Claire's Blessing Day

Chad's mom has made blessing dresses for Jozie and Haven and planned to make one for Claire before she was born. But then one day as I got our little baby clothes prepared for Claire I came across a little cream crocheted dress with a pink liner. I couldn't remember why it was special and asked my mom about it, who reminded me that it was the dress I had worn when I was blessed and it had been made by my great-grandma, Zola Carter (my dad's paternal grandma). It seemed perfect to let our third daughter (who knows if we'll get more daughters or not!) wear this little dress that I had worn. It is little, so Claire had to be blessed in it before she outgrew it! We blessed her on December 2nd, when she was about six weeks old. Her grandmas took notes of the blessing Chad gave her. Some key blessings were that she would be patient and loving and learn from her mothers and sisters how to be an exceptional daughter of God :), that she would share the gospel in ways only she can do, and that she would have a special testimony.

After the meeting we invited friends and family over for some great chili, if I do say so myself (I just picked the top-rated chili on allrecipes.com, and it was great!). We loved hanging out with people we love. It was especially great to be visited by my long-time friend, Kristi Winegar, who I used to play hopscotch with in Kindergarten. I've been so lucky to have friends I really cherish.

We sure love Claire. She's all smiley these days - we love how her entire face lights up when she "talks" with you and how she's always trying to catch your eye and get you to stop and talk. Her sisters adore her and think we have the cutest baby ever, and they could very well be right. :) She's a doll and we're lucky to be with her. I've appreciated Claire's patience, as she entered our already bustling family. After she's eaten and isn't tired, she's so often content to lay on the floor and look around or be entertained by her sisters, who do puppet shows and dances for her. I feel blessed by this pretty easygoing, easy to read baby we've got. I'm sure looking forward to getting to know Claire better as she grows.