One of the greatest joys of the past seven (yikes, seven!) weeks has been to watch Shaun love Kaylee. I know that it fulfills a deep longing in his heart to be a dad..a hole that had been left painfully empty after Zachary died...and he is awesome. Really awesome.

Kaylee is a really easy baby (I guess I don't know what a difficult baby is, but she seems easy...), but after 10pm she doesn't do quite as well. She's a bit of a terror, actually. But, Shaun discovered before we had even left the hospital that if he held Kaylee up close to his face when she was upset and whispered right in her ear that she would calm down. The same is true if he walks around and sings to her (only hymns for some reason, though...she starts screaming again if we try to sing a chorus...I've discovered how limited repertoire of hymns is!).

There have been many nights as I have watched Shaun walk circles around the living room while whispering to Kaylee or singing over her that I have thought to myself, 'Do I recognize the sound of my heavenly Father's voice like that? Is my life quiet enough to hear His whisper? And do I trust the love and comfort of a Father who delights in me enough to sing over me?'

I love Zephaniah 3:17 (ESV):

"The Lord your God is in your midst, a Mighty One who will save; He will rejoice over you with gladness; He will quiet you by His love; He will exult over you with loud singing."

I feel so blessed that my daughter has a daddy who loves her so, so much. But I feel even more blessed that we have a heavenly Father who, not only holds our lives in His strong hands, but loves us enough to hold us close and whisper words of comfort and peace when we need it.

I read this verse this morning:

"I lie down and sleep; I wake again, because the Lord sustains me." Psalm 3:5

As I walk through this year, I want to live with a complete dependence on my Sustainer. I want the truth that I am nothing without Him, and that everything belongs to Him to be in the forefront of my mind and affect every decision I make...the words that I choose...and my trust in His power and grace.

Although, reading that verse again just now gave me the giggles because I don't really lie down and sleep very much these days. :-)