The Party

we held the party at our {soon-2-B} home...
i was so happy that inka offered, i looked forward to having a pool, fireplace, and a game room to entertain the many children. it's always one of the worst part of any party for me. chelsie wanted a party with family and our closest friends and that's what she got.



we had many human and canine guests! i'm pretty sure that the humans had just as much fun as the canines! although the pooches were a bit concerned about their humans wading in such a large amount of water. there was a lot of whining going on...

did you know that my children {the younger ones} had never swam at night. it's the little things! and speaking of night, once the sun went down, shawn broke out the smores. dave and inka had a fireplace area put in several years ago and it has never been used, until now. it was great, and we look forward to many evenings by the fire.



at one point in the evening, i was feeding the baby and listening to all the laughter that was going on outside and was overwhelmed with emotion. it's not that i'm not excited to move or grateful for the opportunity to live in a much bigger home, it's just that i'm a creature of habit, not much for change and moving stresses me out. but as i listened to the kids, it was clear that this is where we need to be. it was wonderful to listen to the kids, oldest to youngest, enjoying themselves, wanting to be there and not excited when it came time to leave. i am looking forward to making many memories with family and friends and having a place that the kids want to be. i am grateful and i am looking forward moving and tucking my babies in to bed when they have clearly had enough...



my darling daughter's actual birthday is coming up this week...i can't believe she's going to be 21.
thanks everyone for celebrating this wonderful occasion with us and making her feel special! we love you ALL!!!