Father's Day Celebrations!

Father's Day has always been a special time for our family as we spoil dad, making all his favorite foods, bringing him breakfast in bed, and just spending a relaxing day together with him! This year, in addition to my own father, I was able to celebrate my husband and the amazing father that he is to our son! I am so blessed to have Joe who looks forward to spending time with his son, helps with the late nights, diaper changes, and bringing cute new outfits home. He sincerely LOVES being a dad to Wes, and it shows in the way they interact together. It's so special to watch!

Here is the card that we made and developed for Joey's first Father's Day!! The Chinese characters at the bottom say "Happy Father's Day!" or "Fu Qing Jie Kuai Le!"
I also spelled it out in pancake art for brunch on Sunday. haha...something maybe only Joey would have an appreciation for, but it was a fun attempt!



In addition to a new cell phone for him, Wes also gave his daddy a nice sleep on Sunday afternoon. The kind of thing that new daddies have a great appreciation for!!! :D


Wes has been having longer times of contentment by himself lately! When we find him kicking and playing in his crib instead of crying, or staying awake and just looking around when he's in his stroller or in his bouncy chair while we have dinner. His big dark blue eyes capture every Asian lady walking by!

Here are some video clips of him just smiling and playing. Sometimes it's difficult to concentrate on anything else when I can hear him cooing (yes, he's started to coo!!!) and laughing to himself. I try to keep the video camera handy for such occasions. :D




Here is our ayi, Linda, who loves Wes about as much as we do!! She wants to keep him while Joe & I go back to America this summer. haha. I don't think so. ;)
We will, however, probably ask her to babysit on occasion. ;)


Now that Joey is out of school, we're enjoying walks and picnics together in our beautiful park!!


...and, TADA!!! The latest new development... Wes is now the proud owner of a US passport and his very first Chinese visa!!! Congratulations, little guy!!!


Looking forward to seeing you all in a week!!! :)

J,N, &W

Dee & Geo's Wedding!!

I can't believe they're married!!!! Dee is such a special friend to me, and has been such an example to me of living out her faith through pure obedience. To see how God has blessed that obedience by bring Geo into her life is just so special. We rejoice with them!!

The bridemaids, MOB, and MOG started out the celebrations with manicures and pedicures!! It was a great way to get to know each other!
The bridesmaids were from South Africa, Taiwan, London England, France, and Canada (me!)
The MOB is from Ireland, and the MOG is from France. We had SO much fun!











After manicures, we headed over to a restaurant, where we surprised Dee by having about 15 extra people waiting with a table decorated for all of us!! It was my first evening out since Wes was born! (Joe & Wes enjoyed a guy's night at home while I was gone.) It was a great night for all of us! :D






Friday night was rehearsal!! Even though it has rained for 2 weeks straight here in Shanghai, there was a lot of happiness going on!! :D

And then, of course, Saturday June 18th was the big day!! Us bridesmaids met up with Dee, her mom, and her sister at the hotel to primp. :)

All the bridesmaids wore little white dresses and we each carried a different color bouquet!













Joe looked after Wes during the ceremony, and I took over for the reception, since he had to go to his school's graduation ceremonies that afternoon. But Wes was SO GOOD! He loves being held, and slept a lot of the time, so I really can't complain. He's just such a good baby!

Unfortunately our camera battery died, so I didn't get many photos of the bride and groom together. Will post more as friends pass them on! :)





Congratulations, Dee & Geo!!! We love you guys!!

Wesley at 5 Weeks

Wes continues to win our hearts with his beautiful eyes, smile, and temperment. At 5 weeks he is really strengthening the muscles in his legs by standing on our laps, squirming around in his crib to move from the position we left him when we tucked him in at night, and starting to focus more on objects and people!
Currently he doesn't think it necessary to go to bed before 11:30 PM at least. Right now it is almost 1 AM and he is kicking and making cute baby noises, wide awake, looking all around, oblivious to his tired mommy wishing she could at least see a yawn. :P He last woke up from his nap at 4:30 PM, so sleep should come soon!!!
Here are a few videos for your enjoyment!! Looking forward to seeing you soon!




Tomorrow (okay, today!) is Joey's last day of work until the beginning of August!!! YAY!!
Also, this weekend is Dee & Geo's wedding!!!!!! YAY!!! We've been counting down the days until both of these events for awhile now! Lots of excitement in this house as Nica decides what Wes will wear, worries about fitting into her bridesmaid dress, plans bridal showers, and prays the rainy-day streak we've been happening will be finished by Saturday so her hair doesn't friz and curl in all the wrong places. I'm sure you're all interested about that, so I'll keep you posted. :D

hugs!
Nica (for Joe & Wes, too!)

Baby's first day of school & Baby Dedication!

Last weekend was a special weekend for Wes for several reasons!

As Joe begins to wrap up the school year, several special occasions take place. One was a "fair" where students create business ideas to raise money for their student councel. It was the perfect day for Nica & Wes to make our grand appearance to meet the students and teachers of Yew Wah! It was a beautiful afternoon and a lot of fun!

Here is Wes visiting Daddy's classroom!

On Sunday, July 5th, at almost 4 weeks old, we had the privilege of participating in a baby dedication. Although I dedicated him to the Lord every time I lay him in bed for the night (mommy just can't be there to protect him at ALL times!) this was a public declaration of Joe and I that evidenced our dependence upon the Lord to raise this child and our desire to raise him in the ways of God and according to His word. Some day, should Wes desire, he will be baptized of his own free will to publicly declare his love for the Lord and faith in Christ. We look forward to witnessing that day in his life!!!

Here we are in our church waiting for the families to be called to the front.

We were joined by 11 other families who also used this time to dedicate their babies to God.

Each child was introduced to the church on the screen so they could both meet and pray for each child being dedicated. In case you can't read the words:

Wesley Martin Born May 9, 2011
Proud Parents: Joe & Veronica Martin

USA/Canada

It was amazing to see children from so many countries, cultures, and background being dedicated that day!

Wes was anointed with oil and prayed over by our pastor, joined by the congregation, asking for God to guide and bless his life. We are so privileged to be given this precious boy to raise! We daily pray for wisdom in how to guide his little life! We are grateful for our friends and families who are willing to support us in this daunting task!

Each family was given a bouquet of flowers and a certificate of dedication to commemorate the occasion.

After the service, Wes was surrounded by supportive and encouraging friends! :)

We hope this post can make other friends and family feel like you were there, too! Thanks for your support and prayers! We love you guys!

Joe, Nica, & Wes