Thirty Six. Four. Amen.

April is always a busy month for us, part of what makes it busy is the fact that both Mike and Lila celebrate their birthdays in April.  Mike's birthday is April 7th and this year marked his 36th!  I gently ribbed him that he is on the side closer to forty...he didn't seem to think it was as funny as I did!  We take birthday's seriously around here, after all it is the only day that is really set aside for YOU!  Unfortunately this year, Mike's birthday was less than exciting.  I was crazy sick with the stomach flu the whole week leading up to his birthday, talk about feeling like a let down.  However, I am lucky to have a fantastic husband that didn't mind having a lower-key birthday this year.

Even though I wasn't feeling well, we most certainly didn't miss the opportunity to make him a cake.  Lila was eager to assist me in making the cake, and as you know, cake preparation isn't complete with out some sampling of the batter!

Stir, stir, stir!



Sample, sample, sample!

Once the cake was complete, Lila was insistent on helping decorate it.  The only thing she wanted to put on her Dad's cake was sprinkles.  She wasn't kidding, every inch of that cake was covered in sprinkles, to her satisfaction!



The finished product!

We had a nice, quiet dinner at home, just the three of us!  At this point, I was still moving pretty slow as I was on the mend, but we still managed to have a nice time!  Lila & the pups got Mike a watch for his birthday and I got him custom framing for his signed jerseys and tickets to the Kenny Chesney, Eric Church, Eli Young Band concert coming up in Des Moines!  I am happy that I ended up getting him those tickets because it means that we can extend his birthday a little now that I am feeling back to normal!

Happy Birthday to you, Daddy!

On April 13th we had a house full of family and friends to celebrate Lila's 4th birthday!  I still can't get used to saying that we have a 4 year old!  I started planning her birthday back in February.  I was thinking of ideas, etc. and had the idea to do something around "sweets," considering we think she, in particular, is awfully sweet!  So, I went in search of the perfect invitation to set the theme of the rest of the party.

Lollipop Invites!

Once the invitations were decided upon, I headed out to Pinterest to get ideas for a party that involves sweets, candy and lollipops!  As you can imagine, there were tons of ideas, but I narrowed the options down to a few favorites and Mike and I got to work.  Yes, you read that right, Mike and I got to work, I am blessed that I have a husband who digs right in and helps with all of my crazy ideas!

The making of life sized lollipops and candy decorations

Finished lollipops for the yard!

On the day of the party it was overcast and windy.  I was really sad because I wasn't sure if the lollipops we made to line the driveway and sidewalk would survive the strong winds, but they did!  It wasn't quite the sunny background I would have preferred, but it set the stage for our visitors when they arrived that this was going to be a sweet party! 

 

 

Lollipops leading the way!

Once inside the guests were greeted with bold, bright colors that created a whimsical atmosphere for our darling girl!  We put together a candy buffet for everyone to enjoy, with the centerpiece being a pink birthday cake that was created with love by Lila's Great-Grandma Harvey. 

Sugar Bar!

Balloons to brighten up the dreary day!

 

 

A balloon just for Lila!

Candies hanging from the light fixture!

"Thank you 4 coming!"

We had a house full of family and friends to help us celebrate Lila's fourth birthday!  She is a very lucky girl to have so many people that love her!  We always talk about how lucky and happy we are to be raising our daughter within close proximity of our family and friends.  While we are all busy and sometimes we go weeks or months without seeing each other, it is nice to be able to gather for events such as this.






Happy girl at her party!

Daddy & Lila posing by their cakes!

Make a wish!

A whole lotta "greats!"  Lila and three of her great-grandmothers!

Big cousin Celia helping to read cards and open gifts!

Terry & Erin playing dolls with the girls!

Lila & Henley enjoying some birthday fun together!

 

The party was fantastic!  While it takes an awful lot of work to put a party together, I love the feeling of completion once it is over.  I like knowing that something I hosted gave people a good experience!  Particularly when it comes to Lila's birthday, I love the fact that she knows that we have always made a big deal out of her special day and that she has so many people willing to celebrate with her!

 

The party went until 2:00, but by the time everyone cleared out, it was well past Lila's nap time, so she didn't take a nap that day.  If she doesn't nap it can generally go one of two ways...she is either relatively good, yet a bit delirious, or she is a complete wreck because she still needs that rest in the middle of the day.  Luckily for us, even with all the sugar that was consumed, she was really doing fairly well...

 

Partied out!

Did I mention that she delirium can set in?!  Here she is after everyone left in a tulle skirt, socks, no shirt and her coat...fishing, with her new princess fishing pole, from the love seat! 

I got something!

 

Lila's actual birthday was on a Thursday.  I generally take the day off to spend with Lila, but we got a notice in her backpack that her preschool class would be attending their first field trip on her birthday.  Not to mention she was the room leader that day which means she sits in the special chair alongside the teacher, she gets to bring two toys and a book to share, and she gets to bring treats to share with her class.  There was no way I was going to keep her home from school without a very guilty conscience at this point.  On that same note there was an ask for parents to volunteer as chaperones for the field trip.  Perfect!  I may not want to take her out of school so she doesn't miss her field trip, but now I can still spend a good portion of the day with her, it will just be at school!  You can imagine how Lila reacted when I told her all the details for that day: #1 - you are going on a field trip, #2 - you are going to ride a school bus, #3 - you are the room leader, #4 - Mom is going to go to school with you, and...oh, yeah! #5 - it is your birthday!  You would have thought it couldn't get any more exciting!  You have to love the expectations of a child!  

 

 

The day was cold and rainy, but that didn't stop the school from loading the kids up and heading off to the Noelridge greenhouse.  They are learning all about plants and flowers in class, so it was a great opportunity to take the kids to see a place where plants and flowers fill every nook and cranny!

 



Very first bus ride!

 

Do you see what I see?!

Stopping to smell the flowers!



Lila's favorite row because it had both pink and purple flowers

So happy!

Under the Banana tree!

A few of Lila's friends: Lulu and Hannah

Lila's preschool class

After our time at the green house we loaded the bus back up and headed to All Saints for Lila's sharing time and her birthday snack before the day was over!  It was very cute to watch Lila teach her class about the weather outside, count to 18 in Spanish, and talk about the color purple!  The kids were all very excited for her that it was her birthday and sat attentively as she shared her new Lalaloopsy doll, her puppy, and her "Princess and the Pig" book. 

Doing the weather!

 

We were planning on spending a quiet night at home, but my Dad and Laura asked Lila if she wanted to have dinner.  She excitedly said she wanted to eat at Red Lobster because they have the best noodles and they have the lobsters in the tank she just loves to say, "hi," to!  We quick opened presents before we met them for dinner.  Lila is a huge princess fan, so a lot of her gifts from us were princess related, as well as some clothes to get her started for summer, and her big gift from us is horseback riding lessons!  We have a stable close by that starts lessons at age four.  We need to schedule some time to go check things out and then get her on the schedule!

 

 



Princess Rapunzel's wedding bouquet, wedding ring and veil!

Cinderella!

Ariel play dress! 
(If you haven't noticed she wears these dresses all the time @ home!)

Our beautiful birthday girl!

 

The day after Lila's birthday party we were invited to attend our niece, Celia's, First Communion at All Saints Church.  We were very excited to share this special day with her!

 



Celia and her First Communion class before service

During the service she sat like such a big girl, at the front of the church, taking in all the priest had to say about their big day.  They then got up and sang a song about their First Communion to the whole congregation.  It was really sweet!

Peeking back at us!

Celia had a lot of family and friends in attendance to help her celebrate this milestone on her journey of faith.  I am honored to be her Godmother and I am equally honored to be a role model for her when it comes to her relationship with God. 

Celia & Lila

 

Jason, Jen & Celia

What a busy a month we have had already!  Even though April is always busy for us, we wouldn't change it as it is full of celebrations!  It is also the month that welcomes Spring!  Green grass is popping up all around us and we are actually excited to be out and about breathing in the fresh air!

A Sad Goodbye

This blog posting is probably one of the hardest I have ever written.  Mike and I believe very strongly that if you are going to own an animal that they aren't just a "pet," they are a member of the family.  Both of us grew up around animals, so it was natural that when we began thinking about moving in together the first item on our list, above any piece of furniture, was a dog.  Not just any dog, a special dog...a Blue Weimaraner.  I have to be honest, I am not even sure how we arrived at a Blue Weim, but we had a vision of having a blue male and a silver female someday and we were ready to begin our family with the addition of the cutest puppy either of us had ever seen...Baxter.  It was almost twelve years ago that he was born.  I remember meeting him for the first time, just days old,  I was sitting at the vet clinic, he was no bigger than the palm of my hand, waiting for him to go in and get his vaccinations.  I remember sharing with Mike how small he was and how it was going to seem like forever until we were able to finally pick him up and take him, "home," and call him ours!

 

The weeks passed and it was finally time to pick him up.  He was at a breeder in the Center Point area and Mike was working late, so I had a friend go with me to get him and we stopped at his Mom & Dad's on our way through town.  I was such a proud Mom!  I couldn't wait to show him off!  You can see why...

 

Baxter Boy Blue!

He was the cutest puppy, hands down!  He had to be cute considering I hadn't told my Dad that I was bringing home a new dog!  It wasn't long, minutes actually, before Baxter climbed right into my Dad's heart, too.  And in fairness, I was scheduled to move with Mike into our first house in four weeks, so our stay would be short!

Baxter wrapped himself right around everyone's hearts.  He could be such a pistol, a naughty puppy, really, but he was so gentle and such a snuggler that no one could resist him -- and I am convinced he knew that!  It wasn't long before he settled right into our family and our hearts!

 

 

 

 

 

Baxter had roughly 4 years with us before we finally decided it was time to add our silver female to the family!  Mike was smitten with this cute little puppy that we met while trying to help my cousins find a dog...and before we knew it Baxter gained a sister, Luca.  While he tried to pass her off like a nuisance, he was absolutely in love with her and they soon became inseparable.

 



 

Baxter & Luca - The Beginning!

 

 

Our dogs are our first children, so it was very important to us when we found out we were having a baby that the dogs would be involved.  After all, this baby was going to be their sister and not just change our lives, but theirs too.  We made sure that they came home before we did and that they had a blanket that Lila was wrapped up in when she was first born to get acquainted with her smell.  We wanted to make their acclimation to this new addition as positive as we possibly could.  The greeting they gave Lila when she came home was beyond what we had hoped.  They loved her immediately!  And as you can tell from the picture below, Baxter was very interested in his little girl and from that moment on a beautiful bond formed.

Welcome to our family, Lila!

Never straying far...

 

Even present for baths!

 

Always up for a good time!

The bond between Baxter and Luca was unbreakable and the bond between Baxter and Lila continued to grow and grow.  Truly one of the sweetest things I have ever witnessed was the quiet, shared love they had for one another. 

Happy!

Sunbathing!

 



Always a gentle giant, he never acted jealous or agressive, and he was often times poked and proded as a little girl climbed on him or insisted that he wear crowns or jewels! 

 

A girl and her dogs!

 

Happy guy with new Christmas toys!

 

Good looking guy!

Loves from his girl!

Can't get close enough!

Always a trooper!

 

 

 

A remarkable bond...an unforgettable friendship.

Unfortunately, we said "goodbye" to Baxter on Thursday, April 11th.  He was just shy of turning 12.  While Mike and I were both aware that he was getting up there in age, losing him was very unexpected.  Due to some irregular breathing we decided to take him to our vet to just make sure all was okay.  Mike took him Thursday morning and I fully intended on getting some kind of an antibiotic or some "doctor's orders" and have my husband and my dog back home.  As fate would have it, that wasn't how the day was meant to be.  Mike called me in the middle of the day, crying, to let me know that the diagnosis wasn't good.  He had been transferred to the Emergency Vet to have an MRI done on his heart.  The scans showed that his heart was enlarged and he was experiencing heart failure.  Our hearts were broken, our options were very limited, we needed to make a decision and our decision was to love him and protect him the way he had loved us and protected us, every single day, for twelve years.    

Our Handsome Boy, Baxter

We have been so lucky to know the love of such a wonderful dog and we were honored to love him back.  There are holes in our hearts and an even bigger hole in our family.  Lila reminds us that Baxter is now in heaven amongst the clouds and the stars.  Goose, we know you are up there watching over us & protecting us...we love you!

The poem below was comforting to me as we had to make such a difficult decision and it is also wonderful reminder of the relationship we have with our dogs, a relationship that is unlike any other.  There is no doubt that our saddness will fade, but the memories that Baxter left behind will last a lifetime. 

A Dog's Prayer

Treat me kindly, my beloved master, for no heart in all the world is more grateful for kindness than the loving heart of me.

Do not break my spirit with a stick, for though I should lick your hand between the blows, your patience and understanding will more quickly teach me the things you would have me do.

Speak to me often, for your voice is the world's sweetest music, as you must know by the fierce wagging of my tail when your footstep falls upon my waiting ear.

When it is cold and wet, please take me inside... for I am now a domesticated animal, no longer used to bitter elements... and I ask no greater glory than the privilege of sitting at your feet beside the hearth... though had you no home, I would rather follow you through ice and snow than rest upon the softest pillow in the warmest home in all the land... for you are my god... and I am your devoted worshiper.

Keep my pan filled with fresh water, for although I should not reproach you were it dry, I cannot tell you when I suffer thirst. Feed me clean food, that I may stay well, to romp and play and do your bidding, to walk by your side, and stand ready, willing and able to protect you with my life, should your life be in danger.

And, beloved master, should the Great Master see fit to deprive me of my health or sight, do not turn me away from you. Rather hold me gently in your arms as skilled hands grant me the merciful boon of eternal rest...and I will leave you knowing with the last breath I drew, my fate was ever safest in your hands.

--Beth Norman Harris