one thousand eight hundred and twenty-five days

Gabriel, how old are you?

I’m bore! (he says emphatically, while holding up four fingers)

Just as we’ve finally got that down pat, he’s gotta go and have another birthday.

Today he is five!

This year has come with some progress:

• working on talking.
• becoming more independent minded. “I try” is said a thousand times daily.
• counts to 10, recognizes the letters of the alphabet, knows his colors and shapes.
• becoming familiar with the bathroom (still trying).
• going to school all day, every day.
• swims like a ‘lil fish (video to come soon).

More than all these things, he’s a lover. This boy spreads his love around abundantly. To everyone. Friends, family, bus drivers, strangers at the store. One of my favorite things is to watch him greet people at the door. As soon as the door chimes alerting us to a visitor’s arrival, Gabriel stops whatever he’s doing, runs to the door, and proclaims the visitor’s name. “Daddy!” “Taylor!” “Paige!” Should the person exit and return momentarily, it’s as though they had been gone for a long stretch of time, and Gabriel will still exclaim their name a second time with as much enthusiasm as the first.

We love our Gabriel right back and wish him a very very Happy 5th Birthday!

eight is great

We gave out beach balls with the invitation for Paige’s “dive-in” movie birthday party. Paige had been planning her party since April and could barely contain her excitement. So we planned to swim and swim and swim, and while we were swimming, would watch Aquamarine on the big outdoor screen.

Hitch One – July 23rd seems to be a poorly placed date on the calendar. With the start of school looming, many of Paigey’s little friends were on vacation. And it is all. my. fault. for having her in July. We did manage, however, to wrangle in a couple gals that were still up to party.

Hitch Two – Mother Nature decided this would also be a perfect week for monsoons. One of the only weeks, in fact. So, after about an hour, when the dark clouds started to roll in, we made our way inside for cake and ice cream.

Operation Plan B was officially underway and we headed for the bowling alley. The girls were surprisingly thrilled about it and had a really great time. It took almost 90 minutes for the 5 girls to bowl ONE game. The overhead monitors clocked some of the girls balls at a whopping 3 mph! Thank goodness for bumper bowling.

It was really something special when the front desk called Paige up to the front. They made an announcement over the PA system and everyone in the bowling alley wished her a happy birthday. She was presented with a bowling pin that everyone in our party could write a birthday greeting on. Talk about spoiled! :)

12

Today my oldest baby turns 12 years old. 12 years old!! He made me a mother and it has forever changed me. I love this funny, tender-hearted, easy-going, smart boy.

Since this was an even numbered year, Taylor got to have a ‘friends’ birthday party (we don’t do parties every year after they turn 8). He fretted over what to do and eventually settled on, what else? - laser tag. When we looked into pricing, we found that they were having an upcoming special (1/2 off) and decided to have the party a week earlier than planned.

Todd loaded all the boys and they enjoyed unlimited games. I met them there with pizza and pop and we ate in the parking lot. A little bit on the trashy side, but they didn’t seem to mind, or even notice. Boys are so easy to please. They went back to playing their games and we finished up at our house with Taylor’s fave frozen yogurt pie for dessert.

Seriously. The easiest party ever. They had so much fun, too. My new motto needs to be: the simpler the better. Who am I kidding? That’s always been my motto.

Happy Birthday to my boy!

kinda like my own personal genie

My only birthday request this year was to road trip in a convertible with my honey.

My request was granted.

*We drove down the old Apache Trail.

*Lunched old west style in Tortilla Flats – pop.: 6. Walls lined with dollar bills. Big with the biker crowd. Yummy burger.

*Cruised along and enjoyed spring weather, desert canyons, and one on one time.

Thanks babe. All I have to do to get exactly what I want, is to be specific. Funny how that works.

birth day

The long awaited day has come. My baby sister, Sara, had her baby boy this morning. He's healthy and gorgeous, and oh so yummy! I get to have his protective big sister with me, and she worries that I'm serious when I say I'm going to eat him up. I took her to the hospital to meet him and while I was there I snapped a few (dozen) pictures of the sweet baby and his family.

His cousins can't wait to meet him. Every time they see a picture there is a collective high-pitched 'awww'. So cute.

Congratulations DeWitts!

four

Today is Gabriel's 4th birthday! It seems like only yesterday that he was born, but at the same time it feels like he's been with us always.

Today his birthday is in happy contrast to his original birthday. The day he joined our family was so emotional. I've mentioned previously that we did not have a prenatal diagnosis of Down syndrome. I had many ultrasounds with no unusual findings - he did not have a heart defect, etc. I refused the triple screen, which I had taken with my other 2 pregnancies. I don't know why, really - but I have some theories I won't go into here.

After a long day trying to determine whether or not I was in labor, he joined us at 1:58 am. This was significant, because the very kind nurse who had been with me all night, ended her shift at 2:00 am - I was glad she made it to the delivery. We took pictures, called some family members, noted his resemblance to this person or that person and celebrated his arrival. As we looked him over, I mentioned to Todd that I thought his eyes looked 'strange', but somewhat dismissed it as being a result of the antibiotic drops. After a moment, the nurse who just arrived to her shift asked if anyone had talked to us about Down syndrome.... What the...?

And so began our journey. The first days and weeks were filled with many many tears. I didn't know anything about Down syndrome. All of the general stereotypes flashed before me, and I didn't know what kind of life he had ahead of him. I still loved him. I still thought he was beautiful. But uncertainty and feeling not up to the task sometimes overwhelmed me. (I must add, though, that Todd never once has been anything less than accepting, loving, excited and overall wonderful about Gabriel - and supportive to me during my small breakdowns.) Slowly, but surely, the uncertainty dissolved and I was able to see him first as my sweet baby - rather than first seeing the Down syndrome. Those first few months I thought I would never think of anything else again.

On this, his birthday, we celebrate him in our family. Everyone loves him. We are grateful for his example. Funny how much you can learn from a 4 year old. He has a joy unmatched by anyone I know. He loves everybody. There are times walking down the hall at church, when I have to pry him off some stranger's leg (occasionally, he gives a quick pat on the bum)! The older kids learn from teaching him. They revel in his successes and joyfully boast about them to all who will listen. I love him fiercely and unconditionally - more than I thought myself capable.

I love:

• his bright blue eyes and white blond hair
• his enthusiasm to try new things.
• that he wants to cuddle with Taylor at night - so much so, that if Taylor won't let him in his bed, Gabriel would rather sleep on the floor next to the bed than in his own.
• his belly laugh
• his excitement when his music therapist comes for "playtime".
• that when someone is leaving, he'll stand at the door and exclaim, "Goodbye" until they are out of sight.

He is:

• a hugger
• compassionate - always the first to kiss any owie
• joyful
• observant
• a mimic
• stubborn
• flexible
• fearless (not always a good thing)
• a wanderer (also not good)
• strong
• persistent
• playful
• silly
• adventurous
• a duck - so at home in the swimming pool.

Happy Birthday Gabriel!!

birthday wishes

Happy Birthday to my dad! We celebrated BIG with lots of chaos. First up was mexican food at an actual restaurant with all of our kids in tow. After only 2 spilt drinks, a basket of chips on the floor, good conversation, minimal whining and running around we gave the place a break and took the party to my house.

We let the kids run around in the rain until the lightning became too threatening. That meant ALL the children were left to run around INSIDE the remainder of the evening. We opted for a candle-less yogurt pie instead of cake for the sugar-less birthday boy (and yes, I know even that has sugar in it - but it's a lesser of two evils kind of thing). A melodic birthday song took place and chaos continued.

For his birthday present, we gave him the gift of appreciating silence.

it's not your birthday unless you celebrate all week

Her birthday started out with Cinderella waffles on the coveted red 'special' plate. The Beatles Birthday song blaring, we had a family jam session.

Miss Paige had 2 birthday parties - one for cousins and one for friends.

Paige chose a spaghetti dinner and swimming with cousins. We made brownies instead of cake and had lots of chaos -- I mean fun!

Good times were had by all:

Her friend party was a very girly beauty salon. I recruited a couple of my friends to help (thanks Sara and Amber). Each girl got a mud mask, makeup, hair and toenails done. They left looking gorgeous and I'm sure felt pampered.

Paige had 2 solid days of 'all about me' time and milked it for everything she could. Now she has to go an entire year before she gets any attention again. Just kidding. We love you.

seven!

Paige is SEVEN! Wow, what a big girl!

Happy Birthday Sweetie, Sugar Bear, Shug (short for sugar), Sissy, Sis, Sissy-Sue, Paigey-Poo, Miss Paige. I love you!

Paige is spunky, friendly, fun, girlie, tomboy, hard-headed, a chocolate lover, silly, sassy and sweet.

She's growing entirely too fast and it seems there is nothing I can do to slow it down.

happy day

Happy Birthday to you.....
Happy Birthday to you.....

Happy 35th Birthday to my mom today!! (I had to at least make you older than me)


**Edited to add**

Faith, Sara & I decided to be spontaneous and make a surprise trip to Pine to wish Mom a Happy Birthday! It was so much fun!! We were practically giddy making an overnight road trip minus kids and hubbies. The planning started late morning and by dinner time we were having a surprise birthday barbecue. Woo-hoo! Grandma Shumway helped us with our plot and never once gave us up. We're very sly. We pulled an all-nighter of cards and gabbing. When I say all-nighter, of course I mean we made it to midnight. :) We do have children to care for the next day after all. It was great fun to pull off a [very small in numbers but big] surprise party. I guess the key to a successful secret is planning it in only 6 hours - there's not a lot of time for it to get out.

operation: secret birthday trip

Taylor and his mommy spent 3 days in Washington, D.C. This top-secret birthday operation has been in the planning stages for a couple months, but Taylor lacked the proper clearance and was not briefed on the details until the night before we left. When he was making gift requests for his birthday and was met with, 'We aren't buying any presents, it's already planned out' he was apprehensive. But I think he got over it.

This picture is his 'My Mom has taken a million pictures, but I'm forced to smile yet again in front of The Capital Building. Will this torture never end?' look. Despite there being an absence of sheer happiness on his face in any of the pictures, I know he had a great time. We'll just chalk it up to him being generally reserved in nature.

My friend, Shane, was a most gracious hostess, knowledgeable tour guide, skilled taxi driver and awesome travel agent who made all of our arrangements and tolerated our indecisiveness. Since this trip was for Taylor, we let him have the final say in most of the planning - except for the things we kept secret from him altogether.

So here's a not so brief run down of our activities:

Day 1
Udvar-Hazy Air and Space Museum: lots of airplanes and Taylor showed off his skills in the simulator. Shane's daughter, Emma, and "Tay Tay" hit it off immediately and she insisted they hold hands through most of the day.

Chick-fil-a: somehow became a highlight of Taylor's day - he must have been hungry.

Arlington Cemetery: beautiful! Although I've seen pictures, it was better than what I expected. Taylor loved the changing of the guard at The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and the way the soldier would tap his shoes together at each turn.

Gravelly Point: a grassy area on the edge of the airport where the planes fly in real low before they land. Received high marks from Taylor - even got a few visible smiles.

Marine Corps Sunset Parade: loved it! Shane was able to score tickets through her friend and Taylor was captivated the entire time. It's amazing the way they keep synchronized, we were in awe.


Day 2
The Mall: Walked around and saw all the memorials: Lincoln, Vietnam Wall, WWII, etc.

Pentagon: yes. How cool is that? Again, Shane hooked us up with a friend that works in the Pentagon and he gave us a tour. He took us into one of the Army briefing rooms and Taylor sat in the Secretary of the Army's chair and we watched an army movie. So thrilling. Taylor had to double check afterwards if it was okay that he tell his friends what he saw in the Pentagon. There was a sign that read "What you hear in this room, stays in this room" and he took it very literal.

Spy Museum: for Taylor this was a must see and he had a great time.

Day 3
National Cathedral: We went because I wanted to. It was beautiful, but the highlight for Taylor was the bathroom. He made 2 trips just to use the unusual hand dryer.

Air & Space Museum at the Smithsonian: Taylor was up for another round of airplanes. Grandpa Crosby had given him some money before we left and told Taylor to spend it on our trip. So each day Taylor was OBSESSED with going into all the gift shops to spend the money that was burning a hole in his pocket. Here, he finally had that opportunity.

Military Exhibition: Taylor's dream come true was across the street from the museum. A huge tent set up with all sorts of booths complete with guns and military guys. On the lawn were tanks, helicopters and all things previously unknown to me but amazing to 11 year old boys. We rushed through as they were packing up for the day.

Mike's Restaurant: Shane and her hubby, Jason, graciously treated us to a delightful dinner where Taylor branched out and tried calamari, salmon and crab cakes for the first time! Topped off with my new favorite - chocolate waffles.


Day 4
Both Taylor and Shane's birthdays - (also my sister, Sara's)!!

Had a quick bite to eat and headed back to the Military Exhibition so Taylor could get his hands on all the guns they had there before we left.



One Army guy even challenged Taylor to a push-up contest. Tay did great and earned a t-shirt and praise for his form. He tried on a parachute and bullet-proof vest, but he was mainly interested in the GUNS!!

We had a great time together. Taylor doesn't often get so much alone time, I'm not sure he knew what to do with so much of it. Hopefully it's a happy memory that he'll look back on and know how much he's loved.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Back on the home front, Todd took care of everything from therapy to bus schedules to medications - in his own way. While there was no home cooking going on, they stayed busy and happy anyway. Thanks Daddy and great job!

my firstborn

Taylor. My firstborn. Unbelievably turns 11 years old today. It's true that time passes quickly. He's a special boy. The reason we knew we could handle more children (ha). Todd would often say when Taylor was little, that "we scored big time" with him. And it's true. He's always been a fast learner and most things come easy for him. He learned early how to roll over, scoot and walk by 8 months old! He is what every parent hopes their first child to be. He has empathy for all people and always helps those who might be sad, down or need some extra help. I love that it's still beyond his comprehension (in most cases) that someone might not make good choices.

Taylor loves all things military. He watches the military channel on tv. He loves to learn about the artillery and machines used in war and war strategy. He loves airplanes and knows most of them by name. He also loves baseball and going to the D-backs games with his dad and talking all about the players.

My son is getting to the age where he is asking questions too complex for me to want to answer. Even as a young boy he was a thinker. After I had Paige, he would ask all kinds of questions about the birth, wondering if it 'was the worst pain ever'. He loves to find answers via the internet. He's my snuggler, my helper, my buddy. While he loves to be a tease (particularly to his sister), he's also a comforter to those who need comforting.

He's also

• smart
• sensitive
• tender-hearted
• lovable
• well-rounded
• talented
• tease
• handsome
• inquisitive
• interesting
• apprehensive
• hyper
• well-behaved
• a teacher
• a good example
• active
• fun
• giving
• loving
• goofy

I just love this boy! Happy Birthday Taylor!

birthday wishes

Happy Birthday to a totally neglected Todd! It's a busy morning as we (Taylor and I) get ready to leave on Taylor's birthday surprise, but we managed to make cinnamon muffins and put them on the red 'you are special' plate. I'm sure he felt super special as we made a very poor attempt at singing the happy birthday song. I get all warm and fuzzy just thinking about it. Sorry sweetie.

Love you, and we'll celebrate better at a later date.

isaak is 2

Monday was Ikey's terrible two birthday party (although I have not yet been witness to anything terrible on his part). I captured this picture of him at the party. At first I was a bit perturbed that Faith and her camera got in the way of my awesome shot. Then I figured, our children are subjected to having a camera in their faces on daily basis, so it was actually pretty fitting.






There was enough food to feed an army of monsters, 'monstrous' cupcakes, 'monstrous' bubbles, and an all around 'monstrous' good time. Happy Birthday Buddy!

happy day to paris

Today is cutie Paris' birthday.

The big 4!

We're so excited for her and now she's officially big enough to sleep in her own bed. All by herself. No mommy or daddy. Yeah (and good luck)!

We love you!

more birthday wishes

December is the month for grandma birthdays! Todd's grandmother, Beth, celebrated her birthday on the 8th as well. She was the lucky recipient of the Happy Birthday Song by phone. Surely, the Cederstrom melody was a treat. Beth is always keeping herself busy with clubs and crafts and any assortment of activities. Since she is Todd's grandma, I have no 'growing up' memories of her. But, when Todd and I were first dating, she lived here in town. One of our first dates was at her apartment overlooking the lake. Now that she lives up north, she's very welcoming to any who may come to visit.

Today is my paternal Grandma Crosby's big day. She's 91! I did not live close to Grandma growing up, but whenever I think about her, I think of a giver. When our family would go up for a visit, I always remember that no matter how late the hour we arrived, we would find her in the family room waiting up for us and keeping busy with a crochet or quilting project. She would proceed to jump up to help us and ask us if we were hungry and what could she get for us. Let me tell you, no one ever went hungry at Grandma's house. There was always an abundance of fresh veggies from the garden or Grandma's delicious homemade bread (my personal favorite). Grandma always had people coming and going from her home - she has 48 grandchildren and 60+ great-grandchildren (it's hard to keep track).

I know that never have I been witness to a time that Grandma put herself first. She has always willingly and happily served others. She's soft spoken and thoughtful. Funny, too! I'm grateful for having her example in my life.

birthday wishes

Today we celebrate the 80th birthday of my maternal Grandma Shumway!!

Happy Birthday Grandma!!

As a girl in junior high, I used to take the bus home from school to Grandma's house. I would spend my afternoons with Grandma (and Grandpa too) and she'd get me a snack, help me with homework, and I'd watch her make dinner. I cherish this time I had with Grandma and Grandpa.

Each year on our birthdays growing up, Grandma gave each of the grandchildren the gift of time. We each got to choose and activity and we spent the day with Grandma. One year Grandma and I went to the old castle made from junk in Phoenix. Our adventures were always well documented - she never went anywhere without her camera. Grandma went out of her way to make each of us feel special on our big day.

However, it didn't have to be a special day for Grandma to spend hours helping with an English project, or take us on a trip to Pine, or have an overnight stay at Grandma's house. I always felt love from Grandma, no matter the occasion.

Have a fantastic day, Grandma!

party day

Today had double the fun! It was both Mara and Jonah's birthday. Mara turned ** - something and Jonah is a big 4 year old.

We celebrated the way we know best...... we ate. First, all the girls and mom went to Cheesecake Factory for lunch.... YUM. Then Jonah had a fun party where the kids made their own party hats and ate grilled cheese and tomato soup (the perfect cold weather meal) and of course cake and ice cream. Super fun.

Happy happy birthday you two!