He's got the whole world in His hands.

This is a very special day in Miss Sophia's life.  We have chosen to have her dedicated at our church, Montgomery Community Church.  To dedicate Sophia, means that as parents, Dan and I dedicate that we will teach Sophia about Jesus.  Because she is too little to have her own faith yet, we dedicate her and promise to raise  her in a Christ-like way, so that one day, when she is old enough, she can choose to accept Jesus into her heart and become a Christian! 

Pastor Tom Lipsey dedicating Sophia.

Our niece Megan has recently done so... and she has newly discovered that asking Jesus to be in her heart means that she's a "Christian," and oh how proud she is of this fact!  I look at Megan and see a beautiful little girl who loves Jesus with ALL of her heart, with such an innocent and undoubting faith.  It reminds me that we all should live our lives with this type of faith.  And it is, absolutely, the way that I want Sophia to grow up... to know and love the Lord every day, with all that she is.  So thank you Megan, for being such a great big cousin and role model for Sophia to look up to one day!

Here are a few pictures from the special occasion!

Prayers for our family!

Sophia's Dedication Day
September 18, 2011

The day was filled with joy as most of Sophia's family traveled to watch us take this big step as a family.  Mamaw and Papaw Best came and brought special sugar cookies for the occasion. 

And Grandpa and Grandma Young were there with perfect cupcakes to finish off the event. 

Uncle Matt, Aunt Shell and the kiddos wouldn't have missed this special day, as well as Uncle Lee and Aunt Bonnie. 

Aunt Gigi and Mindy made the long trip to join us at church.  Uncle Jim, Aunt Morgan and Airiana also made the early trip to help us celebrate. 

My cousin, Ellice joined us for this special day and our friend Marisa took time out of her day to help us enjoy this memorable milestone.

 We are so blessed to have such a wonderful family, church family and friends to help support us as we raise Sophia.  As Pastor Tom said...we will definitely need help!  Thank you so much to all of our friends and family who joined us.  We are so grateful for your presence and support.  I am just so blown away by how wonderful it is to be a parent and to have this most precious gift.  Sophia has most definitely changed our lives and I am so excited to share in so many new adventures with our beautiful baby girl!

Can I slow down time?!

1 month, 2 months, 3 months, and 4.  Oh my goodness, I can't believe my princess is 4 months old.  Dr. Habel gives a great report for this month's well check...weight, height, development and motor skills are all right on track for my big girl.  She officially weighs in at 13 pounds, 14 ounces and continuing to grow like a weed, measures 24 inches long.  Sophia is pulling herself into sitting (mastering the baby sit up), pushing herself up onto her arms while on her belly (she's great at push ups), smiles ALL the time, loves to stand up and has now rolled from her belly to her back! 

I have discovered...I have a tongue!

She is very close to rolling from her back to belly, but hasn't quite mastered the head turns and movement of her arms yet.  But I'm sure it will be happening soon enough.  And time is certainly not slowing down any time in the near future, so I will continue to enjoy all the new things that are happening in the Young house.


This month we traveled home to Indian Lake again and got to spend time with some very special people.  We love seeing Mamaw and Papaw Best, and Grandma and Grandpa Young, along with all of our little cousins!  The Young House was busy with all the little ones running around, and I'm afraid someday soon, Sophia will be old enough to join in the fun.  But for now, we took a quick moment to enjoy our family and capture such a beautiful day!

And Sophia met her Great Grandma Wilma Young.  It was so amazing to see four Young generations gathered together enjoying our little princess!  She totally captivates our lives and now I see how she captivates everyone around her!  She is such a special little girl and I just know that one day, she will do such special things!

Four Young Generations: Great Grandma Wilma, Grandpa Mike, Daddy and Sophia!

Great Grandma Wilma and Sophia

If I could keep you little...

How do the days pass by so quickly?  Sophia is officially 3 months old and continuing to grow like an adorable little weed.  No well check up this month, so we aren't sure exactly how big she is in pounds and inches, but we can certainly tell by her actions that she is beginning to grow up.  She is so much more alert and seems to be soaking in every little detail of her day.  Her eyes can just pierce right into my heart and melt away any stress I may have been dealing with.  She is enjoying tummy time more these days...(well sometimes)...

and beginning to sit up like a big girl in her Bumbo seat.  She is definitely not content laying quietly anymore, she is constantly trying to sit herself up and view the world.  We love to see her begin to reach for things and discover that she can hold and play with her toys!  It is certainly very fun to see her learn how to be a big girl, but I still wish I could keep her little.

We LOVE the Bumbo seat!  She is so happy seeing the world!

Thanks to Aunt Shell for the Jumperoo!

And not to mention bath time is much more fun these days.  She splashes Mommy and Daddy the entire time, but hates getting her hair washed already!  I foresee many bath time arguments in our future if this trait continues! 

She is even becoming so big, that she gets to stay home with Mamaw Best and Bev (our new babysitter) while Mommy goes back to work.  Good for Sophia...very bad for Mommy.  Sophia has adjusted quite well to the new caregivers, but Mommy is still working on not needing waterproof mascara every day!  I'm sure it will never get easier to leave my little sweetheart, but hopefully the adjustment will become more routine.  Thanks to everyone for the thoughts and prayers to help make my first few weeks a little more tolerable. 

Brown Bear, Brown Bear...what do you see?

Summer fun has officially begun with a surprise trip to the Cincinnati Zoo.  Uncle Jimmy, Aunt Morgan  and Airiana made the long trip to enjoy the zoo and called Sophia to see if she would like to tag along.  Of course, Mommy jumped at the chance...she's been wanting to go to the zoo all summer.  So we packed up the cooler and hit the road.  Sophia isn't quite old enough to appreciate all the joys of the animals, but she surely is an outdoor girl.  She loves feeling the wind, hearing the birds chirping and Mommy and Daddy love to see her experience new things. 

Daddy and Sophia looking at the elephants!

Airiana fed the giraffes, so we got to see them up close and personal!



Big girl's first day at the zoo! 





Mommy & Sophia by the polar bear!


It definitely was a very HOT day, but we all enjoyed some great quality time as a family.  Sophia's first trip to the zoo was certainly a success.

Our family!

Happy Birthday, America!

And we're off again!  The 4th of July around Indian Lake is a pretty big deal...lots of good weather, boating, fireworks, family cookouts and smores!  So again, we packed up the car, (even more stuff this time) and headed north.  This trip had an extra special reason for planning...Sophia was going to get to meet some of our favorite people, Phil and Amanda!  We had a great weekend catching up and enjoyed all things Sophia!

Sophia had a great time at the Lake this weekend.  It's amazing how much more animated and alert she is after just a few short weeks.  She thoroughly enjoyed the new friends, the sunshine, and being outdoors.  And of course we had to show off some of our festive outfits! 

What a big girl!

Nap time in the Pack n Play outside...she loved the fresh air!

She was all smiles the entire weekend!

Sophia's First Fourth of July

Thanks to Phil and Amanda for making the trip to meet our little one and thanks to Mamaw and Papaw Best for hosting the entire fun weekend.  We all had a great time and hope to do it a few more times before summer's end!  And of course, let's not forget the reason for the festive weekend...Happy Birthday America!

Good Night, Red Sun...Hello Stars

We have entered the world of sleep training!  Or are attempting sleep training any way!  At night, Sophia sleeps great...giving Mommy and Daddy a big stretch of around 5-6 hours at a time.  Nap time, however, is a different story.  I have read thousands of websites, articles, and tried to listen to other moms' advice and all suggest establishing a "routine" for bedtime and nap time.  So...our routine beings with a clean diaper and cozy pajamas.  Then we get our favorite pink bear blanket to snuggle with, then we give nigh-night kisses to Daddy and Mommy.  Mommy reads "The Going to Bed Book," then sings a little song and Sophia lays down in her crib just before she drifts off to sleep!  Like I said at night, the routine works perfectly.  Or if she's being held in our arms...nap time is a piece of cake, as evidenced below!

And then here is a picture of how nap time goes!

She looks real sleepy doesn't she?!  I guess we will have to just keep trying!

Happy Father's Day!

We packed up the car and hit the road for Indian Lake!  And when I say "packed" the car...I mean OVERPACKED!  We had everything but the kitchen sink for just an overnight trip...but who cares, right?  That's why we bought an SUV!:)  Anyway, we got to spend some great quality time with Grandma and Grandpa Young on Saturday, along with Aunt Amy, Brady and Maddie! 

And I had lots of help completing our highly secret mission...get Daddy's father's day present to Indian Lake without him knowing.  It took a lot of people and a lot of work, but we did it!  Thanks to everyone who helped pull it off!  He was so suprised and I'm pretty sure excited!  He's been wanting these for a long time!  Here's a few pics of his presents...let's see which one you think he was excited about most?!

Recordable Story Book for Daddy to read to Sophia



New Golf Irons!  The picture isn't showing all of them...but I promise they are all there!



Picture frame with Sophia's footprints from Paint N Play

Then on Sunday, we spent the day at the Lake with Mamaw and Papaw Best and the Miranda crew!  The weather wasn't great, but the rain held out for a quick boat ride over to the "Tilton Hilton," (the most disgusting restaurant on the Lake that serves the BEST burgers), a little bit of fishing, a few jet ski rides and snuggle time outside with Daddy!  Sophia is a bit too small to partake in the fishing and jet ski rides but she did enjoy her first boat ride! 

Thanks to all of the wonderful men in our family...you are all truly appreciated.  We hope Daddy enjoyed his first Father's Day too!