Two and a Half

Next month Stella will be two and a half. I probably won't have time to write then and so I'm going ahead and updating you all on her now.
Stella is 40 inches tall and weighs a little over 35lbs. According to the internet, that's about the stats of an average 4-5 year old!
She wears 3T and 4T clothing and a size 9 shoe.

Our girl is a talker! I can't even remember all of the cute things she says and does because there are so many! We are really enjoying this stage in her growth because she is so fun loving and interactive.
Some of the funny things she is saying these days...
When referring to Drew and me she always calls us "You guys".
So a recent conversation went like this,
"Where we going you guys?"
"Do you want to go to Costco?"
"Perfect!!!"
(after a minute) "Let's go you guys!"
Stella loves to go on outings. As noted in the conversation above... every morning when she wakes up she says "where are we going" or "what doin'"? If I say that we don't have any thing to do today or aren't going anywhere she gets a sad look on her face and says "but I slept a long time!". Apparently good sleep earns fun outings.
And good sleep there is! Stella is sleeping from 730/8pm to 9/930am and taking a 2-3 hour nap most days. Every now and then we'll hear her talking and singing through out her whole nap.
Stella is also a really good mimic. She has very well behaved dolls too. Today while on a walk I heard her tell her babies in the stroller not to ask to get out and not to fuss. Later she told them they had to say hi to people that passed because it was sweet, kind and nice. HAHA. Those are obviously two lessons we are learning right now.
Every morning SJ wakes up with "friends" in her bed and they are always her friends in real life... with the occasional Bible character thrown in. Sometimes Moses is in there with a paci or Jonah and water and always Layne... her current BFF. They go with us in the car and on the couch and in the bed. They always have an imaginary paci too. She is also usually accompanied by her pretend phone in her pretend pocket and she calls her friends, their moms and her daddy a lot. It usually sounds like this...
"HEY! Yea. Ummm. Yea. Yea. We going to _____. Yea. Ok. Bye."
Another common phrase we hear is "cuz?" and when that gets no response she says "may I please ask why?". I had no idea the "why" phase would come this early!!
SJ loves sunglasses but hates if the sun is shining in her face.
She loves to play at Pottery Barn Kids with the jogging stroller, babies and big girl desk and kitchen.

(busy getting work done at PBK)
We love to walk and play at the playground a lot too. Slides are the current favorite.
Stella also had her first admirer the other day at the playground. This little boy from our church followed her with in inches at all times and even attached himself to her going down the slide. He would throw a ball to her and if she didn't catch it, her friend Layne would grab it. When this happened the little boy would cry to his mom, "I don't want to play with THAT girl... I want to play with THAT (SJ) girl!". It was so so so hilarious. Stella was definitely playing hard to get. The attention sort of freaked her out.
SJ also loves to do "exercises", which consist of push ups, crunches and arm circles and sometimes high knees.
Her favorite foods are still basically the same... mac n cheese, avocado, sweet potato, bread, pizza, pouches, any crunchy salty food, apple sauce and yogurt.
Stella also LOVES to sing. She tries to pick up on the words to any song. She can sing pretty much all the words to an entire kids praise CD, Oh No You Never Let Go, Jesus Loves Me, ABCs and a few choice elmo songs. She likes to make up songs too. I love to hear her singing to herself while she takes care of her babies or when she is in her own world in the back seat of the car.
We are also in the do it yourself phase. She can put on her own shoes, help get dressed (and pick out the clothes), get in her carseat and booster seat and help buckle, get her milk from the fridge, and feed herself most foods.
Our girl is not a baby any more but we are really loving our big girl!

Savoring the Silly

Stella has been growing so fast, it's hard to catch any moment much less every moment. She has already out-grown almost all of her Christmas clothes, potty trained and hurdled herself head-long into the "two-year-old phase".
I can't believe how fast she potty trained. I was fully dreading it and it went by so fast and easy I can't believe it.
She cracks me up every single day.
Lately when I get her up in the morning she is either "Mary" holding her baby "Jesus" (the blanket) while "Joseph is at work". Or she is "Ellie" holding "Charlie" (the blanket) while "Chris is at work" (daddy).
Most recently she said "I'm Ellie and this is baby Jesus, Joseph is at work and YOU are my wife!". HAHA. When Drew is home he is either Chris or Joseph and her babies are either Jesus, Eli (the boy we babysit) or Charlie (cousin) and I am always her wife. Cracks me up every.single.time.
Tonight we were having a bedtime snack and she was pointing to the "pretend berries" on the table and said "I have some berries in the refrigerator, their applesauce berries... they are hiding". Hilarious!
She also tells me all the time that it's time to "go to Costco". She loves that they have samples.
We really love our Stella Jane!

Fleurs for France

As you may have read... we are raising money to go on a mission trip to France.
In order to help our fundraising efforts I am making all types of flower accessories for you to purchase.
Headbands are $12 or 2 for $20 (get it while it lasts)
Pins are $5
Gloves are $10
If you live in the area, there is no shipping... we'll just figure out a way to meet up.
If you aren't in the area, feel free to get a group together and make one large order b/c the shipping will be cheaper for you that way. I'm estimating $2 for small orders.
We really appreciate every one who has given to our trip and every one who is praying for our trip.
Blessings!

Bonjour et Joyeux Noël

Hello and Merry Christmas from the Lewis family.
This is our very first Christmas letter and we are excited to let you in on all the Lord has been and is continuing to do in our lives.
This past year we were blessed to celebrate our fifth anniversary and the second anniversary of the birth of our Stella Jane. Yes, that’s right, we have a two-year-old on our hands.
We are still living in Louisville, KY and serving in Group Life and worship at Sojourn Community Church.
One thing we have learned over the last five years in Louisville is that our plans are not God’s plans. We have made many wonderful friendships over the past years and sadly for us, we have seen most of those friends move away to become missionaries and church planters. We had never considered this as a real option for our family but as God has continued to close doors for Drew on his career path and open completely different doors in our hearts, we decided to let ourselves dream big dreams and allow God to do whatever he desires with our lives… big or small. We want to glorify Him! A verse that encompasses this conviction is Romans 10:13-15
13 For "everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved." 14 How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching? 15 And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, "How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!"
As we have made new friends over the past year we began to hear about a small group of people looking to move, long term, to Southern France, in order to minister to the French and North African populations living there. Like before, we never seriously thought we could do something like this but then God. That’s how all, good stories begin. Then God opened a way for us to go on a short-term mission trip to France.
On this trip we will be connecting with Sojourn’s missionary partners in Marseille, France to assist them with their work among Muslims and to help them expand their ministry into other cities in the area. It may be hard to believe but there are hundreds of thousands of Muslims in Southern France that have no knowledge of the Gospel. We will also be on a team going to other cities to do research on how people live, think and interact so that our partner missionaries will know how best to engage these unreached cities after we leave. The vision for the future is to send a team of long-term missionaries from Sojourn to plant churches in Southern France. We are prayerful that as we serve alongside the missionaries in France, God will make it clear if this is where He would have us serve long term.
We ask that you would partner with us in the Gospel. Please help send us to France by donating of your resources. Together, we need to raise $6000 and we long for the Church to rise up and send us in the name of the One we call Savior and Lord! Please click here to give online and select France 724.*
We also need your prayers. France is one of the most forgotten and unreached countries in Western Europe. We need a team of support on their knees with us before we go, while we are there and even once we return. Will you join our team?
For updates on our family and our trip you can visit drewandlindsey@blogspot.com.

We are thankful for your partnership in the Gospel here and abroad!

Drew and Lindsey Lewis

*“Gifts to the church, with an expression of a preference for my trip expenses (France 724), are tax deductible to the extent allowed by law. If you are able to make a gift to the church, helping to fund my portion of the trip expenses, please give online or make your check payable to Sojourn Community Church. If I am unable to participate in the trip, your gifts will be used to support the short-term mission program of Sojourn.”

We realize that the people reading this letter have different means. Every gift is precious in our sight and in the sight of the Lord. To emphasize this, here are a couple of charts to help break down the cost and ways different partners can come together to help us reach our goal!

Giving Chart Examples:

Five ways to reach $6000….
10 Partners giving $600 each
20 Partners giving $300 each
40 Partners giving $150 each
60 Partners giving $100 each
120 Partners giving $50 each

Combined effort to reach $6000…
2 Partners giving $600 each (plus)
4 Partners giving $300 each (plus)
8 Partners giving $150 each (plus)
14 Partners giving $100 each (plus)
20 Partners giving $50 each

Happy Two

We officially have a two year old on our hands.

I wonder when there will be a birthday for SJ that I will not think about her very first debut.
I still remember exactly how I felt the morning I discovered SJ existed in this world. I remember where I sat and what I did step by step through the day.
I remember details about my pregnancy and how I craved sour candy and developed a dislike for dark chocolate. And being very very sleepy.
I was so proud then to be a mama to a very special, even if unknown, someone.
I couldn't even wrap my mind around having a little girl.
Today, words cannot express the love I feel for this little one.

Stella Jane,

You are only two years old and yet you have already lived up to your name. We prayed that you would be a light to the world, like a shining star in a dark sky and you are. You make us laugh on a daily basis and bring joy to every one around you.
I pray that as you grow older you would begin to know the true Light and that His Light would penetrate your heart and cause you to shine even brighter and truer than you already do. His light is the only one worth having in the end.

We knew that the Lord had been very gracious to us in giving us a chance to know and love you in this life and that is part of why we gave you the name Jane (God is Gracious). However, as we learn to shepherd you and love you, we are seeing more and more the depths of that grace and are so thankful to be able to see your face and heart and personality first thing in the morning and through out each day. We also pray that you would see and understand God's grace in your life and begin to place your trust and hope in Jesus.

I love the way you have grown into snuggling and reading books but still retain your love for action and play. It is so fun to watch you mimic every move we make as you play in your kitchen and take care of your babies. You are such a natural with babies (the real and the plastic variety) and you love to clean and work at whatever I am doing right along side me.
You are a joy.

I pray the the Lord would continue to grow you and speak tenderly to your little heart. I pray that He would protect you and teach you, as only He can. I pray that He would unite our family and give your mom and dad grace for the journey ahead.

We love you Stella Jane, Happy Birthday.



For those interested in a glimpse into the life of a two year old Stella Jane... read on.

At two years old Stella Jane.....

Started to say "Not yet" and "later" and understand and use the term "him and her"
Can sing the ABCs and count to 10 but only when SHE wants to
Has had her first few out right screaming fits
Fully understands and uses the phrase, "I don't like it"
Can sing most of Jesus Loves Me (when no one is looking)
Knows the motions to Wheels on the Bus and Itsy Bitsy Spider and Head Shoulders Knees and Toes
Is developing a love for Elmo (despite her parents' best efforts otherwise)
Loves babies...changing, burping, feeding, rocking, singing to, putting to bed, pushing in stroller and holding
Wants to "Help me" or "Help you"... it's hard to figure out. Often clarifies by saying "Stella help you?"
Can identify most primary and common colors when distracted but if you ask her when she is paying attention, all colors are PINK!
Says "cheese" when she sees a phone or camera and then wants to "see it"
"Call Daddy" a lot
Says "Lub You" and "Lub you too"... but mostly to her babies
Loves to play with balls
Learning to love puzzles and coloring
Frequently tells us she will be "right back", often accompanied by a goodbye hug and kiss
Likes to relive the events of the day and major events of the past and recite family member names.
Is just getting too big and too cute with every passing day...

Baking Day!

I love to cook and bake. I especially like to cook something and watch people close their eyes and say mmmmmm as they take bite after bite of what I've made. It's a good feeling and it makes me feel like there is some small way I can bless people with my hands even in the midst of toddlers and busy-ness. That's the pretty part of my soul.
However, part of that feel-good-ness is a selfish desire to be accepted and liked and appreciated. Just sayin. It's nasty but true. We all like to know that people think we are good or cool or smart etc etc... So sometimes it is difficult for me to share certain recipes b/c I know if every woman I know makes my cookies or my bread... then it won't be special and then I won't be special... or so goes the lie.
So a few years ago I challenged myself on this here blog to start sharing. I think I shared my favorite cookie recipe and maybe a few others and then forgot all about it. Lately I've been making TONS of bread and people have been oohing and aaahing and I hate to tell them... it's SO easy! So, several women had asked me this and that about bread but were too timid and afraid of yeast to try.
I've wanted to start having baking days with friends, where we bake a lot of goodies for our families to eat and freeze (for later eating) but also get to enjoy each other's company and let our kiddos play. So, I got the idea that I could do a bread tutorial to introduce every one to bread making. I was a little afraid to jump out there and fail but since I was going to be baking any way I figured it wouldn't hurt to branch out.
Six women came and there were four two-ish year olds, a five month old, a two month old and a baby still cookin' with his mama. So we brought down the play kitchen and the little ones played their hearts out cooking and playing with baby dolls and the mamas all learned to bake bread and traded recipes. It was a blast!

I made a double batch of bread an hour before every one came, so they could see what it looked like after the first rise and get it started on the second rise while we started another double batch so they could see the first process too. Every one touched and looked and went home with a loaf of bread. I also made healthy zucchini/banana muffins and printed the recipe for every one to take. I made little recipe cards in different color card stock and a few of the women brought their own baked-good recipes to share.
We talked and laughed and ate a lot of carbs. I think I am going to start hosting a bake day every other Friday and we will try old favorites and new feats! I know granola bars and pasta are coming soon!
If you want in, just send me a facebook message, email or comment here on the blog!

(before and after)

(during)

(Just for fun... our big helper)

Speaking of Elementary School...

Memories... oh memories.
Some of the most vivid memories I have from childhood involve the books that I read... and reread.
I don't like to read books twice or see movies twice or watch rerun on TV. I have a pretty good memory (or I did before giving birth) and thus there is little joy in redoing what is already permanently done in my brain.
There are however, a few exceptions.
A few such exceptions have stuck with me all of these many (almost two decades) years later.
I'm not sure which came first but I am pretty sure it was
Sarah, Plain and Tall.

I thought her name was Sarahplainandtall... that's what happens when you are young and very literal. ha! This is the story of a poor family in the country and their mama dies. The dad knows that he cannot take care of the farm and all the work while also providing stability and education for his children (a boy and a girl I think) and so he puts an add in the newspaper for a woman to come and live with them to take care of the kids.
Sarah, from Maine, responds and comes all the way down to a completely different culture to help with the children.
The children instantly love her and I did too. She was patient and kind and knew how to soothe their pain. She sacrificed and brought joy and nourishment to their bodies and souls. In the end the Dad realizes that he too loves Sara.
I read and reread this book through out elementary school and I specifically remember the night my mom let me stay up WAY past my bedtime to watch, I think, Glenn Close (though I was told by my all-wise older sister that she was not a very good lady and was in some really bad movies that I would never be allowed to watch) play Sarah in a made for TV movie based on the book. I was enthralled.
When I think of this book I still feel the hot dry wind blowing through the dust and whizzing around my long, prairie skirt... it was all too real to me then.

The second book was Turn Homeward Hannalee.
I have only met one other person who has even heard of this book! This was the most traumatizing and suspenseful book I had ever read to that point in my life and I think it was also the first book I ever cried in or at least wanted to cry for.
Hannalee is a poor Southern girl working in a mill during the civil war and she gets kidnapped by Yankee soldiers and take north, away from her mother and eventually separated from her brother and made a servant for the Union and eventually a northern family.
She knows from the beginning that she MUST return to her mama and when she is finally overcome in her circustances as a servant, she runs away and tries to find her way home. She comes across war and the aftermath of war. She meets with hunger and fear but in the end... she is embraced in her mother's arms again.
I specifically remember sitting in the back seat of our maroon suburban, driving on a fall day from the library to the playground with the windows down. Every one was happy and getting along and I was reading my book. I read in the car and at the park and the air was crisp and cool (rare for Texas) and it smelled like leaves and burning fires.
Back then the world was simple and yet I was slowly coming to know that it was also complex. I was/am so serious, so interested and intense about everything and I labored with Hannalee through every step of her arduous journey!

Finally, a book I only read once (maybe twice) but soaked in to my very heart was On the Banks of Plum Creek. I actually remember very little about this book because I read the whole series in a row (I think I did at least). However, I remember the feeling I had through out the whole book.


It's the same feeling you might get when you are walking on a slightly warm and yet cool spring day with out any shoes on and the grass is cool (not yet itchy from summer sun and bugs) and you stick your feet into a perfectly clear stream of water. The rocks are smooth and cool and the water bubbles around you ankles and toes and it is too cold to want to immerse yourself in but just perfect for your feet. The whole world smells fresh and clean and the sun is bright and friendly (not sleepy like fall and winter or angry like summer). There is nothing weighing on your mind or your heart and you know that God is good, you are loved and good things lie ahead.
I remember finishing this book with a sigh and simply closing the book and flipping it over to just gaze at the cover and that cool spring rushing along the banks of Plum Creek. I wanted to be Laura and live there in that simplicity. I wanted to breathe it in.
Of all these books this is the one I remember the least and reread the least and yet look forward to reading aloud to Stella the most. I can't wait to crawl up together on the couch before bed time and read her a chapter or two and see her dissolve into the world of wagons and candy stores and long dresses and braids.
The other two, I hope she will read on her own as she discovers herself and a little about the world around her. But this is one of the only books I intensely hope she will let me read with her.
We'll see. Mamas can't hold those dreams too tight or they will break...