April Birthdays
We have a lot of April birthdays in my extended family. So let me share a big Happy Birthday to all those who had the good fortune to be born in the beautiful, springtime month of April!

One special April birthday is my own Katie's. My sister Mary said to me once that "time moves slow and fast at the same time" when you have a baby in the house. This seems very true to me. Nothing drags more slowly than a day spent with a teething toddler. Yet the year overall has sped right by.

The day before Katie's birthday, I kept remember significant moments from the year before when Katie was born. At 1:00 PM, I remembered that was the time my water broke. At 6:00 PM, Randy and I went on a long walk, hitting all the good hills in our neighborhood, trying to get the contractions started. At 9:00 PM, we went into the hospital. At 11:00 PM, we came home from the hospital. Then at midnight, contractions started for real.

Starting Katie's second year, I feel a little more confident about this parenting gig than I did this time last year. Katie can do so many new things, it is amazing to think she is the same tiny person we brought home from the hospital. Babies don't stay small for very long!
- posted by Laurie @ 7:59 PM