A special day...

Last weekend we celebrated a very special Mother's day... Thanks to this little peanut, it was extra special for Andi, her first Mother's day as a mother...

We are both very blessed to have wonderful mother's that have paved the way and shown us through actions what it is to be a wonderful, loving parent.  We both owe so much to our mom's, we pray we are able to impact little Claire the way our mother's have impacted us.

I've had the good fortune of being able to observe Andi as a mother over the past 3 and a half months. She never ceases to amaze me... She was born to be a mom.  Watching her with Claire on a daily basis is truly a blessing, it never gets old.  But what is most amazing to me is how Andi is with Claire during the difficult times, the times when Claire is screaming and crying and we can't seem to settle her down... the times in the middle of the night when we just can't seem to get her back to sleep.  Those are the times that a lot of parents (myself included) start to break down and allow frustration to seep in.  Not Claire's mom.  I'm always so amazed at how Andi deals with the most difficult situations with such amazing grace and patience.  The fact that I get to take this journey and raise Claire alongside Andi is comforting to say the least... I know it's going to be a fun ride, but the fact that Claire's mom is Andi is what will make it truly special...

Also on Mother's day we celebrated dad's (papa's) birthday!  My dad is a very special man, one who always leads by example and allows his actions to speak.  He has impacted the lives of literally thousands of kids as a school teacher, he has changed lives through his bible study at school and showing kids that there is always hope.  Again, he shows these things by actions, by showing kids he truly cares, by really always being there for them... not just saying he will be.  Our family is so blessed that we don't have dad for just a year in class, or 4 years in high school... We have had him as our teacher in life, for as long as I can remember he's been teaching all of us, again through his actions.  Our textbook? The Bible.  We weren't yelled at as kids, rather sat down and showed in scripture why what we did was wrong, you just can't argue that!  Meg, myself, and his grandkids are his legacy, we sure hope we do him proud!

So for dad's birthday he had a simple wish, his favorite cake and all of his grandkids around him to help him blow out the candles, we were able to deliver!

Happy Birthday, dad... Sorry this is so late! We love you very much!