Happy Birthday Melissa!

Today is my daughter-in-law Melissa's birthday. Melissa and Shawn have been  married for almost eleven years and have just welcomed their first child, Awstin, into their family this summer. Over the years, I have come to deeply appreciate Melissa and here are just a few things that I love about her.

I love her laugh. Once she really starts laughing, it turns into a deep belly laugh and comes bubbling out of her and if she laughs hard enough, the tears will come gushing out of her eyes and she tries vainly to wipe them away with her hand as they just keep coming and she keeps on laughing. Just watching her laugh, makes me laugh.

I love her creativity. Melissa is so incredibly talented. She beautifully decorated their home that they bought and renovated. She chose colors that I would never have been brave enough to try, and put them together with other colors that I would have been afraid of and the result is spectacular. I love to walk into their house because it is so warm and inviting. Another way that she uses her creativity is through scrapbooking. I love looking through the colorful and creative pages that she puts together with pictures and journaling.

I love the way she treats animals. If you have been reading my blog, I have introduced you to her dog Indy. Indy adores her and she adores him. She also loves to show dairy cows at the local Lampeter Fair.

I love her work ethic. Melissa is a hard worker. She works for Quarryville Herd Health and I am not sure of everything she does for them, but I know she vaccinates and dehorns calves and does a lot of lab testing for them. She also milks cows for a local dairy farmer over the weekends and some evenings. I have noticed that she likes to be busy and she isn't afraid to get her hands dirty.

I love watching her interact with Awstin. Having a baby after 10 years of marriage was a major world upheaval for the two (3 if you count Indy) of them and Melissa has handled it amazingly well. She is a good mother and Awstin is absolutely thriving. Of course, Awstin is still really little, but I love watching the way she talks to him and seeing Awstin's response to her.

Most of all, I love that she loves Shawn. As a mother, we always want our children to be happy and what more could we wish and pray for then a spouse who loves them. I am incredibly thankful for their love and dedication to each other and to the Lord.

I am blessed to have Melissa Kay (Charles) Lehman as my daughter-in-law. Happy birthday!