Harper's new skill

That would be putting weird things in her mouth.  I know kids like to put everything in their mouths, so this could be one of those "look at my first child doing totally normal things that I think are so weird!" But here are some the extraordinary things she has "tested."

5. Rubber balls.  No matter the size, she tries to stuff it in her mouth.  She obviously found one that fits.

4. Paper.  Not that weird, but she doesn't swallow it.  She chews on it like gum. And gets mad when I take it out of her mouth.

3. Other people's fingers.  Anyone and everyone. Even if she has never seen you before, she wants to put your fingers in her mouth. It sort of makes sense to me, but I'm sure other people find it a little unnerving.

2. My coffee cup. She will sometimes want other cups, but she always wants my coffee cup.  This might be one of the early warning signs of a coffee addict (and the fact that caffeine doesn't really affect her...), but I think it's pretty cute.  So what if I'm an enabler.

1. Strings from Ruby's toys.  Ruby (our dog, in case I'm moving too fast for you) destroys any toy we give her.  She got a rope toy and likes to rip it up and leave the strings everywhere.  Harper then finds said strings and chews on them (kind of like the paper...). So we've gotten rid of Ruby's toys. Hopefully she sees it as a sacrifice of love.

Normal? Probably. Will I make fun of her for it anyway? Definitely.

Abigail

We are the change.

This weekend our family had the privilege of supporting Tigers Against Trafficking, and the end of human trafficking, by running in their annual 5k.
Or if you accidentally took a shortcut, it was about a 4k. And when I say running, I mean Jake ran and I walked and Harper just strolled...
But my point is that we loved being a part of this incredible cause. If you don't know, here are some quick facts on human trafficking:


-$ 32 billion dollars: estimated gross profit of the world’s fastest growing criminal industry (UN)


-27 million: number of people the UN estimates are enslaved right now.

-2 million: number of children enslaved (UNICEF)

-Over 17,500 victims are trafficked in the U.S. annually and approximately 33% are American citizens. The full scope of the problem has yet to be determined, as the crime of human trafficking is often intertwined with drug trafficking and prostitution.

-Trafficking in the U.S. often occurs in street prostitution, massage parlors, and brothels, and for labor in domestic service, agriculture, manufacturing, janitorial services, hospitality industries, construction, health and elder care, and strip club dancing. U.S. citizen victims, both adults and children, are predominantly found in sex trafficking; U.S. citizen child victims are often runaways, troubled, and homeless youth. Foreign victims are more often found in labor trafficking than sex trafficking.

(sources: www.unboundnow.org and www.thea21campaign.org)

This is a real problem and it is time for us to be a voice for those who are enslaved. We can be the change. If you are stirred by this, then check out the organizations I've cited and do whatever you can, wherever you are. That's what we did on Saturday. Here are some snapshots of an abolitionist family:

There are quite a few of our college students who are in leadership and volunteer with this student organization. It was so fun watching them not only raise awareness for this issue but also $12,000 for the A21 Campaign. Bridget, Genn, Amanda, Mary, Roz, Katie, Lauren, Cydni, Gabe, TJ, Jonathan, Michael, Guey, Sam, Bear, Connor, and Eva we are so proud of you!






Abigail

You looking for me?

I was that flash you saw running to get leaves and strings and paper out of my child's mouth. Why doesn't anyone tell you that 10 month olds are actually the fastest people on the planet? They should have an event at the Olympics.

But since you were looking, here's what we've been up to lately:

-We've been watching The Biggest Loser with our roomie Katie.  We do a circuit workout during the commercials and it kicks my tail. Basically, we do some sort of calisthenics for 30 seconds in cycles of 3. We laugh a lot, but I feel the burn...  And people who know, cheer for Danni! She's our favorite!

-Harper is a crawling machine. She was slow to start this season, and for that I am thankful. She loves getting trying to get into the fireplace and finding every piece of dirt my broom missed.  

-Our Antioch tank made the LSU edition of the Harlem Shake phenomenon. Watch the dancer on the right very closely...

-Our church is growing! We now have (almost) 6 lifegroups. Well, technically 5, but there are three world-changing high schoolers discussing their lifegroup launch in my living room as we speak. Mobile church is the way we roll (literally), meeting mostly in hotels and setting up and tearing down each week.  So far we haven't lost anyone along the way, so that's something! 

By the way, we send out monthly e-mail updates. Some of you already get them, but if you do not and you want to hear more about our blossoming church, go here and sign up. Or whatever you want to do...

Until next time,  

Fast Forward

10 months ago....

today (ish...)

How does this happen so fast???