Tornado Relief Effort

Most people in Alabama have had one thing on their mind in the last week...How can we help?  We hurt for those who hurt and want desperately to help pick up the pieces of so many lives.  I know Joe and I have struggled with what we can do, as have many we have talked to.  While there are several ways to volunteer and get involved I keep hearing how many donations and PRAYER that the victims and those serving are needing right now!

A friend reminded me of this great truth and Joe and I have committed to praying fervently for those involved with the Tornado Relief Effort.  

However, there are several material needs out there!!  One organization that is keeping everyone up to date with donation needs is Christian Service Mission.  If you have Facebook or Twitter, find them and follow them!  Then, if you are able to, go grab a few items and take them down to the Mission!  No amount is too small.  I keep getting hit with the fact that their "needs" are the small things that I take advantage of.  I don't question needing deodorant, or kleenex, or diapers and food for Larkin.  Yet SO many have been left without these basic necessities.

Another site that is sharing relief info is a new blog created for MBCC Missions!  So many of our dear friends at church have wondered how they could know more about the missionaries (both global and local) that our church supports.  Our Mission Pastor and many others have been working hard to figure out the best ways to educate our church and community on Global and Local Missions opportunities.  So here it is....(drumroll please)....

Mountain Brook Community Church Mission Blog

Go check it out, link it to your blog, and share with others!

Life as we know it

The Denson house has been crazy the last couple of weeks and even months!  With Joe winding down "busy season", me working 3 part-time jobs (which at times seem to equal a full time job), and us keeping up with our growing and very busy little man, life has seemed quite chaotic.  We are hoping that May will bring some relaxation and time to catch up with each other and with some much needed household TLC!  We are transitioning our guest room into a study (AKA Joe's Man-cave, where he says he can go to read while I'm watching my "trash" shows).  We also have several other little projects we would like to get to before maybe putting our house back on the market.  Let us know if you know of anyone looking for a good deal in Homewood!!

As far as Larkin, WE LOVE HIM!!!  He's so cute and fun right now.  He's still blabbing about "Dada" all the time but I've come to know that it's really his term of endearment for ME!  Or I like to think so. :)  He is also wanting so badly to move, but hasn't taken that first move towards crawling quite yet.  When I pull him to a crawl position from sitting, he immediately straightens up into standing...who knows, maybe he'll skip crawling all together...Fine by me!

Larkin has also started enjoying more foods, even some solids as he now has 6 teeth!  He's loving blueberries and bananas!  He also is eating just about any vegetable and fruit in baby foods.  He LOVES anything!  I haven't given him meat because it grosses me out, but we'll get there. :)

He is very "verbal" and squawks, blabs, and giggles all the time.  I think it's adorable until we're in public and I realize he's probably really driving everyone else crazy!  He also has this grunt that he uses when he is not getting his way.  Supposedly he gets that from me....

Here are a few pictures from the last few weeks and even months.  My mom just took some great ones so those will be coming soon!

He already has great dental hygiene!

 An example of his "always on the move" personality!

We deal with this on the changing table often!

And then it's followed by this sweet grin.

Larkin loves the park!

Joe does too. :)

 Swinging, wearing Dada's hat, feeling pretty cool at the playground.

Just kickin' back and watching "PraiseBaby"

 Larkin still LOVES the Johnny Jump-up!  And we still crack up every time he jumps.

Sweet Little Larkin - 8 month pictures

We recently had Larkin's 8-month pictures made by Ann Wade Parrish.  As usual, she did an amazing job!  Joe wasn't able to come with us so the photo shoot was just me and little man.  It was a lot of fun, however, I definitely made an idiot of myself as I jumped, jived, and wailed to get Larkin to SMILE!  He was so enamored with everything around us including the geese that walked around Aldridge Gardens that he couldn't care less about us trying to capture his precious moments.  It probably didn't help either that I turned my back on him and he fell and scraped his nose!

Needless to say, Ann Wade still got some great pictures of Larkin!  You can get a sneak peek of the pics on her blog.  Enjoy!

 ** New Post Below**

Helping friends PLUS an adorable gift

Isn't it great when you find something that is not only a great purchase, but also helps support a great cause??

Well, I have one of those items to share!  Our sweet friends Scott and Kelley Brown are in the process of adopting a daughter from China.  They hope to travel to China in about 3 months to bring home Caroline!  They are participating in a fundraiser called (Cover)ed that sells adorable towels, great for bath time or the beach!

I have copied Kelley's post from her blog.  Please consider purchasing one of these adorable towels to help support the Brown's journey to meet their sweet daughter, Caroline!

We're gearing up (and saving up) to travel to China in about 3 months to adopt and bring home 12-year-old Caroline LiYun. After much prayer and consideration, we've decided to bring Carter and Grace with us...mainly because the experiences of other families who've left adopted children at home for a subsequent adoption had year-long setbacks. And given that this is our 2nd adoption in less than 13 months, we've decided that doing a few fundraisers would be incredibly helpful. So we're asking you to consider helping us out by...SHOPPING! :) I mean, do you need a better excuse to shop than this beautiful face??? In just a few months, she will go from "orphan" to "beloved daughter."

So, I'm thrilled to introduce our first fundraiser! We are partnering with (Cover)ed to sell custom hooded towels for kids!

Each towel is 54x30 inches, with the attached hood measuring 10 1/2 inches long and 15 inches wide. They are great for snuggling infants but are also large enough for toddlers and big kids. The towels come in a variety of colors and personalization options.

Each towel is $25.

Our family will receive over 50% of each towel sold to go toward our adoption!

If you'd like to purchase a towel, you can email me at kelley.b.brown@gmail.com. Please put (Cover)ed in the subject line. You can also leave a comment on this post with your contact information. Please pay with cash or check. If another payment method is needed, let me know and we'll see what we can do.

To see all the different color and design options that are available for purchase, please click here.

When ordering, please include towel color, design color and initial color (if needed). The end date of my sale is Monday, April 4th. Towels will be ready 3 weeks from that date. However, if you need for Easter, let me know when ordering. If you live in Bham, there won't be any shipping. I'll get them to you. If you live outside of the Birmingham area, please include $2.00 if ordering one towel and $3.00 if ordering two or more towels. Also, if you live in the Birmingham area and would like to see a sample towel, just let me know.

PLEASE pass the link to this fundraiser on to everyone you know! Share it on blogs, FB, forums and anywhere else that you can. I am praying that we can place a HUGE order on April 4th!

And to kick off the sale, I'm doing a GIVEAWAY!! Leave a comment, and you'll get your name in once for the drawing. The prize is a FREE towel of your choice. Pass this blog link along to friends and have them mention your name in their comment, and they'll get their name in once plus you'll get another entry. And so on. I'll draw a name on April 4th. We so appreciate you spreading the word and helping us promote this fundraising event!

Finally, please go and take a look at the (Cover)ed website. This is a new ministry being done by two ladies right here in Alabama who have a heart for orphans and the call to care for orphans. Many lives are being blessed by their talents and passion!

Larkin Lately - 6 months

Once again I have fallen behind with blogging!  And once again my disclaimer is that I enjoy every moment with Larkin and hardly have time to sit down to blog.  When he's napping, I clean or read or catch up on watching some of my not-so-kid-friendly TV shows.  However, today I felt the need to update you all on the latest "Larkin Moments":

Larkin is continuing to be SO MUCH FUN!  He has such a cute personality that is really starting to come out through his "words".  He has been babbling and squawking for a while now but recently started forming what we're considering his first words...Da Da!  I tried to deny it but he says it all the time so it's now being documented as his first words.  Joe loves it of course and I'm beginning too.  I was somewhat disappointed with the first words of "Da Da" because I had made up a song about "Mama" and now I'm seeing my efforts were futile.  However, I am loving seeing the looks on Joe's and Larkin's faces when he says DaDa.

Larkin has been rolling over for a few months now, yet each time he still looks up for some affirmation.  I usually cheer for him and wait for the adorable grin that he is so famous for!  It will never get old!  He does the same thing with his "jumper" and "exersaucer".  He loves to perform and usually looks for some sort of acknowledgement that we are watching his tricks.

As for sleeping, he is finally starting to get on a napping schedule and continues to sleep pretty well at night.  We are very thankful for that!

Lastly, Larkin has his 2 lower teeth with another on it's way (this one is giving him a fit).  I love seeing his little teeth through his grin, but it's starting to make him look more like a little boy than my little baby. :(  I sometimes want time to stop so that I can keep this precious little 6 month old forever!  I know they say every phase is the best and I'm sure I'll say it too, but I LOVE THIS ONE!

Enjoy the pictures!

Official 6 month picture!

Playing in the snow.  Larkin did not like the cold!

Yum!  That is not BBQ ribs...it's prunes.  He loves them!

Playing on his mat, trying to eat the bird.

Watching Praise Baby

JUMPING!!

Laughing at mommy...He makes me feel like I'm the funniest person in the world! :)

Doesn't this melt your heart?  :)

New Adventures

Larkin has gotten very active and we are loving the new adventures of each day.  He has started rolling over A LOT.  He loves it...however he rolls from back to tummy and then screams because he can't (or won't) roll back over.  This happens probably 100 times a day!!  Larkin has also started eating rice cereal, oat meal, and fruit.  He's a pretty good eater but it has to be "just right" for him to eat it.  He's such a sweet baby but he already is showing some very strong-willed tendencies.  We're bracing for the toddler years!

There are so many things to update on (still need to do Christmas, Larkin's 4 and 5 months posts, and his recent dedication). But, for now I just want to share these videos that Joe took of our sweet boy. Enjoy!

This is of Joe feeding Larkin.  It took him a while to get used to it.

This one speaks for itself. :)

So Thankful...

This is the first of a blog post "series". Our life has been so busy since Larkin came along and the holiday season proved to keep that pace. We had several Christmas parties and had a great time celebrating Christmas and the birth of our Savior with our families. But, before we get to Christmas, I wanted to post about our wonderful Thanksgiving!

This year, we kept with our tradition of meeting all of my family....aunts, uncles, and cousins....for a very fun Thanksgiving holiday. The tradition began years ago when my grandparents lived in Tennessee and the whole family would come up to their house for Thanksgiving. Through the years we modified the tradition, following both of their deaths. We have met in various places in the past, but this year we went to my Aunt and Uncle's house in North Carolina and all of the different families rented houses close by. Larkin was definitely a hit as no one in my family had met him yet. He loved the attention and looks forward to seeing everyone again next year (especially his new cousin who will be here in March!).

We had such a fun time and I definitely treasure the time I get with my sweet cousins!

Larkin bundled, but not too sure about it.

Addison (who had been the youngest in the family) meeting Larkin.

They both seem a little hesitant.

Most of the cousins and cousins-in-law. Several couldn't make it this year and

some had already left for the night.

Girl cousins...getting creative with our photography.

Bama fans watching the AL/AU game...still smiling. :)

The world of technology...

This sign used to be at Nannie and Pop-pop's in Bakerville.

Joe with Uncle Matt and Dad (Papa), hanging out on the porch like the good ole days.

The whole family...well those that could make it this year.

Papa, Gran, and Uncle Kelley with us in front of the cabin.

Sweet boy...as you can see, we were not using red eye reduction. :)

Larkin with Rebecca who is due in March! Larkin can't wait to have a little boy cousin.

The three stair steps (in age and height) in an antique store...we actually got in trouble for taking this picture.

New posts coming soon!!