Aidan's Birthday

Well, Aidan is now 11. I really just can't believe it because he was just barely 5 when we started dating and 5 1/2 when we got married. He started kindergarten right before our wedding and now he is about to finish the 5th grade. I am amazed at how quickly kids grow up. Aidan has always been a delight. He has always been thoughtful and has been a helper. I have some pictures from each year of our family and some small stories from each year about Aidan.


I need to get some of our pictures from our first year scanned it. They are from before we had a digital camera. Aidan was just so little. Right before we got married we went to Seattle for a family reunion with Shane's family. Aidan was so sweet the whole time and just wanted to follow his Dad and me around. He loved exploring and still loves to learn new things. Right after we got married we did a job chart and a bedtime chart. The bedtime chart listed the usual brush your teeth, say your prayers. I remember how good he was at making sure we did the bedtime chart. He was also such a good helper with the job chart. A fun thing we did was "Personal Time". This was where Andrew would go with Dad for 30min. and Aidan with me for 30min. and then we would swap. The boys could choose the activity within reason. One of my favorites was when Aidan wanted to go for a drive. We went around Orem and I got to show him where I grew up and went to school. It was a great time to talk and to bond. At the end of his kindergarten year Shane and I were able to go to the zoo with his class. That was so fun and we got to spend a really special day with him.




Just before our first anniversary the boys moved to Washington State with their Mom. We were lucky enough to have them for Halloween and then Christmas. We were able to go to Disneyland. It was Aidan's first time. He was so brave and even went on the big Mickey Mouse roller coaster with me. Above is a picture of him at Disneyland. He was 6 1/2. When I think of Aidan around this time I remember how patient he was. He still is. We had this really long drive and he never complained. He was so excited to go and we were so lucky to be able to take him. Shortly after the Disneyland trip Aidan and Andrew with their Mom and Step-Dad moved back to Utah. Right after that we moved to Santaquin.

Right after their move back we were able to spend more time with them. Ignore the date on this picture. It was April of 2004, just after Aidan turned 7. We did so much once they got back. I think it was the whole, let's not take our time for granted because of how hard it was to have them away from us...especially for Shane and for them. Shane was able to coach them in sports over the summer and a lot of other fun time together as a family. When Shane coached them Aidan always wanted to do his best. He would try really hard to hit the ball and did very well. He was also very helpful to me. I would help the catcher get ready and help all the boys know when to get up to bat. Aidan was my right hand man.

Right after our next anniversary (#2) we had some nice family pictures taken by Julie. It was a really fun day and then we went to Brick Oven and had a fun dinner. After our anniversary we were able to go to Idaho for a fun trip and spend Thanksgiving together. By this time it was nice how relaxed we were as a family and things were really good. The next birthday for Aidan would be his 8th birthday. This was an amazing experience. He was so excited and so well prepared. He looked so big in his suit. It was a beautiful day where both his families were able to participate and there wasn't any tension. It was truly a blessing. At this time I had also learned I was pregnant and Aidan was so excited about this. Later that year we would have Max. Aidan and Max formed an instant bond. Aidan always wanted to help with everything for Max. He is such a good big brother.

Right after Max was born we hit our 3rd anniversary. It was during our 3rd year that Aidan just all of the sudden shot up. I don't know what happened, but he just seemed to age a little more this year. It must have been the duty of being a big brother to 2 instead of just one. Just look at him from his baptism to then at the hospital with Max to these pictures from Halloween and Max's blessing the November after Max was born.

After our 4th anniversary Andrew was baptized and they just kept getting bigger. We were able to get pictures with Aidan's mom of the 3 boys together and that was fun. Again, Aidan was looking all grown up! We also moved right before this anniversary and then moved 8 months later to where we are now. We were able to go to Southern California which was a blast and really enjoy our new house.



We hit our 5th anniversary this last September and this year has also proved to be eventful. Aidan was in his school program, he and Andrew have traveled all over. We went to Brighton on a family reunion and have just really grown close as a family.

I am so thankful for the opportunity that I have to play a role in Aidan's life. I hope I can be the best example to him that I can be. I know he has an amazing potential and he strives everyday to fulfill it. I am so proud of him and love him so much. He is a great kids, brother, son, friend, cousin, etc.