Remembering

Today is a day to remember. A day to cherish everything that we have in life: our families, our health, and our freedom. Nine years ago today we were rocked by acts of hatred and terror so extreme and violent that they will forever be burned into our minds. If you ask almost any person in our parents generation where they were when Kennedy was shot, they will remember the exact time and circumstance. It is the same for our generation and 9/11. I will always remember being 17 years old, getting ready for school in my pink bathroom and crimping my hair all while wondering why I could hear out TV on because my mom never watched TV in the mornings. I remember walking into our family room and my mom had pulled up a footstool right up in front of the screen and had a look on her face I had never seen before. I remember her looking at me and saying "We're under attack." The rest of the day is a blur, I went to school and I know that we watched the coverage all day in all of our classes, but I will never forget those first five or so minutes when I found out.

Today is the kind of day that, hopefully, reminds us all that despite our political party affiliation, our stance of SB-1070, our race or our gender, we are Americans. That makes me proud. My hope is that we can all remember that even on days that are not marked with tragedy.

On that note, all I wanted to do today was be with my family. To spend all day just marinating in all that I have: A husband who loves and supports me and makes me laugh, a son who is so beautiful and joyful there are not words to describe it, a home that is my own, food on my table, and our health. S usually works on Saturdays, but he didn't go in today and instead we woke up early and had pancakes for breakfast and then packed up the car with the three of us, a packed diaper bag, and our two dogs and headed to our community park.

It is finally cooling down enough (as in it is under 100 degrees) to be able to let L run around on the playground and really explore and practice his walking in the grass and down by the lake. I have to say, I am so proud and amazed by the leaps and bounds L has made at walking. He hardly even crawls any more.

And he's also getting old enough to really have fun playing, he found a bell that he couldn't get enough of, and he chimed in over and over again, and he was loving climbing on the slide. (We haven't quite mastered going down it yet, but we'll get there!)

And now that L is getting a little more independent we were able to take our first children, Stella and Charlie with us. They were very happy to get out of the confines of their backyard, and they even managed to make some new friends.

It was a beautiful day and amazing family time. Definitely good times had by all.

We spent the rest of the day just relaxing at home and ended the evening with bath time. And I've said it once and I'll say it again, there is nothing cuter then babies in a bathtub!

So tonight, give your loved ones and extra hug and kiss. Read your babies one more bedtime story or sing them one more lullaby. Cuddle a little longer with your hubby on the couch, and maybe even let him watch football for a little longer then normal. And remember how lucky we all are to be surrounded by the ones we love!