Aurelia's 1st Birthday

 I still have Malakai's birthday to post about, but since it's most fresh on my mind and in my camera card, I'll share how we celebrated Aurelia's very first birthday.

{the coral dress in these photos is the same newborn sized dress}

Aurelia turned one year old on September 5th and I mourned the fact that her baby days are slipping away. I'm still wondering where the last 12 months disappeared to. We celebrated her growing and learning and the joy she brings to our little family. Sadly, she had been very sick the entire week prior with 3 visits to the pediatrician, 2 trips to the pharmacy, and numerous called to the triage nurse. It started the week before when she had been acting fussy and spiked a fever for just a day. It broke on it's own and she didn't really have any other symptoms beside being extremely irritable. On Friday I decided to take her in just to be sure before the weekend hit and we had to resort to urgent care if things got worse. We saw one of the new providers at our pediatricians office and she checked Aurelia's ears, which were my suspicion because of her behavior, and despite no other symptoms she did in fact have an ear infection. 

She was limited in what antibiotics she could take due to previous side effects, so we decided to try the same one she had with her last ear infection in early June. After 2 days and no real improvement in her mood, she woke with a mild case of hives on her belly. That night she vomited shortly after taking another dose of her medicine. The next day we went in to the doctor to chat about her reactions and changing medicine. Then Aurelia started refusing the medicine, she'd spit it no matter how we tried to give it to her. By the Friday, a full week from when we previously took her in we were back for the 3rd visit to see if her meds were doing any good since she was spitting them out. Thankfully her ear was improving, so we kept attempting to get to to swallow as much as possible and prayed for healing. We were able to celebrate Grandma Debbie's birthday that day without too much of a fuss. 

On her birthday she was in great spirits. We went out to one of our favorite places, Johnson Brothers Greenhouses out in Coburg, Oregon. They do a really sweet little kids' event the first Saturday of every month. Then we actually celebrated her little friend who happens to be 8 days younger at her birthday party and ended the day playing at home together.

Sunday after church we threw her a simple little garden party at our dear friend's home and she was just a peach the entire day. It was so nice to have her finally feeling better.

{Mima outdid herself again with a beautiful cake}

We had some light snacks and drinks for our guests and played lawn games and had a good old fashioned visit.

We watched her daintily eat her very first bites of cake and frosting, and play with tissue and wrapping paper as she opened up gifts.

{banana applesauce smash cake}

She watched the big kids play and got passed around from grandparents, to aunts + uncles, to friends and crawled around in the grass with here cousin, brothers and little friends. 

It was a perfect little afternoon celebration for our sweet and sassy little girl. 

Desmond's 1st Birthday, a Barnyard Bash!

 The last few weeks I have been overwhelmed with blessings. Ttere have been hardships, as usual, but even through them- blessings have flowed. A couple weeks ago the boys came down with a virus and we had the worst night sleep (aka no sleep). We were showered with offers to bring meals, dessert, and coffee. I was shocked at the outpouring of kindness.

Yesterday we threw Desmond his 1st birthday party. We were once again, so blessed by the entire event. So many friends and family came to wish Des well and they really showered him with gifts. The party was at our friends' home, in their barn...an actual barn, complete with authentic sheep poo! Truly, Mark + Liz have a gorgeous place and it was so generous of them to not only let us have the party there but to help us decorate, set up, and clean up. We are so blessed.

 Des was all smiles just about the entire time. You know how most kiddos have a tantrum at their 1st birthday party, well he only whined a bit when his little boots started to hurt his feet. That was all, what a champ! Sadly, Kai made a grand entrance, complete with melt-down. Which is what happens when he doesn't get his nap and then we put him into a social situation. He warmed up once we brought out the Stomp-Rocket, something I got with his birthday money and waited to pull out at the party.

While I was putting up decorations it began to rain, but it let up and stayed clear the rest of the day. It was so humid though, that even paper things under cover felt a bit soggy. I had a few activities planned that we could do under cover because of the rain; pin the tail on Bulls-Eye and bean bag toss. With no rain, kids were content to run in the field and climb on the tractor, so we never needed the games.

{aunt Kristi played solo}

{our little family, Des with G'Pa, and sweet cousin Delia on the tractor}

Kids and adults alike were entertained by the cider-press. Mark built it himself in college and it was really fun to watch, and the cider was delicious! 

We got the party rolling pretty quickly and started with gifts for a few people who had to leave early. Des received so many gifts, all of them so nice! The boys will be entertained all winter long and then some! 

Shortly after we brought out Desmond's birthday cake and sang to him. My talented mother, who the boys know as Mima, baked a cow cake per my request. Growing up she has made a lot of cakes like this one, and not only are they delicious, but incredibly adorable!

I made Des a banana cake for him to dig into. While we were singing the wind blew out his candle. I nearly attempted to relight it, but knew it was too windy and he wasn't going to be blowing it out anyway. Then he dug in...

Friends and family alike showed up dressed to theme, it made for an even more authentic feel for the whole event. Although, technically, I don't consider my dad as being in costume since this is pretty much his regular attire...

Once our guests were gone and we cleaned our stuff out of the barn, we moved over to the BBQ area and had a little after-party with the immediate family. I had BBQ chicken in the crockpot and Liz provided us with some corn straight from the garden. We had dinner, then moved again to the fire pit to relax and have a few s'mores.

 We couldn't have asked for a more beautiful day or a happier birthday boy! Thanks to all who came, and Happy 1st Birthday Des!

Dear Desmond Lee

Dear Sweet "Little" Desmond,
This past year has been a wild ride. It has gone by faster than any time in my entire life and it shows no signs of slowing down, neither do you. It's hard to imagine that 12 months have already passed since I went into labor. Daddy still teases me for all the chores I did before I would go to the hospital. I know that all that work helped you get here faster and we got to spend more time with you once you were home because there were no chores to bug us, not that we would have let them.

You started out very colicky and it was rough for all of us those 1st three weeks, but nothing compared to your recent virus that kept us up all night worrying about you and trying to help you sleep. Thankfully you are strong and healthy again, just in time for your birthday. As a newborn you had an ear infection at just a couple weeks old and it broke our hearts, we also struggled through other illnesses together those first few months but we've made  it out stronger.

You progressed through life so quickly, doing everything early. You even gained weight by your 2-day appointment (when most babies are still working to get back to birth weight by 2 weeks). You sat up, crawled, and walked earlier than most. I think you were trying to catch up to your big brother.

You and your brother Malakai have grown into such special friends. Before you were born he was jealous of any other baby or child that I held. The day you were born and he met you, all that changed and then he wouldn't let anyone hold you but me. You were "mama's baby". He was protective of you until you learned to crawl, then he realized you were a playmate and the wrestling began. It has only recently become a two-sided affair. Still, the two of you love to chase each other and dance together, although you can be found dancing at even the hint of music, it takes a bit more to get your brother to join in these days.

Your look has changed quite a bit since you were born and it seems you've slowly morphed into looking like your daddy and brother. Mama finds you all to be so handsome that she's perfectly fine with losing her "look alike".

Lately you are repeating words and sounds and pointing at what or who you want. Pointing at noses and saying "nuh" or things you get excited about like dogs and saying "whoah!". You also seem to be experiencing a tad of separation anxiety as you always want me to be nearby. Thankfully it hasn't inhibited you enough to keep you from enjoying yourself in the church nursery where you play hard and have won the hearts of many volunteers.

You are very stubborn and grunt when you want something that is being taken or blocked. Like when you insist on climbing inside the lid drawer and someone tries to take you back out again. We've decided that you enjoy being "containerized". You love to "read" the Elmo Peek-a-Boo book that you got last Christmas and play with blocks or your shaker eggs.

Our little family is so much better because you are in it. We can't wait to see what the years ahead bring for you.

{traditional birthday breakfast at OPH}

Happy 1st Birthday Desmond Lee!
Love, Mama

First Birthday Weekend Part 2: the parrrtaaay!

So Saturday was the big party day. I had my 3rd night of terrible/no sleep. Remember that commercial for Disneyland {or world?} where the kids + the dad are tossing and turning and they both say "I'm too excited to sleep!" that was me. My body was exhausted but my mind wouldn't turn off! I'd wake from a light sleep at 3am and text myself an email of things I needed to do. I was driving myself insane! Unfortunately this led to a terrible tension headache that lasted the entire day of his party, but I was able to ignore it and enjoy the day anyway!

We had planned on getting out of bed at 6:30am-ish, when Malakai usually wakes us up. We didn't set an alarm and Malakai slept in. At 8am I startled awake and woke up Ben. We were supposed to pick up the cupcakes at or just after 8am! The cupcakes were Malakai's gift from a college friend who has her own company {I've mentioned her and her Sassy cupcakes before}. They had a family reunion so they couldn't come to the party. Thankfully Ben was able to roll out of bed and jump in the car to go get them. She made 70 perfect little cupcakes for us!

It then took us FOREVER to pack up all the decorations, food, and Malakai's stuff to be gone for the whole day. It pretty much takes the same ridiculous amount of stuff to be gone for a week as it does just one day...oh babies!

We got to my parents' house, where the party was held, at just before 11am {when we meant to be there by 8am- whoopsie!}. Ben + I got straight to work unloading, cleaning, decorating. My sister tried to get Malakai down for a nap, I tried to get Malakai down for a nap, then Ben SUCCEEDED at getting Malakai down for his nap by 11:30am. Thankfully little mister slept til just after 1pm and the party was slated to start at 1pm... seriously so perfect, thank the LORD!

I didn't get a chance to photograph all the decor + details but here is the monthly photo poster I made...

We displayed the cupcakes in a posterboard treasure chest Ben already had!

and I put the grab bags for the little kids all around it. They each had a pirate hat like Malakai's, a whistle with a pirate ship on it, an eye patch, and some other little goodies.

Immediate family arrived first and then extended family + friends started to trickle in. Malakai was passed around for photo ops and the like in his adorable pirate outfit.

{details on where his onesie is from will come next week- you won't want to miss it!}

Malakai's present from Ben + I was this giant Pirate Ship Hideout pool. It came with a million little accessories! Plus two cannons spray water and two shoot plastic balls!

{cheeesy family pose}

Ben has a full on Jack Sparrow-esque pirate costume from working out at camp back in the '06, but sadly after a couple hours of searching we couldn't find it anywhere! We both wore our Pirates of the Caribbean shirts that his parents got us in Disneyland back in 2007.

Oh, did I mention we had the party at my parents' place because of the FABULOUS pool?

{Unfortunately some of the big kids {aka my cousin + brother} got to the inflatables and they didn't last much longer after this occurred...}

After a million pictures in front of the thing we finally got in the water to play. I just love his little pose in this photo...Captain Malakai!

He was seriously the happiest kid ever the entire time! My mom kept telling me that it's a given that the birthday-boy has a melt-down during the 1st Birthday party, but not my boy!

Next we opened presents. We seriously have the most generous family + friends! Malakai got a ton of great presents. I can honestly say that we didn't get one thing that needs to be returned, even for duplicate or wrong size reasons!!!

{the chair he's sitting in is from a set I got when I was little}

After presents was smash cake time! I made him his very own banana cake and topped it with cool-whip for him to dig into. 

{confused by the singing + the flames}

Everyone ooh'd + aww'd while he attempted to eat his cake. Every time he started to really get into it the crowd would cheer which would startle him and he'd stop and look to see what all the fuss was about. It was pretty hilarious.

He wasn't really getting that there was a cake underneath all the creamy whipped-goodness so I helped him out a bit. 

 {this pic cracks me up, looks like he ate the whole thing and is just full to the max!}

Later some more friends arrived and Malakai got to play with Henry in the ball pit!

{this boat is also from my childhood, but was mostly for my younger siblings. It was a pool or a sandbox back then. Such a cool toy!}

It was such a fun {and EXHAUSTING} day. We were so wiped out that Ben actually fell asleep on the floor that evening before we went home! 

and this wasn't even the end to our busy weekend...

1st Birthday weekend part 1

Our weekend was so ridiculously long and jam packed with activity that I can't fit it all into one post {aka I don't have the time to edit all the photos and type out all the details at once}.

Friday July 16th was Malakai's 1st Birthday as many of you know from my posts that day. Ben took his one vacation day of the summer so we could spend the day just the 3 of us.

First we went to the park that morning and took some fun photos. It was just before 10am and even though it was gorgeous outside we had the park all to ourselves.

We tried new things like sitting on the spinning toys, climbing the big structure together and walking along the wall.

After the park was nap time for Malakai and prep time for Ben + I. While I baked Malakai's smash cake, Ben wrapped his gift from us. 

Once Malakai woke up from his morning nap we headed out for his birthday lunch at Red Robin. It's one of the few little kid friendly restaurants that isn't fast food and Malakai loves to people watch there. We ordered his first ever kids meal {compliments of the eclub} and watched him enjoy being sang to by the servers. He seriously was so confused by their singing. He also had his first taste of ice cream from the Sundae they brought him. 

After lunch we ran a few errands for Saturday's party, came home  for another nap, and played in the house and backyard before dinner + bedtime. 

We all had a really great day that came and went entirely too fast!

I'm so glad we kept it relatively low-key with the excitement of his big Pirate Party being the next day...

One

dear sweet Malakai Benson boy...

{finished writing this at 7:30pm 7.15- which is when I went into labor a year ago. Posted at 7:20 am 7.16 the time Malakai was born}

Dear Malakai,

I had started writing you letters before you were even formed in my womb. I kept them to myself in a small paper notebook as I dreamed of meeting you someday. Once we found out that you were coming in July of last year life got busy and while I chronicled the journey I didn't write directly to you like I meant to until now, 12 months after your birth-day.

You have been such a sweet, happy, wonderful baby. While there were trying times as we all learned how to live together and take care of each other, it was and still is a very blissful experience being your mama. I now understand so much about the decisions your Mema made as I was growing up and have inherited her tendency to worry too much.

We've had an exciting journey this year and pretty much any plan I made from the day of your birth to now has been thrown out the window as you had your own way in mind. Instead of the 6 or less hours that the last 5 generations of women in my family have labored, it took us 12 hours to meet you face to face. You were worth every single painstaking minute.

When we brought you home we had a beautiful bassinet that had also been through 5 generations, but you preferred to sleep snuggled up to me. I didn't know much about co-sleeping but I learned quickly as that was the choice you made. From there your daddy and I became quite fond of baby led or "attachment" parenting, a concept we had barely even heard of before you were born.

As most {if not all} parents we learned as we went. Every baby, every parent, every family is different and we did what worked best for the three of us while nurturing your needs first. Daddy and I learned to function on less sleep and roll with the punches. We learned to love in a new way, a truly unconditional love that we hadn't yet imagined possible. You changed us, made us better.

You developed so quickly over this past year. Milestone after milestone, and so much teething! You love your plastic blocks and you always pick a matching pair, one for each hand, to tote around the house. You love to drop things from the changing table or high chair and say "uh-oh" as they fall. You are fiercely independent; you love to feed yourself, and started letting go almost as soon as you began to pull yourself to stand. You are super wiggly all the time, always ready to go,go,go! The past couple days you have taken to climbing up on daddy or I for hugs, I'll never get enough of this. Just this past week you went from taking your first independent steps to trying to walk any chance you get.

Watching you grow has been one of the most fulfilling and one of the hardest things I've ever done. It's happening so fast that I've learned to cherish every single moment of your life. I'm happy to have slowed down because of you, but sad when I think that your childhood will be gone before I know it.

We pray each and every day that you will know God as your personal Lord and Jesus as your Savior. We trust in Him to provide for all of us, to lead us in raising you, and to guide you on the path He will lay out before you.

Today is the first day of your 2nd year of life. Happy 1st Birthday Malakai Benson.
Love,
Mama

birthday week

It's that time already. Malakai turns one on Friday! This week has already started off busy. We'll be running around picking up food, decor + any other last minute necessities. I'm also working on a couple special things for the big event this Saturday. Aaaand I'll be watching Henry as usual. Plus it's our last week of swim lesson.

Oh yeah, and Kai took his first independent steps! He took one really quickly between the cupboards in the kitchen last Friday morning. Sadly Ben was at work and I didn't have a camera, since I barely even saw him do it! Then last night he took two steps towards daddy all by himself. Ben was excited to witness his new skill. We're going to have a walker soon!

I'll be back as I have time to update, and of course to announce the winners of the current giveaway. There will surely be a detailed post next week {or as soon as I can} after Malakai's birthday and party day!