I can hardly believe that it has been six months!

185 days of being captivated by the deep chocolate brown eyes and excessive kisses on her soft, plump cheeks. There is no restraining ourselves.

Her laid back personality adds to the allure and we are drawn in by her sweet charm.

And how could we have gone on so long without knowing her? These 185 days have held so much joy and the blessings are poured out upon us through her. 

We are so grateful to our Lord for this precious one.

And my soul shall be joyful in the Lord; It shall rejoice in His salvation. Psalm 35:9

She was about to bust when her gumps loaded her up in the truck and took her to town. She wanted to know what his surprise was.  But gumps wasn’t telling.    

And soon they returned with a blow up pool in hand and ice cream on her lips.  

Gumps could not blow the pool up fast enough . . .  or fill it up fast enough. Her excitement was too much for her to contain. 

He sat outside with her and we could hear the squeals and the laughter and the splashing from inside. Her great delight could be heard throughout the whole neighborhood.  

And she drew us in as we too went out to join in the fun, watching her and laughing at the sight of her joy and fun.

Soon, she had worked up a thirst and a hunger and I picked her some garden fresh tomatoes and cucumbers.   

And she feasted.     

She drank fresh squeezed lemonade until she could hold no more.   

And does it get any better than this?  

Can I be any more blessed?    

“For the Lamb who is in the midst of the throne will shepherd them and lead them to living fountains of waters. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.” Rev. 7:17

The minute the shoe box was opened her eyes lit up and she expressed her great delight with a loud squeal. “High heels! Oh, they are gorgeous!!! I love them!”

There was just no way of getting around it, she had to have them. Her very first pair. All throughout the store, to anyone who would stop long enough to look, she would show them her new beloved high heel shoes.    

As soon as we settled in the car, she was ready to put them on, along with a new dress she had picked out. I cut off the tags between stops under her watchful eye and before we went into the next store she had changed her clothes and put on her new shoes.

“Oh mammy! I look just like a super model!” she exclaimed, her eyes dancing with excitement.

Both mommy and mammy agreed, “Yes you do! You look so beautiful!”   

She climbed out of the car and started walking across the parking lot in her new strappy heels, hunched over, scuffing and dragging her feet as she went. Her little toes turned white each time she took a step from trying to grip the shoes and hold them on, for walking too fast caused the shoes to fly off her feet. She looked like a little old lady as she walked slowly along and her mommy and I exchanged several amused looks. The laughter was swelling up within us and it took great effort to contain it.

I imagine that this is exactly how I look trying to walk in my high heels, so this mammy understands that it is not so easy.    

But oh, how she loved her new shoes!   

Our day moved at a much slower pace from that point on and after a couple of more stops we were on our way home.   

She sat in the back seat, looking thoughtful, then she said with great disappointment in her voice, “This super model thing didn’t work out so good.”

“Why? What do you mean Aria?” We both wanted to know.

“Well, I have a new dress and my new high heel shoes and no one told me that I look like a supermodel.”

We tried the best we could to assure her that even though they didn’t say it, they were thinking it.   

And later on, at mammy and gumps house, her gumps, being the amazing grandfather that he is, and with some coaching from me, saved the day.

After she made him close his eyes so she could position herself in front of him, he opened his eyes . . . looked amazed . . . and said . . . “WOW! Aria, you look just like a supermodel!”   

The delighted, happy look on her face told us—mission accomplished!      

The Lord God is my strength; He will make my feet like deer’s feet, and He will make me walk on my high hills.  Habakkuk 3:19

“Mammy, would you fix my hair before we read the bible?” she said to me with a lisp.   

“I want it to look beautiful! I want two braids.”   

“And I need to put on my princess dress, That’s what little girls do when they do their bible study.” 

She continued on with a British accent, “After all, I am royalty and I am from another kingdom.”      

She settled herself in and began to read (quote from memory) the account of Adam and Eve.   

And I sat too, listening to her as she read on.

And thank You God for such a wonderful day. The weather was perfect and the breeze gently blew as we sat under that tree, sharing in God’s word.

And these treasured moments that can only come from Him are the cherished times that linger on in my heart.

So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate. She also gave to her husband with her, and he ate.  Genesis 3:6