Happy Birthday to ANDREW!!!! so hard to believe he is 22...I remember so clearly the first time I saw him...he was a huge fat baby with a ton of black hair (my ONLY baby to have hair!) but it fell out quickly and was replaced with brown and then on our trip to Disney when he was 11 months old, it turned white blonde and stayed that way till he was teen.

Andrew has ALWAYS been our jokester...we called him wild man...he is full of energy, laughs, and yet has the hugest most compassionate heart. Everyone adores him and no one (not even the meanest teachers) could stay mad at him and as a result, he got away with everything!

The life of every party...the first to volunteer for service...a strong and abiding testimony of the Savior...a loyal brother...hard worker...the best friend you could EVER HAVE...AND ALWAYS FUN!!!

Andrew has made my life interesting, he can raise his Dad's blood pressure but having him near always lowers mine...I love him beyond words and am so proud of the incredible man he has become...

and did I mention he's SINGLE??????????

HAPPY BIRTHDAY DREWSTER!!!!

thank you Mrs. R

LaNelle has an adoption /infertility warrier hero. Her name is Lindsey, aka Mrs. R, and she has a blog. Occasionally I read her blog and tonight I found a gem...a quote I needed to read and even more need to follow. I have a temper...I know it seems hard to believe but I do ;)...anywho..here's the quote...enjoy! and thanks, Mrs. R...

"Whenever you get red in the face, whenever you raise your voice, whenever you get 'hot under the collar,' or angry, rebellious, or negative in spirit, then know the the Spirit of God is leaving you and the spirit of Satan is beginning to take over."-Elder Theodore M. Burton

kinda humbling, huh? I needed that tonight

Cousins...

When our children were young, Kim and I made huge efforts to get together so our children would know each other...and they were incredibly close. We let our lives get too busy when they were teens but even years of neglect cannot break that early bond. I called yesterday to tell Peter that Jacob is engaged and he was like, "yeah, he told me a while ago that he was probably going to get married the month after me." Facebook, instant messaging, texting, etc helps farflung families keep in touch but that foundation has to be laid first! So all you young families keep up the effort to keep your children close to their cousins because there is NOTHING like the support system of a caring close cousin!! LaNelle and Beth (1st pic about 1992, 2nd was October 1987)
swiped from Kim's blog (thanks!)

Take me out to the ballgame...

Spring is almost here and that means...BASEBALL!!!! I hate that it is a 4 time a week committment but I have always loved watching my boys play...the smell of fresh cut grass and hot dogs grilling...the sound of bats on balls and balls thudding into mitts...the feel of the warm sun and the sight of little kids crouched in the "ready position"...gotta love baseball in the South!!!

But of course it starts in February and March inside the gym practicing that all-important swing...Connor, like Andrew at this age, has almost NO STRIKE ZONE when he is at bat which is a plus and his coaches picked up on that right away...but, like Peter, when he connects, it goes... did you know you control where the ball goes by where you point your foot? Connor was practicing batting both left and right handed...

Come on out to the ballgame, come on out with the crowd...I'll buy you some peanuts and cracker jacks...