20121210 - Therese gets to hold Patrick, etc.

I promised my mother that I would do at least one more post before we left for MN, so here I am after bed time the night before we leave! I just uploaded the pictures from my camera and realized that I have not inherited my mom's gift for growing a camera from her right hand. I, however, do have a few big events to share and a few pictures you may enjoy along with the stories.

Seeing as I spend my days with my kids, most of my "big" events are milestones that the kids reach. Well, Thérèse (yup, I finally figured out how to make those accents on our iMac!) has been begging and begging to carry Patrick since far before he was born. It is a very scary thing having a 4-year-old carry a newborn, let along just hold them on a soft couch, so we built up to it very gradually and had very strict rules surrounding it, but she has succeeded with our approval! And I must say, she is very cautious, careful, and Patrick LOVES being held by her! There have been numerous times when I am on the phone or busy with something that does not mix well with a baby's whine, and Thérèse comes right over, takes him from my arms, and he immediately is quiet and content! Yay!

On other subjects... Patrick has also had some great snuggles with dad!

Joe and the big kids climbed a mountain. David proved to be half billy goat!

And Dave the rest of the time... well, he was just plain, old, boring, DAVE! (FYI - the plain, old, boring part was just a joke.)

Oh, and to top off this post... a few shots from our children's first wrestling class given by their father!

In closing, we were very glad to welcome back Joe's men from Afghanistan the evening before Thanksgiving. Deo Gratias!

 Love, Us.

20121115 - Tribute to My Mom

I know that many people greatly appreciated the time and energy that my mother put into keeping everyone up to date concerning Patrick over this past month. We always give her a hard time that her right hand is a camera. In fact, her family nick-name is "The Mamarazzi"! Despite all this grief, however, I want her to know that I really appreciated all that she did for me and my family during this difficult time. She came all the way down here, sat around with me anxiously for weeks waiting for Patrick to come, sat with me (and then by herself) through the extreme anxiety of his birth, and then became my point of contact to all of my friends and family (even those she did not know) throughout his hospitalization. Thank you, Mom! 

I thought that I would give her a tribute in a similar manner to how she blessed us. I've shuffled through my pictures of this past month, and have looked for the needles in the haystack - the pictures that showed the beautiful woman behind the camera... Mom. I love you. Thank you.

Love, Me