Lily Grace's Birthday, Part 2

 Hello all my dear friends!! I am so happy you came back to hear the rest of my birthday story!  If you were HERE on my birthday, then you know that we had to postpone the rest of my party until a special delivery was made.  On Saturday, Mommie got a message from the delivery people that the package she was expecting was going to be delayed until either Sunday or Monday.  Since the package was my special birthday surprise, Mommie said we would have to continue the party whenever it arrived. Meanwhile, she said all my friends could spend the night and we could have a "slumber party"!  I didn't know what that meant, but Mommie said everyone could just stay and sleep at our house and we would have a good time! So, you can just imagine how much fun all of us girls had finding our blankets and pillows and places to sleep:

As it turned out, we all snuggled down in the big bed in our guest room, and we found teddy bears and pillows and a big warm quilt to sleep with.

Mommie said as soon as we were all "snug as a bug in a rug", we had to go right to sleep.

We were pretty tired out anyway from all the games and cupcakes and fun we had been having, so it wasn't too hard to fall asleep.

The next morning we woke up and since it was Sunday, we had Sunday School right there in the big bed.  We read some Bible stories and sang some songs and had a wonderful time.

But even after spending that whole long day together, my special birthday surprise still did not arrive.

I told Mommie that, to me, just being with my friends and spending all this wonderful time together was a good enough birthday surprise for me. I couldn't imagine anything better than this!

I am so happy that God made us all special friends, and that Jesus loves us every one all the same.

Well, guess what! Mommie said that my friends could stay over another night, since it was going to be so cold in the morning that we couldn't go anywhere anyway, so we might as well stay right here where we are safe and warm!

Wow! It really DID get cold! All the way down to 27 degrees, which is cold enough to snow!

But it didn't snow here...just a LOT of FROST on the ground!!! Wow! That was really really cold! I am happy that we were all safe and warm inside the house!

And so the day went on and on, and still no special delivery.  Mommie was getting kind of anxious.

And then all of a sudden there was a big brown truck outside our yard,  and a man came and knocked on our door and left a package for me!

Mommie brought the packages to me and said I'd better hurry up and open them because there might be something that needed to be taken care of right away...

So, first I opened this package, and I was so excited to see it was a little swimsuit, and a life jacket, some sunglasses and some sandals!

Mommie said we might go to the beach sometime when it warms up and I will need to have a swimsuit. And also if we ever go out in the kayak I will have to have that life jacket! So that was very exciting!

But as happy as I was about this, I kept wondering what was in that other big bag, because I could hear something moving around inside!

And so when we opened up the bag, look what was inside!

A PUPPY DOG!!!! JUST FOR ME!!

Oh! My very own puppy dog!  And look how she loves me! She got right in my face and started licking my face and jumping all over me with wet kisses!

Mommie said she'd been waiting so long inside that bag that we needed to take her outside for a little walk, so we put on her leash and took her outside right away:

She was SO good and so happy to be outside sniffing the grass and exploring all around...

Oh, I LOVE her so much!! But what can I name her? Does she have a name?

Isn't she sweet? I think she likes me, don't you?

We sat on the swing and she liked that too...

And I showed her Still Waters Pond, but the sun was setting and it was starting to get dark, so Mommie said we needed to go back inside with the rest of our friends...

Oh, and my puppy was so hungry!! She went right away to her food dish.

She was so good, she knew exactly what to do!

And then she hopped back inside her little carrier bed, and that's when I noticed that it said "Bailey" on the corner.  "Bailey"!  Is that your name?"  She nodded her head and smiled up at me and wagged her tail.

So Bailey it is!! That's a nice name, don't you think?

All my friends seems to agree that Bailey was a nice name, and a very wonderful birthday surprise!

I told Mommie that I was the happiest little girl in the whole wide world.  And do you remember when I blew out my candle on my birthday cake? Remember I was supposed to make a wish, but I couldn't tell anyone or it wouldn't come true?  Well, now I can tell you, I was wishing I had a puppy dog all my very own!  And now I do!!!  Do you think God heard my little prayer/wish and answered my prayer?

Well, Mommie says that if we "delight ourselves in the Lord, He will give us the desires of our heart."

(Psalm 37:4)  But she also said that doesn't necessarily mean that we will get everything we ask for.  What it does mean is that when we love God with all our heart, and we live for Him, He blesses us with good things.  Sometimes those are things that we really want, but sometimes they are good things that are just good for us, because God knows what is always best for us.  She said sometimes He doesn't give us what we think we want because He knows it might not be right for us at that time in our lives.  When we love God, we can trust Him to do what is right for us all the time.  

I said, "Well, I am so happy that God allowed me to have this sweet puppy now. And I hope I can always be good and show my delight in the Lord so He will know just how thankful I am."

Mommie said that is all we can ask, that we do the best we can for Jesus, and He will always do what is best for us.

And now, I must put "Bailey" to bed,  and Mommie says I need to get to bed too. 

And all my friends are ready for bed too.

So good night everyone!

Love,

Lily Grace and Bailey

xoxoxoxoxo

Today is My Birthday!!

 It is very hard to believe that it was just one year ago that I arrived here at my new Mommie and Daddy's home for the very first time!  In case you don't remember, click HERE for that story!  

This is a picture of me when I first arrived:

My Mommie was so excited she could hardly get her fingers to work to get me out the big box I came in when the post office lady delivered me.  And then, once I was out of my box and so happy to meet my new family, they had to come up with a name for me!!  If you read that story again, you will remember that my Daddy actually came up with my name, Lily, but it was because he wanted to name me after his grandma "Lillian".  And Mommie also wanted to add the name "Grace", because I was a special and "unexpected gift", which is what the meaning of the word "Grace" is...unmerited favor of God. And so, after talking it over, I became "Lillian Grace"....but we all decided that Lily Grace was easier to say and better suited to who I am.  And so here I am, "Lily Grace"....one year later!

Of course, if you've been keeping up with all my adventures this past year, you will know I've been to a lot of new places and have done lots of fun things! You may want to go back and re-read some of my stories on my very own blog so you can see some of the things I've done. It's been a wonderful year full of surprises and fun and meeting lots of new people and most of all, learning all about Jesus and how much He loves me! We just recently celebrated His birthday on Christmas, and that was quite a happy and exciting time!

But now, today, Mommie says we are going to celebrate my birthday!!!  I didn't even know it! She wanted to surprise me!  But some of the things she wanted to do had to be postponed because Mommie and Daddy have been kind of sick this past week with that mean old virus that's going around, and so they couldn't invite anyone over to our house to help celebrate.  But Mommie said we weren't going to let that keep us from having a party right here with our friends and family who live here with us. And so she let me help her get some special things ready for our own little party.

You all know how much I love to help Mommie make things in the kitchen. So she said it would be okay for me to help mix up my own birthday cake.

My sweet sissie "Baby Elva" wanted to come out to the kitchen and help too:

Mommie didn't want Daddy to take her picture because she's been sick all week and she said her hair needs to be cut and she's not fixed up pretty for the picture...but Daddy said making memories with us was more important than being all prettied up for a picture...so she allowed this one picture. 

I said I wanted to have some cupcakes so my friends could each have one too, and so Mommie said I could put the pretty little colored papers in the cupcake tin to get it ready for the batter.

After the cupcakes were all baked and cooled, Mommie let me help her put the frosting on them! I asked if I could please have chocolate frosting on little white cupcakes,  and so that is what I am getting!!

So now they are all ready, but we just have to wait for our "guests" to arrive before we can have the party.  

They finally all came and we had so much fun playing some games and just laughing and talking and having a real party, all for me!! I was so excited.  Oh, did you see I am wearing my cute little poodle outfit that I got for Christmas?

But because it is so cold today, I put it over my pajamas to I can keep warm! 

Then it was time for the birthday cake.

Mommie said we could use these very special little plates if we were very very careful.

These little "Buster Brown" dishes used to belong to my Mommie's Aunt Margie, way back when she was a little girl. Mommie says there is a date on the bottom of one that says 1910! Wow! That makes them 112 years old!!! I'd say that's very old, wouldn't you?

So I said "Yes, we will be very very careful".  Aren't they so cute? I love the puppy dog, don't you?

And I love how the children and the puppy dog are having a little tea party. That looks like so much fun.  I think it would be fun to have a little doggy, don't you?

Well, anyway, we finally got our cupcakes, and Mommie put a candle in mine and lit it up with fire! That was kind of scary!

But then everyone sang "Happy Birthday" to me, and told me to make a wish and then blow out the candle!  So I did make a wish,  but Mommie told me not to tell it to anyone or it wouldn't come true, so I can't tell you what I wished for, but maybe if it comes true then I can tell you.

So I huffed and puffed and blew really hard,

and the fire went out on my little candle.  

So maybe my wish will come true!

And then Mommie had a little announcement to make.  She had been waiting all afternoon for the delivery truck to bring something special that she had ordered for my birthday.  She kept waiting and waiting and watching for him to come, and he never came. Then she got a message on her computer telling her the delivery was going to be delayed until tomorrow (maybe).  Mommie was very disappointed, because she said that was going to be my special surprise for my birthday! Well,  I didn't know I was supposed to be getting any special surprises anyway, so I really didn't mind at all. I thought having my friends here and having these cupcakes was special enough! And then Mommie said since my birthday surprise didn't get here in time, we will just have to continue this party tomorrow, and that my friends could all spend the night with me tonight and we could have a "slumber party"!!!

That sounds pretty special to me, doesn't it to you? I'm not sure where we are all going to sleep, but Mommie said not to worry about it. We'll just put blankets on the floor and get lots of pillows and things and we can all sleep on the living room floor tonight!  Wow! That sure sounds like a lot of fun!!

And so, with that announcement we are all excited and running around finding blankets and stuff and getting ready for  our slumber party, so I will say good night to you!

I think this has been a pretty exciting first birthday, don't you?  And Mommie said we will continue this story when my special surprise arrives.

So until then, here's some things to think about:

"Here's to being a child again.

To laughing without a reason,

smiling so that others will do 

the same and believing the best is all around us."

(zox)

"But Jesus said, “Let the little children come to Me, and do not forbid them; 

for of such is the kingdom of heaven.”

Matthew 19:14

2 Then Jesus called a little child to Him, set him in the midst of them, 3 and said, “Assuredly, I say to you, unless you are converted and become as little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven. 4 Therefore whoever humbles himself as this little child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.

Matthew 18:2-4

Thank you all  for being a special part of my first year!  I hope you have enjoyed my little adventures as much as my Mommie has enjoyed helping me have them.  We hope to keep posting new adventures as often as possible and as time and energy permit!

I love you all!

Love,

Lily Grace

xoxoxoxoxo

Jingle Bells!

Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells!

Jingle all the way!

Oh what fun it is to ride in a one horse open sleigh!

Jingle Bells, jingle bells!

Jingle all the way!

Oh what fun it is to ride in a one horse open sleigh!

 

You can click on this video to sing along with us while we ride!

Have you ever been on a real live sleigh ride before?

Mommie said now's our chance! Come on and ride along!

All Aboard!  (Painting by John Sloane, 2022 January Calendar)

"Dashing through the snow, on a one horse open sleigh!

O'er the fields we go, laughing all the way! 

Bells on Bobtail ring, making spirits bright!

What fun it is to ride and sing our sleighing song tonight!"

Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells!

Jingle all the way!

Oh what fun it is to ride in a one horse open sleigh!

Jingle Bells, jingle bells!

Jingle all the way!

Oh what fun it is to ride in a one horse open sleigh!

Oh boy! That sure was a lot of fun, wasn't it?  I'm so glad you came along and rode with me!! I've been waiting and waiting to ride in this sleigh!  My Aunt Peggy and Uncle Billy sent it to Mommie and Daddy for Christmas, with some pretty flowers in it:

And I've been waiting and waiting for those pretty flowers to finally be finished so I could ride in this sleigh! So Mommie said today was the day!!  And my pretty horse Bella was very happy to pull the sleigh so I could take a ride!

I sure enjoyed that ride! I hope you did too!

Mommie said that she apologizes for us not writing more sooner about my very first Christmas! She knows everyone has been waiting to hear all about it, but there's just been so much going on, and Mommie's been so busy, and well, today's the first day she thought about it!  So....we need to go back and start wherever we left off and bring everyone up to date!

Well, Christmas morning came, and we all woke up and there were presents all under the tree for everyone!

My sister Baby Elva and I were so very very excited to see everything so beautiful!

And look! There was even a stocking hung on the fireplace for me!  It had some yummy candies and little toys in it! That was so much fun!

Oh, and my big brother Benton and big sister "Auntie Rose" came over and brought their puppies, Sugar and Spice, and even they got a stocking filled with toys!

And guess what! I had some presents under the tree...with my name on them!!!

And Mommie helped me open them up.  Among other things, I got some new clothes from my Auntie Peggy and Uncle Billy!

I didn't get to try them on right then because there was so much going on, but they took my picture so we could say thank you!

Everyone got so many wonderful presents, and we had such a wonderful day! I asked Mommie why do we all get presents, when it's really Jesus' birthday?  Well, she said, because Jesus was the very best gift of all to all of us, and we celebrate His birthday by giving gifts to one another, to show people we love them, just like God sent Jesus to us to show us He loves us. And also, she told me the story about how the Wise Men came from a long way away to see Jesus when He was still very young, and they brought Him gifts to honor Him, because they knew He was the King of the Jews!

Here's the story from the Bible:

The Magi Visit the Messiah

Matthew 2:1-12

1 After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem 2 and asked, “Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.”

3 When King Herod heard this he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him. 4 When he had called together all the people’s chief priests and teachers of the law, he asked them where the Messiah was to be born. 5 “In Bethlehem in Judea,” they replied, “for this is what the prophet has written:

6 “‘But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,

are by no means least among the rulers of Judah;

for out of you will come a ruler

who will shepherd my people Israel.’”

7 Then Herod called the Magi secretly and found out from them the exact time the star had appeared. 8 He sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and search carefully for the child. As soon as you find him, report to me, so that I too may go and worship him.”

9 After they had heard the king, they went on their way, and the star they had seen when it rose went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was. 10 When they saw the star, they were overjoyed. 

11 On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. 

12 And having been warned in a dream not to go back to Herod, they returned to their country by another route."

Mommie said that the Baby Jesus was probably anywhere from one to two years old when the Wise Men came, and that He and His parents weren't still at the stable with the sheep and the donkeys and shepherds, but they were in a little house in the town of Bethlehem, but it's still okay to have the Wise Men show up here in our Nativity Scene, because that's all we have.  The important part is that they came, and the gifts they brought Jesus may have helped pay for His parents to take Him to Egypt to stay until the bad king Herod died.  Mommie said we'd have to read the rest of the story in the Bible in Matthew chapter 2 to hear the whole story.  She said that "link" will take you to a place where you can read it if you want to.  I'm sure glad the Wise Men didn't go back and tell King Herod where Jesus was. They saved His life!!!

So now, Mommie says Christmas is pretty much over for this year, and we are going to be taking down our decorations and tree and stuff this week.  But first, today I finally tried on my new outfits that Auntie Peggy sent me. Do you want to see them? Of course you do!

I love them both! This one has little Lady Bugs all over it! Aren't they cute?

And this one has a poodle on the t-shirt, and the little skirt is really pants!

Isn't that nice? I can sit down in them and still be "modest". Mommie says that's very important!

And Mommie said she already showed you this cute Teapot and cake "glitter" snow lantern!

That was also a gift to Mommie from Auntie Peggy.  Isn't it sweet?

Oh, I have one more thing to share with you!

Mommie says you will all know about her "Pamela's Victorian Cottage" from some of her previous posts.  Well, it looks like  the little Mama has one more sweet little girl to feed and dress in her household:

Her name is "Jolly and Joyful Wendy".  Every year my Auntie Doris gives my Mommie one of these cute little dolls for Christmas. Mommie said I can play with them too. She said it can be like having my own dollhouse!  Mommie said she was "delighted" to add to the little family at Pamela's Victorian Cottage!

Well, I guess I'd better say goodbye for now! I hope you enjoyed hearing all about my very first special Christmas!  And now we are all ready for a Happy New Year!!

Bye Bye everyone!

And remember,

Jesus Loves you, and I do too!

Love,

Lily Grace

xoxoxoxox