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Birthday fun!

To celebrate Ethan's birthday we went to a local family fun center that has a rock wall, minature golf, batting cages. bumper water boats, basketball, and go karts. He brought his best friend Michael with him and they had 2 1/2 hrs of unlimited fun! Ethan was so excited that he was able to ride the bigger go karts by himself! I went on the first round of the big track with him and that was enough for me! I was so dizzy by the time we were done. They had a smaller track for ages 8-10 so Logan and Michael were able to ride by themselves on this track. Christian had to ride with Dan on the go karts. They loved the bumper boats (probably because it was hot and humid and it cooled them off). A great time was had by all!

Happy 11th Birthday Ethan!

Happy 11th Birthday to my Ethan! It is hard to believe that 11 years have already come and gone and my first baby is 11! I think back 11 years ago and we were so young. Too young some would say to be having our first baby. I was two months shy of turning 21 and Dan was 26. After over 20 hours of labor followed by an unexpected c-section and some drama in between we were blessed with the most beautiful baby boy. I remember the nurse bringing him into my room around 4am for the first time and handing him to me. I remember feeling nervous and thinking "what am I suppose to do with him?" He was so tiny weighing in at 6lbs and 3ozs. He quietly slept as I began to unwrap him from his blanket and examine his ten little fingers and toes. It was just the two of us.

On June 27, 1997 he blessed me with the amazing gift of motherhood. I have always said that it is because of Ethan that I knew I wanted more children. Never could I have imagined how much love I would feel for this tiny little person. How could love possibly be that instant? But it was. He taught me patience(which I was in desparate need of) when I was struggling to figure out how to soothe him. He taught me to how to "enjoy the moment" when it was 3am and I was so exhausted. He slept quitely on my chest in complete peace. He taught me "joy" when he smiled his first smile. He taught me "unconditional love" the very moment he was born.

Through the years he continues to teach me. At 11 years old he is still kind, loving, and affectionate. He still comes up to me and hugs me during the day for no reason. He still tells me "I love you" every day. He will ask (almost every day) "do you need help with anything?" He is a good student, a good friend, and most of the time a good brother. He loves to play and watch soccer. That is his sport! He is a wonderful son and I love him so very much!

Time for a new do

I have already decided that I am going to have my haircut before my sister's wedding. I have a hair appointment next week and I need a change. My hair was cut something like this awhile back ago but I let it grow out a little because I wasn't sure what I was going to do with it for the wedding. It was more of an angled bob and it was cut off my neck which I loved! Now that summer is here my hair has grown down my neck and can be pulled back into a ponytail. It is driving me crazy! I decided I didn't want my hair up for the wedding or anything too formal looking because that just isn't me. I found this picture of Jenny McCarthy and love the cut!

Enjoying a cool summer day

Basketball camp

This week Logan and Christian went to a basketball camp hosted by the local high school. I know I have mentioned before about Logan's love of football but they both now have a passion for basketball. They are always shooting hoops in the driveway so we thought this camp would be a great idea for them! The camp was for boys entering 2nd, 3rd, or 4th grade but the coach allowed Christian to participate even though he is only going into first grade. The hoop really was too high for him to shoot but he played hard and had fun anyway. Today was the last day of camp and they played finals today. Wouldn't you know that Logan and Christian's teams played against each other for first place! So who do you think won? It was a close game but ultimately Logan's team beat Christian's team 8-6.

*I apologize for the quality of the pictures. My camera is awful at taking pictures in any type of gym setting! I think it is time to invest in a better camera considering I have missed way too many awards ceremony moments because of a lack of good lighting.

The Dress

This is obviously not "the dress" but since that cannot be revealed until the wedding, here is a picture of the bridesmaid's dress for my sister's wedding. This was taken after I had it altered and you can't tell from the picture but it falls mid knee and it is a very flattering dress! Like Danielle I LOVE PINK so I, of course, agreed with this choice. I will say that my sister is the "dream bride" in my opinion. We tried on sooo many dresses and it came down to this dress and two others. The first one was her favorite and I hated it so she was kind enough to not even consider it. No bridezillas here! She has been the easiest bride to please and I will always treasure the special memories we have made together planning for her BIG DAY!