Cecilia's 1st Birthday Party!!

Last Saturday we celebrated Cecilia's 1st birthday. Notice I said celebrated. That's because she does not turn 1 until Thursday, and I am having a really hard time with that. We had a wonderful turn out for her party! We had close to 55 people in our backyard all to show our baby girl how much she is loved.

Leading up to the party, I was slowly becoming more and more emotional about the whole thing. I finally hit bottom when I was in the baking isle at King Soopers picking out the "1" candle for her cake. I almost lost it right there, but I managed to keep it together until I got to the car. I just couldn't believe that she was going to be 1 ALREADY! I feel like this year has gone way.to.fast. I know they say that it goes fast, but until you live it, you don't realize the impact of that statement.

I was so glad to have Pat and Sarah, and my parents' help with getting the house ready and food prepped. It was such a blessing! We love our back yard, and this event showed why. We comfortable fit everyone under two big tents and had plenty of room for the kids to play, people to mingle, and food to be served. Jon did a fabulous job manning the grill.Cecilia did so good. She was so cute too! She gladly went to anyone, and would walk with anyone who would hold her hands. She played and played with her little buddies, and her big cousins. My parents found this awesome ball thing that collapses up and then expands. I'm not sure who had more fun with it- the little ones or the big kids. We put Cecilia in it, and she was in a show-off mood; she stood in side it for a good 10-15 seconds before she sat down. I was so impressed!
My favorite part was her cake (of course!). I made them myself, a chocolate pound cake with strawberry butter cream and chocolate fudge icing. All of it was homemade with love. Cecilia did a great job with her little cake. I've decided that there are Eight steps to a baby's first cake: Anticipation, Hesitation, Curiosity, Indulgence, Joy, Sharing, Anger/Sadness, and Evidence. Her reaction to all of us singing "Happy Birthday" to her was priceless. She could not have played to her fans any better- seriously, the cutest thing EVER!

Then it was on to the loot, and there was a lot of it! Cecilia loved watching me open up her gifts, especially when I would throw the tissue paper down to her. She received a bunch of new clothes, a swing for the back porch, new toys and books, and a new baby pool! She also got a Toy Box from her Uncle Nick- get it, its a box that is a toy! She loves it!
She was so content during all of the festivities, but she sure was tired at the end of it all! I really am amazed by how much she has grown this past year, and how much our lives have changed. I love that baby girl so much! Happy Birthday, Cecilia Kathryn!

Bathroom Remodel- Phase 3

Jon has been working his tail off to get the bathroom tile finished before Cecilia's Party tomorrow. It is looking FAB-U-LOUS!!! We started this phase of the remodel last Friday. It took way longer than we anticipated- Jon even took last Monday off of work to get more finished on it. We laid the last tile on Wednesday night, and today, Jon grouted it all in. I can officially add "tile saw engineer" to my resume. We worked well as a team, passing measurements and cut tiles back and forth through the bathroom window.Cecilia was so good through this whole process. Last weekend she played so contently by herself for several hours, allowing me to continue to assist Jon. Part of me was so happy that she was being so independent, and another part of me felt so guilty for not playing with her. But, in the end, I figured that as long as she was happy, I didn't need to worry.


Fortunately, she is still little enough to take a bath in the kitchen sink while her tub was indisposed.
The tile looks so good, and I am so happy with the final result. This is it for a few weeks for home improvements (thank goodness). I'm sure the Home Depot will miss us. We hope to re-finish the vanity and build a custom cabinet for the bathroom this fall. Until then, I am going to enjoy living in my house, and not a construction zone.

Before:

After:

Last Journal Entry

Remember this post, about Petey going to Ethiopia. I mentioned how moved I was to hear him read his last journal entry to my mom and I. He has given me permission to share it with all of you. I hope that you find it as inspiring as I did.

Last journal entry: Ethiopia: 6/14/10

It is my last night in Africa, and I have come to realize a few things. When I came home from Africa after my previous trip in 2008, I came back to the U.S. feeling lucky; feeling as though I was privileged to live in America because I had so much more than others. I am very proud to be an American, though I now have a better understanding of happiness. On this trip I was fortunate enough to build a few relationships with some people in the orphanage, as well as the Doctors. They showed me the true value of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

I see things in this country such as, poverty, HIV and other disease, economic crisis, crop failure, poor living conditions, and little government influence. However, I also see people smiling, people laughing, and little worry about what tomorrow might bring. When I look at my own country, I see that we depend on our government or someone else to take care of us. We expect more than we deserve; and we put ourselves before our family. These people have less than what is necessary for sustainable living, yet they have smiles from ear to ear. They earn every bit of Birr (Ethiopian currency) that they work for and they put the right foot forward. Money cannot buy happiness, and material is insignificant.

I think it is wonderful that I can travel to the other side of the world and feel so welcomed. But I now understand that not everything or even anything about this developed country appealing to everybody. America is a lighthouse for the rest of the world. I will never take that for granted.

“If God gives someone lemons, he should first thank God. Then, he should teach someone how to make lemonade, and give them the seeds to plant in their garden. “ -Pete Ambrose

Humans have a tendency to head into life expecting to do one thing, and find out that the need is for something completely different. Allem Seged (orphanage director) is truly a saint. I went into this expecting to start building him a farm. The farm was already there, though they still need much help with it. I was expecting to help him… God already gave Allem lemons, now I have seeds for my garden. Thank you, God.

Windows Upgrade over July 4th

Last weekend we tackled the dreaded task of replacing the remaining 7 windows in the upstairs of our house. Both Jon and I were anxious about the project. There was a ton of work to be done in a short amount of time. We were so lucky to have the help of my Dad, Mom, Nick, Pat, Sarah, and my Uncle Pete. It was a true example of "many hands make light work". The men took on the task of cutting out the horrible old windows, and putting the wonderful new windows in. Sarah and I were on the prep and clean up crew.

My Mom was on baby duty. Cecilia and her played with her ball, and Cecilia was practicing her stand up skills.There was very little time for rest, but I allowed a cat nap.We were on a roll and with in about 6 hours we had 7 windows completely replaced. On Saturday we were able to get the outsides of the windows sealed up and trimmed, the drywall and sills in place, and we started mudding the drywall. Sunday and Monday Jon and I continued with the mudding and finishing of the drywall. By Monday night we were able to get our room back together. I was shocked and so happy with the progress we had made in such a short amount of time.
The difference of the new windows on our home is so incredible. Not only do they look great, but we noticed a difference in the sound immediately. It was good timing because on Sunday the neighbors were setting off fireworks after Cecilia went to bed. She woke up from the loud bangs, but as soon as I closed the new windows we couldn't hear them anymore. It was awesome!!! This may not seem like that big of a deal to you, but for us, it was a welcome difference. Our old windows were original to the house, circa 1956. They were made of steel and very thin glass with a storm window attached to the outside. Basically they were nothing but bug homes and gigantic holes in our house. I can't wait to see the difference in our heating bills next year (ha- never thought I would be excited to get a bill!).

Here is a before and after:

Amazingly, we were able to have our friends over for dinner on the 4th, amongst the construction. Cecilia sure did enjoy the company... and her watermelon!
We have been busy finishing the inside of the windows this weekend. More drywall mud, paint and rehanging of drapes. It will be finished soon- soon enough to start next weekend's project: Phase 3 of the bathroom- new tile in the shower stall. Oh the joys of home ownership!

175 Miles

My brother Nick just finished 175 mile bike ride to raise awareness for MS. The number of people suffering with this terrible disease are staggering, chances are you know at least one person with MS. I can think of 4 off the top of my head. Anyway, back to Nick.... He rode 175 miles in just 2 days. His team, Numb Butts, started in Westminster and rode all the way up to Ft. Collins and back. My Uncle Dan was supposed to ride as the team captain, but he fell while training for the ride the week before and wasn't able to go as planned. He met me at the finish line to welcome the team back. It was so inspirational to watch all of these people finish the ride! Several people came across the line crying or holding hands with a team mate in celebration of their accomplishment. We cheered as the Numb Butts came across! I am so proud of Nick! (Gosh, I sure do have a lot of inspiring men in my life...) Thank you, Nick, for riding and supporting research to end this horrible disease. Your efforts are appreciated and recognized by so many.

Dedicated

On Friday, June 25, we were among the lucky to be present for the dedication of St. Joseph's Catholic Church in Fairplay. This is the church that my Dad has been building for the last year. The Church finished beautifully, and I am so proud to be my Daddy's little girl. Bishop Sheridan was present to anoint and bless the new church. It was so cool to be apart of it. It is kind of a big deal to be able to go to a Dedication Mass- new churches are not built that often. Throughout Mass, I loved glancing over at my parents to see the raw emotion in their faces. This church has been a labor of love for both of them. I could feel the excitement and emotion coming from my Dad. He was full of joy and pride. To have such an intricate and amazing ceremony to christen your hard work is a privilege that many builders do not get.

My Dad said a few words at the end, and at one point he came over and took Cecilia. He was talking about his family, and then he explained how he felt that through building the church he felt that his hammer represented Christ to him- holding things together. So, he hid his hammer somewhere IN the church. Then he said that he would only tell one person and it would be their secret- he told Cecilia, because he knows she will never tell. It was too cute! My Mom also surprised my Dad and got him a St. Joseph's medal. She had Fr. Steve bless it and present it to my Dad. He wore it with happiness and pride.


I look forward to celebrating mass with my parents in that church for many years to come. I am especially looking forward to Pat and Sarah's wedding in the church next month!