New Things

So in the last week or so, Bentley has decided to do a few new things...

1) Wave 'Hi' and 'Goodbye' (More like the flap of her wrist)
2) Take a few steps! (holding on of course) But she moves each foot without prompting, it is pretty insane.
3) Definitely crawls (or pushes) BACKWARDS only
4) Stands on her own, for at least 2-3 seconds at a time
5) Can tell me "All Done" with her sign language. Like she is "all done" with the exersaucer, or "all done" with playing on the floor" or "all done" being in the high chair". Just last night when I put her down for bed, she seemed just fine at first, but then I heard her fussing and found her like this:


Each time, I picked her up, turned her over and tucked her in again and each time, she gave me the "All done" signal frantically with tears down her cheek. I said "baby girl, you can't be 'all done' I am sorry sweetie, it is time to go to bed." After three more times, she finally fell asleep. But now I typically find her flipped over onto her hands and knees when she wakes up after naps or in the morning.

P.S. If you are wondering about the scratches near her eye, she got in a girl fight with her friend, Paige. Just kidding. My friend Stacey graciously watched Bentley for me for a couple hours and when Stacey went to get Bentley's food ready, her daughter Paige scratched her. just fyi - she is fine though :)

Tip-toe through the Tulips

Last weekend, Bentley and I went on a girl's weekend retreat with several of my girlfriends from our church community. Both nights Bentley slept horribly. I mean HORRIBLY. She was up every 45 minutes to an hour. And not just fussy, but crying hysterically. It's not like I could let her cry it out at times either since she was sharing a room with my friend Krista and me as well as a house (with thin walls) and all the other girls and two newborns. So I was quite exhausted and sleep deprived the entire weekend. It almost brought me to tears a few times as I was trying to figure out how this retreat was hardly that. Despite all of that, God gave me overwhelming patience with Bentley and incredible compassion for her. At one point in the night, I simply picked her up and held her like a newborn and she calmed down. This was amazing considering she is really not a cuddly kiddo.

The last day we were there, on Sunday, we went to Tulip Town near Stanwood and had a lovely time, despite my friend's son having a major diaper blowout and having to stare into a urinal while I tried to pee using the Port-o-Let. But here, here are the photos that captured the lovely moments... (oh yeah, and except for getting reprimanded for being too far in the tulip row. That was hard for me... I remember having to sit outside of the circle in Kindergarten for whistling... I was traumatized. I don't do "wrong" things. lol)

Carpet Squares and Swinging Monkeys

Today was a big day for baby girl. This morning we went to a Story/Singing time at a local library in Tacoma and Bentley got to sit on her little carpet square for the first time! I was beaming. We went with a few other moms from this moms meet-up group in Tacoma. It was completely free and so much fun! She LOVES hanging out with other kids. Again, all squeals, arm flapping and clapping typically at times when the other kids aren't clapping. She really enjoyed herself and was actually quite attentive, but every once in awhile, the shoes on the little girl next to her were pretty tempting.

(I love how her little dolly is hanging out next to her)

After our storytime, we took a nap and headed out to the zoo to meet Vanessa and Andrea and the kiddos to spend the afternoon together... here is our day in photos :)

12 hours of straight-up art

I am so glad I can still manage to utilize my creativity at home with baby girl. Drew's and my friend, Aaron Spiro is playing and hosting four songwriters nights in Tacoma and wanted me to create the poster for them. I decided to go completely out of the box and hand draw an image that would resemble a psychedelic 70s poster with a bit of asian flair :) Below is my sketch and final product :) Enjoy! It took 12 straight hours to complete... I had to vector each part of my sketch (which means outline it in a graphics program and fill it in with color.) My wrist hurts.

Why I was blogger MIA for about 3 weeks...

My old church family, UPPC (University Place Presbyterian Church) asked if I could paint a piece for the lenten season. The imagery was created by their church graphic designer, but they needed someone to paint it on a large scale, 10' by 10'. I painted the work in 2' x 2' sections which they revealed a few each week. I haven't painted in awhile so I was grateful for the opportunity to get out my paintbrushes and go to Tacoma Art Supply to pick up canvas. It was nice to have a creative outlet even though I didn't actually create the image. It was freeing to just paint away. It took me about 4-5 weeks to complete. Each 2' by 2' canvas took me between 45 min to one hour.

Below is an article (with photos) about the work in the newsletter that is sent out to members of UPPC. Thought you would like to know what the heck I have been up to!

(P.S. If I had actually created the image, I would have tried to make Christ with a darker complexion, and with less 'white' features lol)

Muralist Lindsay Hall Webster is pictured painting individual sections of the art, week by
week throughout Lent.


Lindsay's home studio


A few weeks into the process, the mural is coming together


Artist Nancy Archer, next to the finished mural


Keith Loftis, positioning the last panel on his hand made frame



An Artistic Rendition of
the Face of Christ
The Meaning Behind the UPPC Sanctuary Art

by Jeffrey Meeks
Minister of Worship

After searching for just the right artwork to communicate the Lenten sermon series, Nancy Archer, Director of Communications, grabbed a pad, a pencil, curled up in a blanket and began to sketch. Little did she realize what a profound impact her artistry would have on all who would be blessed to witness it for the first time.

Initially, she and the worship team searched through Orthodox iconography, passion play stage designs and religious artists renderings for inspiration. After Nancy shared her work with the team, artist and muralist Lindsay Hall Webster (who worked in UPPC Quest and Cornerstone) began the process of painting and replicating a 10X10 foot rendering of the sketch to be displayed in 2X2 foot sections of framed canvas. This original artwork symbolizes the dark hours Jesus endured before the resurrection, when He suffered and died for our sins. He is wearing a crown of thorns and a somber expression upon his face.

The slow process of putting up the painting piece by piece each Sunday was a proclamation of the various stages of Christ's journey throughout Lent. Lindsay completed the mural just before Palm Sunday. It will remain on the sanctuary stage during Holy Week and remain up through the Good Friday service.

On Easter Sunday, a second image, this time of the resurrected Christ (printed at 7 x 7 feet) will replace the mural center stage. He will bear scars on his forehead, be surrounded by light and have a look of peace behind his eyes.

Renaissance Man, Keith Loftis, designed and built the massive wooden-framed swivel easel centered in the Chancel.

You will be confronted not only by two artistic renderings of Christ's face on the screens and bulletin covers, but like the religious icons of antiquity, you will be called to look through the window of his eyes to contemplate the reality of his death, burial and resurrection no matter where you are seated.

Thank you to Nancy Archer, Lindsay Hall Webster and Keith Loftis for the incredible offering of worship through the visual arts. You are helping us "Turn Our Face To Jerusalem."

I am now on blender probation

I should no longer be allowed to own and operate a blender. As I was making Bentley a lovely selection of honeydew melon baby food, honeydew is just a bit too watery to want to stay inside the baby food blender. As it squirted out the seam, I of course freaked out and lifted up on the blender top. oh my. Honeydew chunks and sticky water EVERYWHERE! The photo below doesn't even do it justice, it was sprayed across the dining room table and chair and Bentley's chair, on Drew's bible, phone book, all over my clothes, on my toes, and on the ground. Oh yes, and in my chai tea, but, I am such a hard core chai tea drinker, that well, yes, I drank it anyway :)


Here is the first reason why I should not be allowed to 'blend.' I made a carrot souffle this fall for a friend's baby shower, and it ended up everywhere but the dish. To give myself some credit, the blender was busted and once you pick it up to pour it out, it all flowed, geysered out the bottom. It is now in the trash.

Family Outing

This Sunday when Bentley turned 8 months, Drew and I took advantage of the gorgeous weather and we went as a family to walk along Ruston way. I didn't have my camera, but I snapped this photo on my phone. Bentley got super excited about the doggies (She is my kind of girl!). Every doggy got a squeal and clapping from Bentley.


It was also her first day in the nursery at our church gathering. So of course, I kept her little name tag and had to take a photo. She did so well in the nursery. My friend Alissa came out and asked if I wanted to try and put her down for a nap because she seemed pretty sleepy. I walk into the nursery and Bentley is in a swing looking like she had a hangover... it was hilarious! I have never seen her so lethargic! I decided just to take her home and it was the first time in a long time that when I picked her up out of her car seat to go into the house, she didn't wake up! She was passed out in my arms and went right to sleep.


And here are a couple portraits I took of her for turning 8 months.

Monkeys, Elephants and Fish oh my!

Bentley got to experience the Pt. Defiance Zoo & Aquarium for the first time today! (As well as sunscreen) My friend Vanessa and I got a Zoo membership. She and I took Bentley and Simon as well as our friends, Lorena (who married a childhood friend of ours named Aaron Kelly) and her son Joshua (15 months) and my friend, Taylor and her son, Jack (6 months).

(Notice the pear juice/water dripping off of her chin and saturating her little tank top)



Can you hear the noise coming out of this face? (It's a new one :)


Bentley ooh and ahhed, or rather squealed and squeaked and clapped while leaning as far forward as possible in her stroller to see everyone and everything. She especially loved the Beluga Whale, the big walrus that swam RIGHT in front of her, and ALL the fishes; she clapped and squeaked as they swept past the glass.


She especially enjoyed having a social hour with her friends, Joshua, Jack and Simon.

Vanessa & Simon


Bentley talking with Joshua


Taylor and Jack

I LOVE to clap

Whenever Bentley would bounce in her exersaucer, Drew and I would clap for her. Well Wednesday, she started clapping for herself! I actually caught it on video - so hilarious! enjoy! Now she is all about the clapping, most everything gets a clap - if you don't get a round of applause from Bentley, well, then that's pretty sad.