Stephen on Loving Jesus

Stephen and I were reading books last night before bed, and as usual we read a Bible story. This one was about the woman that washed Jesus' feet with her hair. Stephen asked for another story about Jesus, the one "about the cross." His picture Bible has several pages about the crucifixion, so we looked through those and I summarized each page. At the end, where Jesus is resurrected and talking to the women outside the tomb, Stephen pointed out Jesus' scars "from the cross." We talked about how Jesus died to forgive sins (and what sin is, etc.). Stephen thought for a few seconds and said "I love Jesus!"

Now THAT warmed this dad's heart!

Again, it isn't just this one reading that brought this response - it's the constant attempts to teach Stephen that lead to a point like that.

The "rest of the story" is that I was tired last night and wasn't sure I felt up to doing the "put Stephen to bed" routine. In fact, I wasn't sure I wanted to read one more story, but I'm glad I did.

4-month-old Lydia

Lydia just turned 4 months old - she weighs 14 lbs 7 oz and is 26 inches long - growing girl! I haven't been as diligent with tummy time as I was with Stephen, so she hasn't rolled over yet or propped up much on her forearms. She is quite "talkative" and starting to show a little stranger anxiety, but not too much. Lydia is also showing lots of interest in foods and sitting with us as we eat. I forgot how quickly babies go from one stage to the next!

We were in Greenville this past weekend and had Lydia's first professional pictures taken. Stephen did as well - he really got into it!

Stephen On Faith

One of those great conversations with Stephen happened last night. Our Bible story was about how Jesus walked on water and how Peter walked out to him but didn’t trust him the whole time. We talked a little about faith and I told Stephen that the Bible says that if we even have a little bit of faith we can make a mountain move. Stephen thought about this for a little and then said:

“Can I have a little bit of faith?”

I tried hard not to laugh – I’m pretty sure Stephen thinks being able to move a mountain would be a great thing to be able to do. We then talked about what faith is and what that verse about moving mountains means (trusting God and being aligned with His will).

I wonder how much of this stuck with him in some way – I just have to remember that teaching him truth is continuous, not discrete (yup, I’m an engineer). That is, it is the whole life of teaching, not one single event, that will make a difference.

We did pray for more faith last night.

Still Alive

Yes we are still around. An update on us:

• Lydia is growing! She smiles, coos, squeals, and easily holds her head up.
• Stephen is still having a great time at pre-school. Potty training is...progressing
• Kristy is well and glad to be back at work
• I'm good - I have a new administrative assistant who is VERY technically competent, so she's taken quite a bit of everyday work off me so I can work on the bigger picture things
• I went to New Orleans for a conference a few days after Mardi Gras. The conference was good - I'm not sure I can recommend the city unless you like to drink. A lot. I like spiritous beverages, but not that much. Still, the food was...wow. REALLY wow. (Biggest disappointment - not having enough time in the Houston airport to stop and get a Shipley's doughnut)
  
• Stephen started Kindermusic. He goes once a week and has very much enjoyed it. I'm continually surprised at how good his pitch is (for a 3 year old) when we sing. I hope he got the best of our musical genes
• Our search committee found a pastor and he's accepted the call. Yay! I get my Sunday afternoons back!! The committee worked well and I look forward to having our new pastor minister with and to us.
  

Oh, and Lydia knows how to work her daddy. A few days ago Kristy was holding her in the kitchen and I walked up to her to look at Lydia. I held my hands out to her as if to take her and Lydia started jerking in my direction. Ahhh - she warmed this dad's heart! Of course she was indicating that she wanted to come to me.

A (not so) typical evening at the Nickles' house

10:00 pm - Lee goes to bed while Kristy stays up with Lydia for a while

12:15 am - The power goes out, just as Kristy was about to give Lydia her medication (no, Kristy had not been to bed yet). Kristy decides to try to wake up Lee rather than feel her way around in the dark holding an infant.

12:17 am - She succeeds.

12:20 am - Lee finds the flashlight.

12:25 am - Stephen wakes up

12:50 am - Everyone is in bed somewhere in the house

1:30 am - The power (and a number of lights and electrical devices) come back on - only mommy and daddy notice

4:00 am (or so) - Stephen comes in mommy and daddy's room and needs a "visit"

4:15 am (or so) - Lee gets back to bed from Stephen's room

6:50 am - Lydia announces to the household that she is ready for breakfast

I just have to say it: I love my family dearly. I'm thankful to be able to laugh at all this now - I was too sleepy to do so last night!

Recent Stephen funnies

Here are some funny things Stephen has said over the past couple of weeks:

• We did that miles and miles ago...

• While pretending to make cookies - "We need 2 cups of salt and 1 cup of cinnamon."

• Either Lee or me: "Stephen, why did you do X?"
• Stephen: "Because I did X."