, Mackenzie, being a girl requires discomfort occasionally, but it is usually so worth it. Bows, shoes, tights...ultimately you may grow to love them, because they make us all look OOHHH so beautiful.

Oh, and someone else wants to say hello before we go.



This is Gracie, she is part of the family...she is kind, big, gentle and will take good care of you when you are at Lolli and Pops'.

God loves you Mackenzie, Lolli prays for you everyday, you are perfect in His eyes and mine. I'll be back soon, going to go now to get ready for our five little friends. Next year, we'll hold you and tell you all about Christmas...the best gift we will ever receive.