Birthday Boy Miles

Miles is two.

Even as I write those words it is hard to believe how quickly the last two years have flown by, and how much life has changed by becoming a parent. I have never been more amazed by the world we live in, or more aware of the miracle that is this life we share than I have been in the last two years. In some ways parenting has made life more focused, as I am much more conscious of the things that are relevant only to our immediate family. While at the same time it has broadened my perspective and helped me begin to discern our universal roles. Then there has also been the realization that we have been gifted with this beautiful soul whose life we have been granted the opportunity to guide, and as a bonus he makes us laugh and smile all the time!

One of the most amazing changes over the past year, in my opinion, has been the incredible growth we have watched Miles achieve! Since his last birthday not only has he learned how to walk, he has also made leaps and bounds in his ability to communicate. He has quickly advanced from simple signing, to sentences of three or four words, to literally narrating our lives for us as we experience them. Lately he likes to refer to himself in third person and asks constantly, "What is Miles doing?", "Where is Miles going?", or relays important information like, "Miles has a dirty diaper!" I think one reason he is so vocal is because he loves to read. Each night we pile into bed and read the stack of books he has selected. The most recent cult favorites have been: Marvin K. Mooney Will You Please Go Now by Dr. Suess, The Going to Bed Book by Sandra Boynton, and Fed Up!: A Feast of Frazzled Foods by Rex Barron, to name a few. What I love is that we have read all of them so many times that he literally reads along, and can often fill in the blank if you leave out a word. I know that Michael and I are also thrilled that we have moved on from "Go, Dog. Go!" (I think we've read that book over ten thousand times :-)

So ~ about his birthday. To celebrate his big day we invited all of our family over to share in the joy! Miles and I started the day by baking carrot cake cupcakes - with carrots that were saved from Paw Paw's garden for just the occasion.

Miles loved making the cream cheese frosting!

He tasted it every step of the way until we got it just right.

We topped each cupcake with a pecan ~ and his was designated with his birthday candle decoration that was a gift from Yia Yia Liz.

Family members began to arrive from near and far, and a special highlight to the day was that some of them were meeting Ruben for the first time!

Papou instantly bonded with Ruben and proceeded to rock him to sleep.

Uncle Matt and Aunt Jessica made this their first stop after they arrived from Portland! It was so wonderful to have them here to share Miles' special day and finally get to hold Ruben in their arms.

At one point Miles put on his crown, that was now his "birthday crown," and he shared a special moment with GG.

This year he sang along with his birthday song and blew out his own candles. As we opened his gifts he would squeal with delight, and then wanted to stop and play with each one. He even recruited Paw Paw to begin opening them for him! He was showered with thoughtful gifts for which he (and we) are truly grateful! We are so thankful for all the people in his life that love him (and both our boys) and appreciate their presence in our lives everyday!

We saved our gift for last. It was exciting because we have been hiding it for months now, and waiting with anticipation to see his reaction! Well - he surpassed even our expectation. This child LOVES music! When we listen to a song on the radio he loves to point out a guitar or piano solo. He actually wakes up singing each morning! Usually a version of Old Mac-Donald's Farm or Twinkle Twinkle Little Star - with his own words ad-libbed. So needless to say - Michael was so excited when he found the perfect little guitar for Miles to start with. It was especially sentimental because he bought it for Miles from the same store where he purchased his own first guitar years ago! I know - it seems a little big for a two year old, and an awfully fragile gift for such young hands, but Miles' reaction showed us he was ready for such a gift.

When it was handed to him he proceeded to begin strumming and serenading his captive audience! Aunt Jessica caught it all on video - it was remarkable! I think we were all a bit stunned. So Miles, we look forward to your future musical accomplishments... no pressure :-) Really though - it will be so special to see him play along with Michael and learn about his instrument.

Ruben slept through the whole display, comfortable in his Yia Yia's arms.

Other favorite gifts were the harmonica from Aunt Sarah & Uncle David, and the wooden turtle from Aunt Jessica & Uncle Matt. Both had to go to bed with him for the night. The next morning we woke up to him playing a song instead of singing one.

Ruben enjoyed the music too -
maybe one day soon he will be playing along!

We look forward to another amazing year - with two boys in our life now - where we continue to learn from each other and grow. Many thanks again to all of our family members who gave such thoughtful gifts, and most importantly continue to give all their love and support for Miles. Both of our boys have an amazing foundation of family and friends to support them as they begin their lives. We are so incredibly blessed!