Babies. I definitely have babies on my mind this week.

Our granddaughter is visiting from the Pacific Northwest and I’m treasuring every moment. After 14 months, Willow’s parents have already lost a lot of sleep on her behalf. They’ve spent a fortune on medical bills (she was five weeks premature), baby furniture, clothes, diapers, and the gazillion other things a baby needs in our culture. And they’d do it all again, because they love her!

Our family went to a Chinese restaurant for lunch yesterday. Instead of ordering a whole meal for a baby, we each agreed to share some food off our plates. Willow enthusiastically gummed down everything from red bell peppers, tofu, and egg roll to mu shu pork and bits of scrambled egg and dried lilies fished out of my hot and sour soup. She ate a lot! Why would I give her so much of my lunch that I needed a snack when we got home? Of course, it’s because I love her!

Willow is here because her mom, our younger daughter, is in town to host a baby shower for our older daughter. Yes, we’re expecting granddaughter No. 2 sometime around Labor Day. This one won’t live so far away, a mere hour and a half, so I’ve already signed on to babysit every other Thursday.

Why would I give up an entire day out of my busy schedule, and drive a hundred miles each way (through Denver traffic) to take care of this baby? It’s pretty obvious. She isn’t even born yet and already I love her.

I’m sure you’re aware that Princess Kate and Prince William were blessed with a baby boy yesterday. It made headlines on all the news sites; all that fuss over the birth of a figurehead monarch. The young prince will grow up with every advantage as he learns how to be a king. He didn’t have to apply for the job, and it won’t much matter if he’s good looking, talented, or charming. He is privileged because of who his parents are.

We don’t love Willow because she’s cute, brilliant, personable, and funny (although at age one, she is all those things). We love her because she’s our granddaughter. I’m confident that we’ll love our new granddaughter just as much. The royal baby is only one day old, and he’s already third in line for the throne. He didn’t have to do anything to earn it.

I learned a lot about God the Father when I became a parent. I learned how dependent I am on His abilities and wisdom. I finally understood about discipline. I discovered how much joy there is in giving gifts to someone who can never pay me back.

Most of all, I learned about a parent’s love for their children. God loves us no matter what we do, or how we turn out.. He is thrilled when we do something kind and loving or full of faith. Some things we do make Him sad or angry. We can even reject His love. But nothing, absolutely nothing, can make Him stop loving us.

He loves me even more than I love my daughters and granddaughters.

Wow.