Names and Hands

Dad just got back from getting my birth certificate, and it seems like a good time to properly introduce myself.

Yes, I'm called Katie, but that's actually only my nickname. It's what Mom & Dad have been calling me for months now--although they wouldn't tell anyone else. Mom wanted to "meet" me before deciding for sure on a name. Guess it must have fit!

My official name, however, is Karis Lydia VanCleave. Well, at least that's my official name according to Mom & Dad and, hopefully, according to the US government once I apply for my passport on Wednesday. Karis is Greek for "grace," and Mom & Dad say that that's what I am--an amazing gift of grace to them. Lydia comes from the woman talked about in Acts 16: 14 - 15. Apparently, she sold purple cloth and was from Thyatira. I don't think that's why Mom & Dad chose the name, though! But it does says that she "was a worshiper of God" and that God opened her heart so that she responded to the truth that Paul was sharing.

As far as hands are concerned, have I mentioned how great Dad's hands are? They're big, and they're great for calming me down when I'm upset, for sucking on (his thumb pad is just about the right size), and for making me feel safe before I go to sleep. And, yesterday, I "discovered" my hands! Well, not really: Dad helped me find them, but I've got to say that when Mom or Dad helps me out, my fists, fingers, thumbs, whole hands . . . pretty much any part of them . . . are also great for sucking on. Which does, by the way, seem to be my favorite thing to do when I'm awake.