Where has the time gone?

Well, 10 days ago my first born turned 9 years old. It really made Tod and I stop and wonder where all of the time had gone... Don't get me wrong, we are thrilled that he is growing up, just a little bit sad that he's not our cute, chubby, no back talking, little boy anymore. He is growing up very nicely. We did have a rough year or two that I never thought we would make it trough, but we did and we have come out even stronger on the other side. Caleb really has become a delight and it is so wonderful to see him stretching his wings, learning new things, yet still looking back to take our hand when he needs it. Here are some pictures from 01/11/09:

The Birthday Boy and my mom (who shares her birthday with him), Caleb was making his wish in the first picture., enjoying his yummy Cold Stone Creamery ice cream cake in the 2nd, and hanging out with Grandma in the third.

Finally, a picture of Colin who was doing his best to wait patiently for his cake.

Quick update

I know tha tI have been lax in my updates over the past few weeks, but I have been taking the time to play and read with my boys and doing my best to take less time on the computer. I will need to save my pic uploading and journaling for after they are in bed so that I don't miss out on anything.

My sister was home for the holidays and it was a GREAT 5 days to have her home! The boys couldn't get enough of Aunt Cate and I believe that we spent some time at my mom &
dad's every day that she was here!

Christmas Eve was a blessing. The big boys sang in the Children's Choir at the 4pm Mass and then we headed to my parent's house for our traditional buffett style dinner, crazy gift exchange, and general merriment. The best part of the evening is that my Grandfather's health was ok enough for he and my Grandmother to join us for the evening. That was not the case last year, and their presence was sorely missed at that time. Family has always been a very important part of the holiday season for us and we treasure every minute that we get to spend with them.

Christmas Day was wonderful, overwhelming, and a good day for all. After the boys woke us up. we opened gifts, had our cheesy scrambled egg breakfast, and hung out in our pajamas for a few hours before getting dressed and heading to Pendleton to see Tod's family. The boys couldn't have been happier since they were able to spend all day playing with their cousins that they don't see that often...as parents, Tod's brother and his wife, and Tod & I all received plenty of nagging from our own kids about why they never get to see their cousins. Aimee and I decided that we would do our very best to try to get the families together at least once a month for some downtime...we'll see how that goes.

New Year's Eve was pretty quite. We spent a few hours at our dear friends house playing games and then came home around 11pm (I did not want to be on the roads with my precious cargo and all of the rookie party-goers). I was exhausted when we got home and dozed on the couch while the boys played games right next to me on the floor and repeatedly updated me with the countdown..."you only have 156 more minutes to rest mom!", "Mom, it's only 5 minutes away!", "Mom, the ball is starting to drop!", "Happy New Year, Mom! Can we go out and bang pots & Pans?"...and they did.

We are now looking forward to this Sunday, it will be Caleb and my mom's birthday. Caleb will be 9, and I'm not so sure my mom wants me to let you know how old she will be!

I will post pics from the past few weeks later.