So...you remember this cute little pregnant chic?  

She is pregnant no more.  Baby Bristol has arrived.  In style I might add.

I believe darling would be the word. :)

Note Bristol's outfit. And the fantabulous chevron blanket below.  Both were crocheted with love by her aunt Jewel.

And, yes, this is the Jewel who inspired Bristol's middle name.

For good reason.

I know.  Kara knows for sure.  And really if you know Jewel at all, you know too.

A worthy namesake if ever there was one.

Baby toes.  So unbelievably tiny, adorable, and photo-friendly.
First doll...from her mother.

For as far back as my brain can recall, Kara has had a gifting and a heart for kids.  She followed her heart to Ghana, Africa a few years back, and she loved on two sweet little ones that were like her very own.  

THERE IS SOMETHING ABOUT LIVING AND DOING AND SIMPLY BEING WHO GOD MADE YOU TO BE.  IT'S INSPIRING.

Watching Kara with kids is inspiring.  She's in her sweet spot...and it reminds and encourages me to find my sweet spot in God's story too.  It is not always easy.  Kara worked at a high school for a few years after returning from Africa, and I saw her bless and affirm the sox right off of her students.  

KARA IS ENERGY AND SPONTANEITY AND ONE OF THE MOST FUN PEOPLE I KNOW. 

...so it is no wonder her students loved her.  They responded to her life and energy because she was simply being her God-created self.  It's amazing how hard that can be...being yourself.  Life happens, and before we know it, we wake up a little lost to who we were really meant to be.  I've watched Kara quietly fight back to finding and recovering her true self through the curveballs that life has thrown her way.  A few years ago she was at a crossroads, and God brought her a book that led her back to her sweet spot...kids.  She's been loving on a room full of toddlers at a daycare for a few years now, bringing them life while teaching them not to go potty in their pants (not kidding...she has the potty-training room...r.e.s.p.e.c.t!)  

AND YOU KNOW WHY SHE'S GOING TO BE A GREAT MOM?  BECAUSE MOTHERHOOD IS ALL ABOUT GIVING AND SHARING LIFE, AND SHE'S BEEN DOING THAT ALL ALONG.

She'd be the first to tell you that she doesn't have it all figured out.  But she's on the right path, and there is grace for the uncertain places, and God is good so life is too.  

Kara, I am so proud of you.  Bristol is blessed to be yours.

Brand new Mom and Pop right here. Preston served as a firefighter in Iraq...

While we were working to get Bristol tucked neatly into Preston's helmet, I asked him about his warped face shield.  I discovered that the face shield begins to breakdown at nine hundred degrees.  He went on to say that when his face mask (not pictured here) started to spider up and breakdown as well (at twelve hundred degrees), they pulled out of that particular fire.  He quipped that we'd probably think twice about putting a baby in the helmet if we knew what the helmet had been through.  Umm.  Yes. 

A little Dr. Seuss...because it's a favorite of her mother's.

Packer football is the air these two breathe so they're getting Bristol acclimated early.

Congratulations, guys!  So very happy for you!