Eleven years ago today, our little family grew by one. Our precious Aric Angelo was born at 10:15 AM Eastern European Time at Incirlik AB in Adana, Turkey.

Hard to believe that newborn has already grown into the fine young man who is mowing lawns, operating tractors, and shooting guns as well as men two and three times his age.

Aric is an old soul - at times he seems an old man trapped and tortured inside a young boy’s life. One of his teachers last year said to us that Aric just needs to “get through childhood” as best as he can so he can begin living the life he is so ready to live. As much as I want that for him - I know it will free him - I am dreading it because I just want him to be my baby boy forever. I love spending as much time with him as I possibly can; he’s such a character and always has the funniest and most interesting things to say. You never know what you’re going to get from him, either, as part of his charm is his unpredictability. I love that he’s so completely random - it keeps us on our toes and almost always keeps us laughing.

Rob and I have been incredibly blessed in this life. We’ve got two wonderful boys who both offer us their unique gifts and I couldn’t be more grateful. Today I’ll be spending some time in quiet reflection of my memories of Aric through the years and I’ll give thanks for every day we’ve had the pleasure of knowing him. I couldn’t have asked for a second born son that I’d love any more than I do Aric. He is a true gift to me and to our family. We’re all so extremely fortunate to have him in our lives and today we celebrate that fact!