Horn Family Chronicles

11.28.2005

Horn of Plenty

Our Thanksgiving festivities involved several of the Horn clan. We traveled with our 14 week old Chloe to Lowell, Michigan to join the Benjamin Horn family for the turkey holiday. Matt's brother's family lives out in the country on a beautiful 10 acre lot complete with wooded backyard and sledding hill (which our nieces and nephew thoroughly enjoy). It snowed the entire weekend and the graceful flakes made every window scape picturesque. The snow also gave us an excuse for staying indoors and playing games together (not that we need an excuse - our families are quickly becoming serious gamers. Don't worry we haven't started dressing up and attending gaming conventions . . . not yet anyways). Matt had an unusual run of success during the gaming weekend much to my sister-in-law Diane's dismay and surprise.

Our Chloe Abigail and their Grace Miranda were the stars of the weekend. Only 5 months apart in age, the two cousins displayed different reactions to each other. As Chloe's main desires are to eat, sleep and play the airplane game - activities that do not include another baby - she was unaffected by her cousin. Grace however seemed intrigued and curious about Chloe. She reached for her (as for a toy) and watched Chloe with curiosity. The two cousins also marauded as elves on Thanksgiving (thanks for the surprise Diane!).

So, why title this blog posting Horn of Plenty? Because the great time we had this Thanksgiving reminded me of the blessings of family. Our family isn't wealthy, famous, or exquisite in beauty but we have plenty to be thankful for because of the love that God has given us. Matt, Chloe and I are extremely thankful for the family ties that God has planned and created for us. I'm realizing more and more how vital family is. I am excited for Chloe to grow up and to become a special member of this loving bunch. Hope your Thanksgiving was as full of blessings as was ours!

Check out more pictures from our Thanksgiving weekend at my picture blog - Horn family photo album.

11.14.2005

Weekend with the grandmas

Chloe was all smiles for my mom and grandma this weekend. Boy is she fun now that she's 3 months old! We're still waiting for her to laugh. She will smile super big like the picture above but no sound comes out! I think it's safe to say my mom and grandma thoroughly enjoyed Chloe during their visit. They arrived Thursday evening and we had a nice long drive home from the airport thanks to my uncanny horrible sense of direction. Chloe was asleep when we got home but she woke up to say hello to her grandmas. I know I shouldn't have woken her up so late but I was so very ansy to share Chloe with them. Since Matt was overloaded with schoolwork, we left him alone Friday and went shopping with Chloe in the baby backpack. She sits face out in the backpack now and her curious eyes take in everything. Friday night the grandmas gave Matt & I a much needed date night. We went out to Joe's Crab Shack and then to see the new Wallace & Gromit movie (terrific film - I highly recommend it).

My mom cooes at Chloe while on babysitter duty.

When Chloe naps I usually do household chores, relax, or nap. Since I've been feeling unmotivated to exercise, I've started incorporating it into our playtime. I lift Chloe up and down during an airplane game and then we do sit-ups together.

Chloe napped on grandma's lap and showed her approval of New Zealand.

Saturday we had a pre-Thanksgiving feast since we won't be together for the true Turkey Day. Our feast was replete with goodies - garlic mashed potatoes, sweet potato casserole, corn, stuffing, rolls, turkey, cranberry sauce, spicy marinated olives and pumpkin cheesecake for dessert.

Chloe wants in on our turkey dinner.

My mom and Chloe play after dinner. Chloe doesn't usually go around in just her diaper but Matt insisted on taking off her cute stripedy pants. He has a strange aversion to striped pants.

After Chloe went to bed we spent Saturday evening playing cribbage and Cranium. All of us were tired and giddy while playing Cranium. I wish I had gotten a picture of my grandma acting out an inchworm!

Grandma feeds our wiggly Chloe.

Yummy carrot, eh Chloe?

Chloe and great grandma play pattycake together.

The weekend went by way too quickly. What I love about having my relatives around Chloe is the fact that they enjoy her just as much as I do. It's tremendous fun to share Chloe with them and to hear their stories about raising kids (although my mom swears she's forgotten most of our baby days). Chloe is truly blessed to have such wonderful and loving grandparents!

Grandchildren are God's way of compensating us for growing old.
- Mary Waldrip

Grandchildren are the crowning glory of the aged. . .
- Proverbs 17:6

11.10.2005

Women in hats

Chloe and I sported our winter hats this afternoon for a brisk autumn walk. Almost all the trees on our street have shed their leaves and the crunch of fallen foliage underfoot is delightful. Ohio isn't really known for its beauty, but Fall on our street is truly gorgeous. The oak tree (I think its oak, I'll have to do some botanical investigation on that) in our front yard transformed into a tie-dyed orange and yellow masterpiece before shedding its leaves. The leaves of the tree next door are bright yellow and the bushes down the street are fiery red. I don't think Chloe can understand my words yet but I sing to her nonetheless of the beauty of God in His creation. Here's a stanza I find myself singing to her lately . . .

When through the woods and forest glades I wander
And hear the birds sing sweetly in the trees;
When I look down from lofty mountain grandeur
And hear the brook and feel the gentle breeze,

Then sings my soul, my Savior God, to Thee:
How great Thou art, how great Thou art!
Then sings my soul, my Savior God, to Thee:
How great Thou art, how great Thou art!

The autumn colors also remind me of the poem "Nothing Gold Can Stay" by Robert Frost:

Nature's first green is gold,
Her hardest hue to hold.
Her early leafs a flower;
But only so an hour.
Then leaf subsides to leaf.
So Eden sank to grief,
So dawn goes down to day.
Nothing gold can stay.

Well, that says it better than I ever could. Hope you are enjoying the gold around you this Fall and are reminded of the Savior's creative brilliance.

10.30.2005

Chloe's first halloween

Happy halloween from the Horn family!

As you can plainly see, Chloe was a bright green dinosaur for her first halloween. And I think you'd agree she was the cutest dinosaur ever to roam the earth. Last night we proudly took our wee dino out to the neighborhood houses asking for treats. Growing up in the outskirts of a Texas city, Matt never experienced urban trick-or-treating. He was a little skeptical at the idea of knocking on strangers' doors and asking for candy. So I did the talking and he did the dinosaur toting. Turns out Matt and I had a better time than Chloe! She was a crabby dinosaur

(appropriate to her costume I suppose because her crying much resembled baby dino roaring) and eventually fell asleep on Matt's shoulder. Matt and I had some pleasant chats with our neighbors and brought home a dangerous haul of candy.

Several of our neighbors incorrectly assumed that Chloe was a boy during our trick-or-treating venture. Why? Because she was wearing a dinosaur costume? Why can't girls be dinosaurs? Arrrrrgggggghh . . . roars the dinosaur. I have the same problem any time I dress Chloe in any color other than pink. I realize that babies appear fairly gender neutral (unless you change their diapers) but that's no excuse to trap my Chloe into a doll-playing-ballerina-princess-girl box. God created Chloe to have a unique and distinct personality and she shouldn't be constrained by our society's ideas of gender. I qualify that statement by saying she should instead be guided by the Bible's idea of womanhood. I hope and pray Chloe will grow to be a godly woman characterized by the virtues of honesty, kindness, love, and gentleness. Proverbs 31:30 says "Charm is deceptive and beauty is fleeting; but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised."

On a lighter note, this holiday again reminded me that I am a very proud parent. I unabashedly carried our digital camera and snapped at least twenty pictures of our baby girl. I have been looking forward to dressing Chloe up in her dino costume since we bought it. When did I buy it, you ask? When I was six months pregnant. How's that for anxious? The surprised and almost frightened look on Matt's face when I brought home our yet-unborn baby's halloween costume was priceless. We both had little idea then how much fun we would have dressing our darling up and showing her off to the world.

Well, I have to say this holiday was more fun for us than for Chloe. As you can see from the photos, we were all beaming smiles and pride at our cute little baby girl. Don't get me wrong, we are enjoying the candy treats but the real fun was in relishing the sweetness and newness of Chloe. How much more love can a parent's heart hold?!? I have a feeling we are just beginning to taste the joy of parenting. Enjoy a few more halloween photos below . . .

Mommy and the sleeping dinosaur

Daddy shows off Chloe with her treats

Our lovely sleeping dino

10.21.2005

The Endearing Smile of Chloe

I thought it appropriate to begin Chloe's blog site with our favorite photo of her beautiful smile. I never knew how captivating a smile would be until Chloe graced me with her first. Pure joy and delight lies in her dear smile. It instantly lightens my heart, wakes me from my sleepiness, and erases any burdens plaguing my mind. How can a simple facial expression emote so much power and love? It seems to me that a smile is something more than just an expression - it's a direct reflection of a joyful heart. Chloe's joy is unadulterated and overflows into her smile.

Last night I laid Chloe in her crib for bedtime and sang her our lullaby, "Goodnight My Love". She stared at me with her big baby eyes and then broke out in a radiant smile. I shed a few tears when I realized it was my voice that caused her joy. I don't know if I'll ever be able to communicate to her how deeply she gives me joy in return. I suppose all mothers feel that way. Chloe is a truly precious gift from God and I thank Him for allowing me to be a part of her life.

"There is not one blade of grass, there is no color in this world that is not intended to make us rejoice." John Calvin