Julia got to help Aunt Jami with her new baby Bella yesterday. She was over the moon when she got home, she loves babies, A LOT. Especially beautiful babies with full heads of hair who are only 2 weeks old, how amazing is that!?! She goes back today for more baby holding and Ava-playing. Being a cousin is the best.

Brandon's sister, Jami, delivered the most amazingly beautiful little girl on Friday.

Bella Marie was born weighing 9 lbs. 13 oz. and measuring 21 inches long with a whole ton of thick beautiful dark hair. She looks just like her big sister Ava.

Speaking of Ava, I love the photos Brandon caught of her meeting her baby sister for the very first time. And of course her Daddy cuddling her for the first time, and cousin Julia loving on her for the first time, the list goes on. They're all great shots mostly because new babies are the BEST.

The first baby in what promises to be the Year of Babies has arrived! Leisel Jane, my newest niece, spent a good long cuddle in my arms today and it was marvelous. When your kids get big and learn to wipe their own... noses... you forget what it felt like to hold all of them up in the crook of your arm. Leisel was happy to oblige my need to remember that sweet feeling, I like her already. See more pics HERE.

Julia will be a very good mama someday. She has a heart for babies, baby dolls, and tiny things that she can pretend are babies in the absence of one of the above. When Jodi's little Sophia was at our house this week Julia sat...and sat...and sat rocking her and singing her "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star". She kept admiring her little fingers, and giving her kisses, then more admiring. She also asked if she could feed her or walk around with her, its only a matter of time before this kid has her own nanny service!

nothing really compares to a brand-spankin'-new-baby

x

Congratulations to our good friends Jodi and Matt!!!

x It seems like my sweet niece was just born (remember this?)
And now she's turning ONE!
See more great photos by B here.

Total cuteness.
Welcome to the world Olive Mae
and congrats to Ross and Kate!
see more cuteness on Ross's blog here

I got an email that startled me - the baby had come early for a good friend of mine. Five weeks early. I'd never visited a premie before, and when I commented about how cute his little 'kitten' sounds were the nurse told me that was not cute, it meant he was struggling to breath...my bad (it really sounded precious, and boy did I feel bad). I am so amazed by modern medicine, but I am amazed even more at the beautiful humans God creates in such a short time, 35 short weeks created this amazing little boy. And all are well.

welcome to the world sweet girl
[see all the photos here]

This is Lacy (and adorable Cora, I think I've mentioned her before), she thinks you should blog and she has some good points for why. And I have to agree, if you don't blog - give it some thought. As I scroll back over the last year, I see that I have successfuly made our life look much more exciting than it seems to be in my memory. I just wonder what the first 25 years might have looked like had I been given a PC and an early version of Blogger {we're talking Oregon Trail early}!