denise tagged me today!
i had to blog about the 4th photo found in the 4th file. the way picasa organizes it, it was a very old folder for me. it's new year's eve last year. we had just given garrett a bath & were settling in for the night. he looks so small here & it makes me sad...i yearn for the days when he was so tiny & i was nursing & he loved being on the boppy & talked to (ie, stayed relatively still!). why are babies only tee-tiny for such a short, short period of time?

can you tell i have the baby itch? :-)

happy halloween, little monkey!

no surprise, right? that our little monkey dressed as a monkey for halloween! thanks for the tip, beth, on the old navy costume - it was perfect! we thought he would hate having the headpiece on, but no problem! the pants didn't want to stay strapped around his feet, though.

tonight we went out for about an hour & saw some other friends trick or treating & then visited the homes of some others. garrett loves being around people, so i think seeing all the kids & pets out was the highlight of his first halloween!

in the stroller, all ready to go!

garrett's first official trick or treat @ ed & linda's house!

ed & linda are wonderful neighbors & friends (more like family!). linda was garrett's nanny for a few months when i went back to work.

garrett with bret tenny...bret & his wife (linda - we missed you tonight!) are ROCK STAR parents - we want to be just like them (& have our kids grow up to be just like theirs!).

garrett & daddy @ the lammers house.

garrett was getting so tired by the end of the night!

happy birthday, brian!

happy 32nd birthday, brian!

garrett & i are wishing you all the best on your very, very special day. you are an incredible man & i am beyond blessed to call you my husband. you are probably the kindest person i know & while i do believe in the fall of man, sometimes i wonder if it somehow missed you? :-) you love people in ways that i fail to do. you are a loyal & tender friend, husband, son & father. you want to see the best in the world & in those around you. you show others unconditional acceptance without judgment. you're one of those people that others are lucky to know because you bring such a beautiful light into their world.

so, thank you (for more than 14 years!) for loving me in spite of myself. thank you for the sense of humor you bring to our life together. thank you for the time you have taken to love our son & be a great dad to him. thank you for setting an example for me of how to be a better human being! thank you for giving so much of yourself to our families & friends.

i love you & am praying that the year to come will be an amazing one for you! all my love...

PS...i've posted some pictures that sort of celebrate who you are...the goofy & fun-loving parts of your personality! hope you (& everyone else!) will get a kick out of these!

top photo: 10 year college reunion @ milligan this past weekend.

mother's day 2007 with your mom, michael, julie & jackson...we had just told your fam we were pregnant!

THE PUNISHER!!!! your birthday last year as you were heading out to play paintball with the boys!

you & dustin laughing @ who knows what one night @ pure.

your rally cap @ the cubs vs. braves game in chicago last summer! didn't work...

one night @ dinner in costa rica. nov 2006

camping with dustin & kelly jo...just a note of self-improvement: contribute more around camp. :-) fall 2006

@ the windham's for t'giving dinner. nov 2006

brian & some of the girls from his old job! this makes me giggle!

we had just found out we were pregnant! it was our secret still! april 2007

you & your bro being crazy @ jackson's birthday party this past weekend.

dear friends

it's not often in life that you come upon people you find so genuine, so real that you are overwhelmed by their friendship, their light. brian & i have been blessed...a few times...to encounter these relationships, to count these people as our dearest & best friends.

dustin & kelly jo are two of those people. they stand out. they are different. they are different from us in ways that challenge us. they are similar to us in ways that hold us accountable & give us the reality checks we so desperately need.

and i don't think that often enough we publicly (or privately, for that matter) praise our friends, so i just wanted to take a second to do that!

the past year or so has been tough for us with brian's job. the funny thing is...we were in TX - w/ D & KJ, visiting both their families - when this opportunity presented itself in our lives. they've literally lived this journey with us every step of the way. tonight was a hard night for brian - a night that was raw with emotion & challenge, work wise. we were out w/ D & KJ & they watched B experience this & then encouraged him & counseled him in ways that showed their support, in ways that really mattered. it made me think of the following passage from ecclesiastes 4...

"Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their work: If one falls down, his friend can help him up. But pity the man who falls and has no one to help him up! Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm. But how can one keep warm alone? Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken."

i couldn't even begin to outline here all the ways that God providentially put these 2 INCREDIBLE people in our lives. i can't begin to list the amazing ways they have loved & supported us through so many changes. how they have loved garrett & walked with us through becoming parents, despite not being parents themselves!

so to dustin & kelly jo...thank you for simply being who you are. two beautiful people who are gifts to our family. you are a credit to your people. ;-) we love you both - words could never express! thank you for tonight - as always - for the fellowship, for the laughter, for the honesty. we're better people b/c you are our friends.

a day off with daddy

garrett & i were so happy that brian had columbus day off & we could head up to the foothills for our *true* pumpkin patch experience! it's always fun to have an extended weekend together! plus, we missed brian on sunday since he was able to go away with a group of guys for a mountain biking experience in TN! brian's been working *very* hard & it was good to see him take some time for himself that day.

so here's a visual recap of our time at the pumpkin patch...

much of the time, baby G was more interested in the cool mulch than the cool pumpkins!

garrett's *definitely* a people watcher!

his head looks like a little punkin'!

what did you say, daddy?

what is going on here????

sweet, sweet, sweet! daddy & garrett

my parents stuck me in this wheelbarrow to try & contain me...

but i think i can escape!

if i could just see inside this thing...

mommy & garrett

garrett loved being up on this tractor!

peeking out from behind the wheel!

finally...someone can actually take a decent picture of the 3 of us!