the last first birthday...

On March 28th Zachary turned one. Our little surprise, the one we had never imagined, has arrived and grown, and now he is already one year old. For his birthday, we celebrated with friends and tried to make it as much fun for him as we could, though the larger part of the celebration was for us. A bittersweet reminder that we have decided to begin the next chapter of parenthood and stop with the child-bearing.

I couldn't have asked for a better turn out. And thanks to my friends who helped me pull it off without a hitch. Kathi Jurva helped me make "Pupcakes" for all of the kids. They were soooooooo stinkin' cute! Exactly what I had imagined!

So here is a brief synopsis of Zach's special day and how the events evolved from one to another:

First, Andrea handed Zach his very own specially made (by Momma of coarse:) cake. He's not sure what to do with it at first, but with a little encouragement, this turned into....



this. A cute little chocolate covered boy! Then this became...



This! Fun in the tub! But what fun is a bath without a buddy? So, the solo tub became the...



Double tub. You just can't keep toddler boys away from the water! It's impossible!


Here's a pic of the playfully perfect pupcakes! We got the idea from the March issue of Family Circle magazine. Look familiar?


And since we have ended another first year of life, a note to "Baby Zach" as he's called 'round these parts...

When we moved to Alaska, we never ever thought that our first year here would be marked by the arrival of such a loving, sweet, and adorable baby boy. It hasn't always been easy taking care of you and your big brother at the same time, but your seemingly abundant patience has made many very long days, a lot more bearable. When you smile at us, your bright blue eyes twinkle, and somehow we know that everything is going to be okay. We thought there was no more room in our world for someone new, but you have proved us all wrong. Now we know our lives are complete because God has sent you to us. This last, first year of life for us, has been a rollercoaster, but you...sweet, sweet baby boy...you have made it one of the best. I wish that you would always stay small and let me kiss your chubby cheeks, while you throw your head back and giggle with delight. Oh, how I wish you could stay small and not grow big like your sisters and brother before you have done. You will never know how much you have captured the heart of every member of this family...