RAELYNN'S PARTY WAS A SUCCESS....

Saturday we celebrated Raelynn's 3rd birthday. I can hardly believe it has already been 3 years. She is so grown up and the past 3 years with her have been the best of my entire life. We started Saturday morning with a new dress, of course! Then Raelynn, Karli and I went to get manicures and pedicures. Raelynn was so cute and loved it! Then we finished gathering last minute items for the party. Her party started at 4pm and things went great. Raelynn had a fantastic time with all her friends and just having a day where Mommy let her eat anything she wanted and stay up late. What more could a little girl want? She got so many wonderful gifts and she truly enjoyed her day!

Cooper is doing well also. I think we are going through some more withdraw issues as we cut his methadone and adivan down to 1X per day. We have an appointment with our pediatrician and our cardiologist this week so there is sure to be some new news regarding Cooper. He is looking great though and for the most part seems to be very happy. We had to replace his NG tube tonight just because it had been in for awhile and so we pulled it out about 7pm and did not have to put it back until about 9pm. As Karli said, "he looked so normal" and she was right. It was so good to see him with out the tube. I gave him a bath and for the first time did not have to worry about getting it wet or the end getting down in the tub. It will be so great when it is gone for good.

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I feel so fortunate to have my babies and my family and friends, and as I sit here tonight I cannot help but feel so deeply sad. Before I updated my blog I read Taylor's and I cannot even wrap my mind or heart around how she must feel. Please keep her and Josh in your prayers because although I know their son will always be with them, the emptiness they must feel right now is sure to be paralyzing and they will need all our prayers to make their lives feel purposeful again. Another tragedy occurred this weekend as a friend of mine was hit on his bike Saturday morning and killed. Dave Dillon was a great guy. He had taken my Boot Camp class for awhile and then we spent a few months running together in the mornings. I hadn't seen him for quite awhile when Terry and I ran into him at T's. I am so glad I got to hug him and tell him I had missed him. This just shows that we do not know what any one day has in store for us and therefore we should always remember what and who is important. I think my kids probably think I am crazy but there is not a morning or night or anytime in between when I am with them I do not remind them how much I love them. I hold them when they ask, I kiss them when they smile or cry and I will allow them to grow and become their own people but never without telling them that they are my world! If I have learned nothing else over the last few months it is that things can change on a dime and much I have no control of. Therefore, the things I do, I will do my very best to portray my love and respect I have for my family and friends and life in general.