~ HAPPY BIRTHDAY EDDIE ~

Today at 10:31am my little boy will be 5 years old! It seems like yesterday that we kissed Anthony good-bye and left for my scheduled c-section at the hospital. "E" was a "tiny" baby (6 lbs., 13 oz) compared to his big brother (8 lbs., 1 oz). He spent his first 48 hours in the NICU because of a rash and then we found out he had both VSD and ASD! It was a rough beginning, but he was the sweetest, most darling baby ever! He was such a quiet baby, always smiling and content. He was very different in appearance from his big brother, who had olive-skin, dark hair and eyes; Eddie was our blonde, blue eyed baby!! His blue eyes turned green around 1 1/2 years old!!

The following pictures are of Eddie opening an early present from his cousins Leandra and Kayla (thank you guys!). My boy loves tools, to build and to see how things are constructed. He was thrilled with his gifts and these photos are "so Eddie" !

We love and adore you Eddie - you keep us laughing, you keep us scratching our heads and you always amaze us!! Happy Birthday sweetheart!!

I found this poem on another blog and thought it was beautiful:

BUILD ME A SON

Build me a son, O Lord, who will be strong enough

to know when he is weak,

and brave enough to face you when he is afraid,

one who will be proud and unbending in honest defeat,

and humble and gentle in victory.

Build me a son whose wishes

will not take the place of deeds;

a son who will know Thee -

and that he know himself

is the foundation stone of knowledge.

Lead him, I pray, not in the path of ease and comfort,

but under the stress and spur of difficulties and challenge.

Here let him learn to stand up in the storm,

here let him learn compassion for those who fail.

Build me a son whose heart will be clear,

whose goals will be high;

a son who will master himself

before he seeks to master other men;

one who will reach into the future,

yet never forget the past.

And after all these things are his,

add, I pray, enough sense of humor,

so that he may always be serious,

yet never take himself too seriously.

Give him humility, so that he may always remember

the simplicity of true greatness,

the open mind of true wisdom,

and the weakness of true strength.

Then I, his father, will dare to whisper,

"I have not lived in vain."

~ General Douglas MacArthur