2 Years

Evan's birthday marked another anniversary for our family, one that is not so joyous.  It has been two years since Amy's passing.  Two years of not hearing her voice, not seeing her smile, or watching her play with my kids.  There have been so many times in the past two years that I would stand in my kitchen, phone in hand, just wanting to call her about my day.  Of course I could easily punch out her phone number and I can hear her answering machine clearly.  I've reached out a few times to other friends from college, just to maintain some type of connection to that part of my life and, by extension, to Amy.  It isn't the same, but it will do.  (Don't get me wrong, I'm thrilled to have reconnected with some of my old college friends!  Truly grateful!)  I'm not sure what else to write about this, other than I did not want this anniversary to pass unnoticed.  Amy, I miss you tremendously.  It really is that simple.

Four Years Old!!!

It is virtually impossible for me to describe what it felt like, 4 years ago, to wrap my arms around a living, breathing, perfect little boy. The child who would never have been, the baby we never dared believe would make it into this world, the miracle we needed more than anything...this was all wrapped up in an 8lb, 1oz warm, squirming bundle and placed on my chest that cold, snowy night 4 years ago.

As this blond-haired, blue-eyed little guy grows, he continues to charm all who meet him. We are so in awe of this little guy and so lucky he has joined our family. Happy Birthday, Evan!

 

Party Pictures

Baby's first cake...though as we were talking about it, we realized that, being the fourth child, we have no idea if this is actually her first cake. Probably not!

Tasting...

Oh wait...this stuff is GOOD!

 

More, please!!

Birthday presents wrapped in newspaper.  Love it!!

What is it??

Hum...

Ahhhh...a new laundry basket!!

Maybe I should explain this--you see, Jordan LOVES rides in the laundry basket.  The girls will throw a pillow in the bottom of one and carry her around while she giggles and claps her hands.  Unfortunately, all my laundry baskets are broken, resulting in sharp edges on many of them.  Erin is pretty careful about putting pillows in just the right places, but for J's birthday, she decided that Jordan could really use some new baskets.  So we did!  (See, with a little explanation, a new laundry basket seems like the perfect gift for a 1-year-old, doesn't it??)

A year??

Tomorrow, our Grand Finale, our precious baby girl will turn one. ONE. I cannot believe how fast this year has gone and, while I know how cliche it sounds, I believe the more children you have, the faster it goes. Our last little one has gone from a tiny infant to a nearly-toddling path of destruction. She is amazing and I'm so very thankful for the opportunity to be a mom to a baby girl once more.

 

 

 

 Then (above) and Now (below)

 

 

 

Happy Birthday, Jordan!  I can't wait to see what the next year brings!