Heli Flight!

For Fathers Day, my incredible wife got me a half-hour ride in a helicopter. 

Not only did I get to ride in it, but I got to try my hand at flying and hovering.  Man, that's hard!  I can only describe it as this:  take a bowling ball on a hard floor, put a plywood board on top of that and stand on the plywood board and try to balance. Totally LOVED the experience.

We took off from the Caldwell airport and followed the train tracks northwest for a bit.  We then followed a stream for a few miles and that is when I got to fly.  The real pilots hands never left the controls (who'd blame him) but I got to turn it a bit as we followed the canal through to some ponds.

Then we came in for a final approach and landing and taxied down the runway.  Hovering 10 feet off the runway, I got to try to hover.  Yah, not so good at that!  I would have crashed within 5 seconds.  Totally hard to do but very fun. 

To my sweet wife - - thanks for the awesome Fathers Day gift!

Dear Shaylee

Hey Cute Girl,

I need to say sorry today. I know I'm not always good at saying sorry but I really did make a mistake today. I think that sometimes I have a hard time with you because you are the most like me. When I was in high school, Grandma said that she hoped I would have a daughter just like me. I guess she jinxed us :) I'm sorry that our summer plans aren't working out like I told you they would. I promise someday we'll get to go on a mommy/daughter trip. Just us! Till then we will have to settle for Olive Garden and back to school shopping. Girls' Night!! It is going to be fun. I love you more than you will ever know, (till you have a daughter of your own).

Hugs and Kisses,

Mom

Dear Paxton

Wow, life has been more than a little crazy lately huh? I guess that is what we do well together, a little crazy. I've gotta say that I've learned to appriciate you on several different levels since January. You do so much around the house but I didn't realize HOW much until you couldn't do it any more and my "honey do" list got longer and longer. I have learned a few handy things too. Like how to change the oil and transmition fluid in the van and how to clean out a clogged vacuum. I also learned that you can throw me a rockin' birthday party complete with games and a fondue fountain. All these years and you kept that one hidden but now I know! 

I've especially come to appriciate how hard you work. Til now I've know the stress of staying up all night with a sick kid, endless cleaning, throwing up for nine months, and being on call 24-7. But till now, I havn't realized the stress that comes from working and having obligations to other people. With over 8,000 pictures to work through last moth with all the dance studios, life was more than a little stressful that way. I've listened when you've talked about it but I didn't really understand, til now.

I appriciate you getting up and working a job that you don't exactly love. I appricate that you do this to provide for us and that if you were just a single guy you probably would be doing something very different. I love that despite the insane hours you work, you are always so happy to be home and always help me when you can. The other day I found your resume on the computer and was looking threw it. What an amazing, brilliant, hardworking man you are! It totally gave me butterflies... I'd marry you in a heartbeat all over again. God must have known how badly I needed you because there isn't another person on the face of the planet that could be more perfect for me. Thank you for making my life wonderful.

Your loving, adoring, lucky, and grateful wife,

Jaymie

Gators-Spring 2011

To my Boys

Jacob and Bryce I love that because of you I am growning carnivous plants and tiny ancient arthropods on my kitchen widow sill. I love that there was never any adjustment when Jacob came to live with us. It was like you guys already knew each other and loved each other. You guys are pretty much inseperable. You watch TV curled up together on the couch like little puppies and laugh yourselves silly in the back seat of the van over jokes that don't make any sense to me (but that's OK). I'm so happy that you have each other and it makes my heart sick to imagine what our lives would be like if you guys weren't brothers. I also love how you guys never forget your other tiny brother Colin. Even Jacob includes him in the family pictures that he draws (complete with angel wings).

Bryce, I appriciate your kind heart and how you can empathize with other people. I have to be much tougher on the girls for them to understand that they are in trouble but I just have to speak sternly to you and it breaks your heart. You have also been on this kick where you want to be famous and have everyone like you. But Buddy, you can't see how many people LOVE to be around you. Someday some girl will love you for your tenderness the way that I love your Daddy. Till then, those girls will have to treat you right or have your Momma to answer too :)

Jacob, my sweet little boy. I look up to you in so many ways. If anyone ever had a reason to be angry with the world, it would be you. To have been in at least seven different homes by the time you were four and to never have consistant loving parents is more that I can possibly imagine. Sometimes I think of what your life must have been before we got you and it makes me physically sick. I'm so grateful for the few people who helped you down the road where we could meet you. After the workers from Health and Welfare called and said that we were being considered as a family that could adopt you, I thought of you every day. I carried the picture around that I got and showed it to everyone. I could even tell from your picture that you had a sweet and loving heart. I am so, so lucky to be your mom and I want you to know that that will never change. You are stuck with us forever!!

Love you both to pieces,

Your Mom