Ignite Your Hope

8.19.2010

Max and the Diving Board

Who could forget our good friend Jimmy running through the fountains with Max at his 2nd birthday bash?

Well Jimmy does it again! We took a road trip to visit our good friends in New York and Max was in heaven while at Uncle Jimmy and Auntie Chrissy's house. From new toys to good food to his first 9-hole round of golf with daddy and Jimmy, Max was playing hard and sleeping harder.

However, the icing on the cake is that Jimmy and Chris have a pool in their backyard. It was like visiting a 5 star resort. All we had to do was walk out the back patio and we were in their backyard oasis. Max couldn't get enough. Every awake moment was spent either in the pool or asking to get in the pool.

As I mentioned above, Jimmy was up for making a memory with Max and being the spontaneous guy we all know and love.

Here is Jimmy taking Max off the diving board. My favorite? Max asking after every dive, "jump in again?"

8.05.2010

I Still Do

Sam and I just got back from 5 glorious days in Riveria Maya, Mexico. We celebrated our 10th wedding anniversary with friends/siblings Ron and Kristen.

As a surprise, Sam decided to plan a beachside wedding ceremony so we could renew our vows. It was amazing in every way. Ocean breeze, barefoot in the sand and the opportunity to say, I Still Do.

How did Sam pull of a surprise of this magnitude? With the help of his sister, Kristen. They planned, plotted and made decisions before our arrival. The ceremony took place on the first night of our vacation. Before we headed out the door for dinner, Sam mentioned he needed to check on something really quick and asked if I would please sit tight and wait for him. About ten minutes later, I received a knock on the door by a resort employee. As he handed me a beautiful bouquet of gerber daisies (my favorite), he asked me to follow him, my husband was waiting. So trusting this stranger, I followed him down to the beach, turned the corner, and lo and behold my husband was standing at the end of the beach aisle waiting for me.

My love, thank you for this amazing gift. The chance to renew our vows and reclaim our love for one another. Thank you for loving me more today than yesterday. I cherish you, our marriage and our family. I give you my promise to honor, respect and love you with all of my being for the rest of my days. With all my love, me.

Just Married...again!

7.14.2010

Then and Now

I love looking at Then and Now photos. Max is growing up so quickly and it reminds me to treasure every last moment.

So here is a fun Then and Now: Max with an ice cream cone.

Summer 2009

Summer 2010

7.13.2010

Whoa Max!

Max loves everything about going to grandma and grandpa's house. They have a dog named Abby and a sandbox in their backyard and he's allowed to take naps in their big king size bed. Do I need to go on?

They have a dog. We don't. They have a sandbox. We won't. He sleeps in their bed. Right, not going to happen.

In other words, he is in heaven at grandma and grandpa's house and is encouraged to play rough, get dirty and break the rules. That's what grandparents are for, right?

One of Max's recent discoveries, in the corner of the basement at Grandma's house, is a big red rocking horse. This used to be my mom's horse when she was a kid, was then passed down to me and my brothers when we were little, and now Max and his cousins get to take a joy ride on this wooden horse.

To say he loves this red horse is an understatement. I just hope the duck tape at the bottom holds up. Max does not take it easy one bit when riding this horse!