Horsing Around

Yesterday, Levi, Nora and I went up to Edmond and made an unplanned trip to "the barn" where Sharie, Levi's mom, regularly volunteers. We'd heard a lot about the Equine Therapy Center, and it was great to finally see it.  

They're doing some awesome work with several different groups: kids with special needs, women with addictions, senior citizens, etc. I heard many uplifting stories, but one of the ones that stuck with me was about a 5-year-old autistic boy who didn't talk when he first started riding. Now, not only does he talk, but his whole body relaxes when he spends time on Silk (the horse I got to ride). It's been a life-changing experience for him. 

That's what these horses are doing for people - changing their lives. There are many ways you can help this organization, so I invite you to check out their how you can help page. They're planning to have an open house on Nov. 2nd if you're interested in learning more.

Here are some pictures from our time at ETC:

Nora loved checking out the mini horses and just stared and stared.

Feeling the horse hair on her legs

This is Sophie, Sharie's favorite horse

I got to ride a horse! This was my first time and something I get to cross off the bucket list!

We all had a great time at the barn and look forward to going back!

Fish Tacos

I'm always on the lookout for easy recipes that taste delicious, and I recently made one up on the fly that turned out great: fish tacos! I ran across this seasoning mix at Target the other day on the taco aisle:

It makes it so easy to make the perfect fish tacos! Simply sprinkle the seasoning mix over your fish fillets (I used frozen tilapia) and cook as desired (I baked according to the package directions). 

While the fish is cooking, whip up this sauce: http://unwindcooking.com/2012/10/30/chili-lime-aioli-sauce/

When the fish is finished, flake it apart into small pieces and load up your tacos however you like! We used corn tortillas, shredded Mexican-style cheese, lime juice, cilantro and the aioli sauce. We also made a box of Target's Market Pantry cilantro lime rice to go with the tacos. YUM!

4 months

Nora is 4 months old today! Her biggest developments in the last month have been gaining lots of weight and becoming more animated and full of smiles! She is such a happy, busy baby and loves to coo and kick. 

She can hardly sit still through a feeding, so I'm looking forward to the day we can lose the bottle and move to solids (which I know will be awhile from now!). She is a great sleeper and sleeps for 12 hours at night! I hardly know what to do with myself when she doesn't wake up until 9:30 am, but I'm sure not complaining!

Levi and I fall more in love with this little girl every day, and we feel so blessed that God has given us sweet Nora.

God Answers Prayers

Several months ago, I wrote about our search for a new church home. I'll cut to the chase and tell you that we've committed to attending (and joining - next month!) City Presbyterian, but it wasn't until last Sunday that I realized just how completely God had answered our prayers.

Last weekend at church we met a couple who was visiting and is in much the same place we were when we were church "shopping" (read my last post to see why that's in quotation marks). They're going to have a baby any day now and just haven't found a church where they fit. You see, when Levi and I were looking for a church, I was pregnant, too. For some reason (no accident on God's part, I'm sure), these types of big life changes make you long for the support of Christian fellowship and, without a church home, we felt lost.

After visiting several churches leading up to Nora's arrival, we hadn't officially settled on one when she came seven weeks early. Without hesitation, our friends at City Pres organized their City Group to provide meals for us while Nora was in the NICU and again after she came home. This was a great blessing to us and, along with others who were gracious to provide us meals, we didn't have to cook for five whole weeks.

The fact that God provided for us so abundantly through City Pres (and many of the people who brought us food were complete strangers at the time!) made it clear to us that this is where He would have us.

As I encouraged our new friends with this story last Sunday, the words materialized in my mind what had previously only been an unformed thought: God had been incredibly faithful to answer our prayers for a church home. I'm thankful for a God who answers prayers, and I hope he's quick to answer our new friends' prayers, too.

Our LITTLE girl

When Nora was in the NICU, one of our favorite nurses, Ann, always commented about how strong Nora was. At 3 lbs. 9 oz., it was impressive that she didn't ever need oxygen and her incubator was set on the lowest temperature almost from the beginning. 

Ann was so proud of Nora that she even gave her a nickname: Sasha Fierce. I'm embarrassed to say that Levi and I had to Google it to find out it's Beyonce's stage name/alter ego. 

It was really special to have nurses who loved our baby girl well while she had to be away from us, and Ann was one of those nurses. We appreciated her interest in how Nora was doing and it was endearing that she gave her a nickname. 

There is a quote that is somewhat popular online, especially on sites like Etsy, from William Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream that talks about a girl being little and fierce and, while most people like to put it in their baby girl's room as just a cute decoration, I recently framed it as a reminder of how far Nora has come.

May the Lord bless her and keep her as she continues to grow into a strong, young woman.

3 months

Nora is 3 months old! She seems like such a big girl to us, though she is just now over 9 lbs. and - bonus! - her head is finally big enough to wear headband bows. She is starting to smile, squeal and make noises. She loves to lay on the floor and kick and look around. We think she will definitely be a thumb-sucker if she ever un-fists her little hands! Right now she just sucks on the whole fist, and oh man can she slurp! 

She is starting to have more of a sleep schedule and will sleep for 5-7 hour stretches at night (which is wonderful!) with about 3 naps during the day. Overall she is a very happy baby and each day with her is more fun than the last!

Beach Vacation

Nora and I just got back from a two-week beach vacation in S. Padre. We went with my family to visit my grandmother who lives there and we also saw my aunt! Levi joined us for the last few days, and we all had a great time!

This trip included a lot of firsts for Nora. She went on her first road trip, visited the beach for the first time and had her first plane ride. She loved all of it! She is definitely a traveling baby, which I attribute to being a Wilkins. 

Nora also started to smile and discover her voice on this trip, which was so fun. I loved hearing her little squeals while she laid on the couch and kicked.

Here are some pics from the trip:

It was a great trip, and we're looking forward to many more family vacations!