My Child, My Treasure

Cole's teacher asked us to write a letter to our kiddos for their memory books. It turned out sweet, so I thought I'd share it.

My Child, My Treasure

Remember When…

Remember when you were one and you fell and knocked your front tooth out? You were missing that tooth until you were six. Remember when you had E. Coli in Mexico? You were just a baby and so, so sick. It was scary to see you so sick. But you were tough, and you pulled through. Thank goodness for antibiotics.

Remember when you were two and we lived in Montana? You loved to throw rocks in the river. Morgen would try to chase them but they would sink too quickly. You thought that was so funny.

Remember when you were three and you learned to ride a two wheeler? I remember how cute you were riding around and around the park with Daddy jogging after you. You were so proud and so were we.

Remember the time you pulled the sword from the stone at Disneyland? You were four then. I’ll never forget that smile on your face.

Remember when you were five and we let you eat as much Halloween candy as you wanted? Then remember how you threw it all up in the bathtub? I think you learned a valuable lesson that day.

Remember that time you were six and we went camping in Death Valley? Daddy let you sit on his lap and drive the Scout. You would have driven up that trail for hours if the sun had stayed in the sky.

Remember when you were seven and you crashed on your dirt bike? You had road pizza on your elbow and your hip and you were mad that Daddy took a picture. I bet you’re glad now. I know I am.

Remember when you were eight and O’brien died? That was a sad time for us. You said you were sad because you weren’t there to save him. You have such a big heart.

Remember when you were nine and we took you sailing in Panama? Remember the tuna you caught for our dinner? It was one of the best meals we had that whole trip.

Remember when you were ten and you got picked up by the Policia in Guatemala for playing soccer on the neighbor’s property? That day gave me a few grey hairs.

My sweet boy, we probably don’t tell you enough how proud we are of the wonderful, generous, brave, smart, sincere, and loving person you are.

Remember always how much we treasure you. We love you so much.

~ Mom and Dad

My Little Sunshine Turns One!!

I can't believe my baby girl is already one year old!! That year flew by... We celebrated luau style with family and close friends. The weather was gorgeous and everyone had fun. Soli wasn't so into the messiness of her cake but, honestly, that's pretty typical for my kids...she fits right in. She has adjusted so easily to ebb and flow of our fun filled days. It's hard to remember a day without her. The kids have just a couple more weeks (10 days to be exact-Emerson informs me every day) of school, and then summer will be upon us!! We are planning to grab the kids out of school on the last day and hit the high road straight to Disney Land. We haven't been since Evie was a baby! I promised the kids that since we had a "small" Christmas (relatively speaking, of course) in Guatemala that we would take them to Disney Land when we got home. So we are making good on our promise. Dave is being a good sport by going along with the plan (he'd pretty much rather not do the whole D Land thing), and then we're taking a week to recover in Palm Springs. We can't wait for some quality R&R with our kiddos. Here are some fun pics of Soli's big day. I hope you are all happy and healthy. Please send thoughts of strength and good health to our dear friend Mike and his family, who was just diagnosed with a stage four, advanced carcinoma over his stomach and liver. Thanks for checking in. ~Heather

Good Morning my beautiful birthday girl!

A birthday dinner with Gramma and Grandpa.

I just love this birthday thing!! And I love my Miami Hurricanes Nemo from Gramma and Grandpa!!

Soli's favorite part about opening presents was eating the tissue paper. Her favorite toy, you ask? The instructions to her Wee Sing microphone...hours of entertainment!

Soli's cake - I was so excited about the hibiscus candle!

Daddy the grillmaster.

The "other" cake for the rest of us.

Sister cousins: Kylie, Payton (just 3 weeks old), Evie, and Soli (Kylie and Payton are my sister's daughters)

Sissies!!

I just love my birthday!!

Soli wasn't too sure about her cake...

So Evie stepped in to lend a hand...

But in the end the sticky frosting proved too much for our little birthday girl! "Mommy, I got messies on my finger!"

Nothing a dip in the jacuzzi didn't take care of!

Ni-night my birthday girl! I love you, mi nena!