all smiles

when sophie's happy lately she's been all smiles! i love it. especially when i nurse her - i'll i have to do is look at her and grin and there comes her big smile. what a joy! here are a few of her different smiles. of course, i couldn't get the one i wanted but maybe next time!

just a fun evening!

played on the floor

had a picnic dinner on the square

the joy in motherhood

a couple saturdays ago i had the privilege of sharing a devotional at a dear friend's baby shower. since i love proverbs 31, i decided to stick with that and talk about the joy in motherhood. motherhood truly is a joy! there's something about kids that makes life fun, interesting, stressful, crazy, terrifying, but in all of this, there's joy!

the latter half of proverbs 31:10 says, "her worth is far above rubies." this means that the woman fuels the beauty and energy of her family. she is to be happy and supply the joy in the life of her family no matter what. as the old saying goes, "if mamma ain't happy, nobody's happy!" and you know, it's true!

psalms 30:5 says "for His anger is but for a moment, His favor is for life; weeping may endure for a night but joy comes in the morning". this verse made me chuckle because if you come to my house in the latter part of the evening there is usually lots of weeping! it's fussy time at the drakes but come morning, there is joy! more importantly, this verse reminds me that every day is a new day and while there will be pain and hard times raising children, the joy of children is for a lifetime.

we know the ultimate source of joy is Christ. Isaiah 12:3 says "therefore with joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation." keeping God's commandments will produce that joy - these things i have spoken to you (meaning the commandments) that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full.

oh, remember when i said earlier that we, as mothers/wives, are to supply the joy and beauty to our family no matter how hard the trial is? here's a verse to back it up -"my brethren count it all joy when you fall into various trials knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience." james 1:2-3. so, those hard times we are to see as joyous times - teaching us to rely on God and practice patience (which, as mothers, we need an abundance of!).

more to come as i get through proverbs 31.

it's going to be a diry summer!

the number of baths taken are increasing at our house and i'm not talking about adding a 4th bather, sophie. molly has increased the number of baths because she gets filthy playing outside. i love it though because she's having such a great time. from the sandbox to the garden, to fishing (she fell in the lake today), to the park, and sidewalk chalk baths are needed daily! it's a good thing we have a cool new bath toy to play with. thanks aunt kristi, uncle dave, katie and corben, aka "the boy"!

sophie elizabeth

it's hard to believe sophie's been here for a month now! it's amazing how quickly time goes by. the nine months prior to having her seemed so long and by the beginning of march, i was ready to go into labor anytime and not wait for the 11th! she was definitely worth the wait!

delivery was very routine, kinda. i had a c-section with molly and so knew what to expect, however, there were some differences that were a bit overwhelming. for instance, i had to walk into the operating room. walking in allowed me to observe the entire room and see the many things that are there. the most overwhelming of them all was the extra large table full of operating tools. there were probably 30 pairs of scissors and tweezers and who knows what else. why do you need so many pairs of scissors? i was just thankful i didn't see the knife!

as they were prepping me and i was going numb i asked my doctor if she could drop the curtain so i could watch sophie being born. this was something i didn't think of with molly but wish i did. it was so neat to see her pull sophie out of me and get a glimpse of my little girl before she was on the table to be cleaned up. immediately, i knew she had a good set of lungs because she was crying before she was all the way out! she looked littler than molly and so i was surprised when the nurse put her on the scale and said 9 pounds 5 ounces! i was then extra thankful for the c-section! :) sophie was a healthy baby girl and pinked up very quickly. she scored high on the scale and our pediatrician said, "start saving for college, there's absolutely nothing wrong with her!"

sophie was a good eater (although is turning into a not-so-good eater) and loved to cuddle with us. i could probably count the number of hours she actually slept in her little bed in the hospital - she was always in someones arms. she still sleeps wonderfully like this today - sophie's a cuddler and i love it! it's fun to fall asleep with her or just watch her sleep - although then i get nothing done! but the way i see it is they're only little like this once and so i might as well take it all in!

sophie was born with a full head of dark hair that has stayed! it's so much fun to see all her hair. i keep waiting for it to fall out but it hasn't! it sticks straight up too! i try and comb it down but it goes right back up. i'm thinking she may have some curls also. when her hair is wet it seems to curl around. we'll see when it gets longer!

her eyes are changing into a very bright, vibrant blue and are so pretty! she has molly's lips and nose but other than that they really don't look alike- which i kinda like because she's her own person and it's neat to see how two babies that came from the same parents can look so different! God is amazing! :)

sophie's starting to enjoy playing and loves her mobile and gym. the little red bird is her favorite followed by the mirror. let's hope she's not too vain! lol :) she enjoys being held and looking around and seems to love molly's room as well. this could be trouble when she's old enough to get into all molly's things - i foresee sister "fights"!

sophie has truly been a blessing in our life. she makes us tired and cranky at times but it's all worth it to see her little face, hear her little coos and stop crying when she hears my voice or pick her up.

my little girl

molly turned 2 today! it's hard to believe she's been in our lives for 2 years. time has flown by! at this time two years ago, i was laying in a hospital bed dilated to a 9. the nurses were telling me i'd have a baby by 6 p.m. little did i know that at 9:30ish, i'd be wheeled in for a c-section. molly was stubborn and determined to have things her way from the get-go! she decided not to turn completely and had her feet wedged under my ribcage, thus preventing natural birth among other circumstances such as a drop in heart rate and fever for me while pushing. she wanted to come out the easy way! (i didn't mind so much either!) i remember the feeling of them taking her out of me - a big push on the abdomen and i hear, "it's a girl!" such a joyous feeling - and surprise because so many were convinced i was having a boy!

the easy way is one way to describe molly. she likes things to be easy and go her way. for instance, she wouldn't nurse. why? she had to work at it...molly likes instant gratification! she's very much a "now" girl. which is okay (sometimes), but makes it difficult when learning patience! :)


now don't get me wrong - just because molly likes things the easy way doesn't mean she's lazy and unmotivated. she's very smart and loves a new challenge. it amazes me how much she has learned in two years time. sometimes it's scary how much she knows, remembers, retains, and picks up on. matt and i have to be careful of our conversations because she picks up on so much and doesn't forget anything! here's a short list of what molly can do at the age of 2:


* talk up a storm and is putting 2-3 words together consistently
* count to 10
* recognize letters m, o, l, y, a, t, and sometimes p, b, and c
* spell her name
* jump
* read books from memory
* sing several songs
* write the letter 0, l, and sometimes m
* reel in a fishing pole (and kind of cast one)
* so much more but i won't name them all

molly has become so independent as she's gotten older and wants to do things herself - even things she can't do. we constantly hear "self" when trying to help molly. i guess you could say she takes after me...independent. oh, and stubborn. molly's stubborn and strong-willed, just like i was. you know, parents always say that you get a taste of your own medicine when you become a parent yourself. mine were right! i wouldn't change it for the world though - she wouldn't be molly if she were any different!


i am truly blessed to have such a wonderful daughter. i thank God for her and look forward to the many years ahead.

molly the day after she was born


one year ago today on her 1st birthday

and at 2!