Van the Man turns 1!!!

My uncles bought me my first hoop!

My first quad!

Grandma and Grandpa bought me a car!

Birthday cake stuffed in both cheeks!

Dan and I went to the Hope basketball game this weekend and as we were sitting in the bleachers watching the game I had  some serious de ja vue. It was exactly a year ago we were sitting in the same spot on the bleachers when I wasn't sure if I had peed my pants or my water had broke. As I stood up in a puddle of water, our journey was about to begin into this new role as parents. As early as labor and delivery Van has made parenting easy. He came out after only pushing maybe 15 minutes and graced our presence with his almost 10 lb frame. He has been such a joy this past year and it has gone so fast.  From birth he has been  a genuinely happy boy. His spirit is sweet and tender and he lights up when other kids are around. He loves his mom and dad, but will go to anybody. He has been such a tremendous blessing this past year watching him go from my baby to my little man. I am soaking up every moment because I know there is no way our other kids will be this easy. From early on he showed us his love for music. One of his favorites places to be is at the piano. It used to be he would sit with Dan at the piano, but as soon as he could crawl he would make his way over to his favorite spot, pull himself up and stand and play the piano, his tiny fingers barely reaching the keys. His other favorite toy is his best friend, Jackson(our golden retreiver) He loves to throw the ball for Ja Ja and bless his heart Jackson will go get the ball even if it is only 3 inches and bring it back to him. We have had such a fun year with Vander and can't wait to see what his life will hold. What his interests will be, who his friends will be, what sports he will play, how God is going to use his life to bless others and ultimately bring glory to Him. We have already been so blessed by our little man in the 12 months he has been part of our lives.