Noah's 2nd Birthday!!

On May 15th, our little boy turned TWO! I still am trying to wrap my brain around how this can be possible...

In reflecting over these past two years, I can't believe how much our lives have changed. There have been HARD days, honestly...but overall, Andy and I cannot believe the JOY that this little boy has brought to our lives, we are forever grateful.

Things we love about Noah:

-His energy is the first things that comes to mind (which makes some days so tiring, but overall is so much fun to be around);
-His cuddles, hugs, and kisses (which usually just come when he's tired because of the above statement);
-He LOVES people and will usually warm up to just about anyone;
-Up until he turned two, he said his name Noah and the word water the same way: "Yaddah", which made it really funny when he said Noah's water;
-He's a good sleeper;
-This kid could truly play outside in the dirt and water from morning until night...a true "boy's boy";
-He is adventurous and curious;
-His communication: I could seriously sit down and have a 5 minute conversation with him when I get home from work and know exactly what he did the day before;
-He repeats the Lord's Prayer at bedtime and enunciate's the word "not" in "and lead us NOT into temptation";
-He shakes his booty when he dances;
-He reminded me to "pray Daddy" when Andy was in China for a trip.

These are but just a few that first come to mind of soooo many more.

We had his birthday party on Saturday, May 14th, the day before his actual birthday. We had a lot of his little friends from church over to a place called Funtastic in Elk Grove: basically an indoor padded jungle gym. He was a little overwhelmed, but very excited that he finally got to go in the birthday room! He always talked about it whenever we went to this place.

Snacking on some grapes, goldfish, and chex mix when we first got there.


Papa Chuck and Papa Greg sitting, taking in all the crazy toddlers.

Uncle Eric showed up before his prom that night to wish Noah a happy birthday - what a stud!

Noah going in for a hug from his girlfriend, beautiful baby Kendall.

All the ladies hanging out watching the kids play.

Julia and Noah pausing for a quick picture.

Very happy birthday boy.

Jackson playing!

And the finished "choo choo" cake that Noah still talks about!! (This cake included me staying up until 11 the night before, on the phone with my Mom and Grandma for advice!! I guess it was worth it though ;)).

Best family portrait we could get, Noah was not feelin the hat...

Enjoying his yummy cake.

Jackson enjoying it too!

Beautiful Annie stopping for a pose.

Julia and Vivian being silly.

Valerie and Baby Kendall (look at that tutu!) :-)

I think Simon liked the cake ;)

"Adult" table

And time for the present opening festivities...everyone was so gracious and Noah got a lot of awesome toys and really cute new outfits!

A little overwhelmed by whatever he saw here...

Noah and Simon having fun going down the slides!

Best picture we could get of him in front of the sign they made for him!

Sunday morning (Noah's actual birthday), we woke up and went to church, and then went out to Paesano's for brunch. We could tell that Noah was starting to sound sick while we were at breakfast...he was having really long coughing fits in between bites of pancakes. We got home, and were getting ready to put him down for his nap, and the coughing kept getting worse and worse. After we layed him down and walked out of his room, it was just constant coughing, he could barely get in a breath! We decided if he wasn't able to calm down and go to sleep without coughing in 15 minutes, we would take him to the doctor.

Long story short, the coughing got worse and we got him right into urgent care. It was a little scary, because it sounded like he could barely breathe. They ended up doing a breathing treatment for him, and he surprised Andy and I so much when he put the mask right on his face, like he knew exactly what to do!

Our little trooper getting a breathing treatment on his birthday.

Needless to say, the cooperation did NOT last throughout the whole treatment and it was a struggle to keep it on toward the end...

We left with a couple prescriptions and a very tired boy who fell asleep 2 minutes into the drive home.

After we woke Noah up from his nap (at 6 pm!), Andy and I decided to give him his present from us: a Classic Radio Flyer tricycle!

He learned pretty quickly down our hallway (did I mention it was rainy this particular weekend in May??)

Happy (even though still sick) boy on his new trike.

Picture's worth more than words: it was a really good weekend. :-)

Carrot cake cupcakes made by Mommy (when asked what cake he wanted, he said carrot cake! I don't think he's ever even had carrot cake!)

Yummy

One band that I've always really liked is the husband-wife group, Watermark. They wrote a song a while ago after they had their son Noah, called Noah's Song. I just have to include the lyrics because they just make me think of our little man and how much he's changed our lives for the good.

Noah's Song
Sweet Noah Your eyes are a window
To all of our childhood dreams
It's almost like we're starting over again
One more trip through this life
With different eyes to see

You're the gift that came to take us back
Cause baby dear, you have the joy we lack
With your tiny hands You touch a different world
You're full of wonder, full of hope And full of one more chance
For us to see the world again
Like God sees the world

Little lover of God
You'd smile at a stranger
You don't think to be careful
How sweet is your love
You'd reach for the most unlovely of creatures
Your love is so unconditional

You're the gift that came to take us back
Cause baby dear, you have the love we lack
With your tiny heart You'll love a different world
You're full of wonder, full of hope And full of one more chance
For us to love the world again
Like God loves the world

And a child shall lead them
For such is the kingdom of heaven
Simple faith, simple love Just because

Little faithful one
You're just like a mirror
Reflecting anything and everything we do
Mirror, mirror oh how you remind us
That we should reflect our Father just the same

You're the gift that came to take us back
Cause baby dear, you have the faith we lack
With your tiny life You've shown the precious love of God
He's full of mercy, full of grace, And full of one more chance
For us to daily learn to love
Like He first loved us

And a child shall lead them
For such is the kingdom of heaven
Simple faith, simple love Just because

Mother's Day Celebration!

We had such a nice time on Mother's Day hanging out with our families and enjoying some good food. We started the day off with going to church, and then heading to Andy's parents for lunch. The guys barbecued for us ladies and we just enjoyed some relaxing time.

Grandma Nancy and Aunt Jane hanging out before lunchtime.

Ryan, Andy, and Eric getting our lunch ready, what a treat!

Andy and I hanging outside while he was grilling.

Eric and Ryan are much closer than you'd realize ;) here they are cuddling after lunch.

Grandma Nancy showing off her beautiful new Willow Tree!

And Heidie showing off her new purse!

And here are the ladies (plus Teddy), Heidie, me, Aunt Jane, and Grandma Nancy.

Heidie and Noah getting in some cuddling after naptime.

After Noah woke up from his nap, we headed to my Mom's to celebrate with my side of the family. It was also my Great Aunt Joan's birthday so it was nice to see her and celebrate with her.

Beautiful roses from my Grandpa's yard!

My beautiful Momma and I posing in her gorgeous backyard.

Closeup by the roses.

My Grandma and Mom.

3 generations on Mother's Day

Cute new shoes! And my Mom barefoot as always ;)

The birthday girl, my beautiful Great Aunt Joan.

All the ladies, my Mom, me, my Grandma and Great Aunt Joan.

My precious boy giving his Momma kisses on Mother's Day.

And a closeup.

And the hugs that make any day better...

We found an awesome bird's nest with two beautiful little eggs in one of my mom's rose trees!

My Mom and Noah looking at the fish in the pond.

Dinner time, more delicious BBQ!

My Grandma opening up her new Willow Tree from my Mom.

I think she liked it :-)

Happy (late) Mother's Day to all the mom's out there!! What a rewarding, difficult, meaningful, challenging, joyous, trying, amazing job we have in raising our children!