My nephew is an adult today

My heart is a bit sad and a bit shocked at how much time has passed.

Today is my eldest nephew, Jared's 18th birthday!

I still remember the first time I held him in my arms. He was just over a week old and Jon and I drove to Edmonton to get a glimpse. We had gone out and dropped a stupid amount of money on totally useless clothing (the stuff that is way cute but never gets worn) and off we went.

I couldn't believe how beautiful he was. He has an absolutely perfect head (maybe because he was a c-section baby). I was absolutely smitten! For years I carried pictures Jared, Josh and Kennedy in my wallet and would show them off shamelessly. Ask me if I have pictures of my kids, ahem! My standards have slid a bit. (I was going to scan in a picture of him as a baby, but with all our renos I have no idea what box the old photos are in.)

I happened to be at Tom and Pam's when they left for the hospital to have Joshua. Jared was 2, he had beautiful curly hair and he was BRILLIANT. I remember laying in bed waiting for him to wake up, worried that he would be upset that his Mom wasn't home. I was sure he'd cry and be hard to console. Finally I heard him stirring. I started talking to him before I entered the room, so he'd hear my voice and know it wasn't his Mom. I said, "Jared, your Mommy has gone to get a baby, so its just you and me buddy." By then I was in the room looking down in his crib. He gave me a great big smile and said, "Yeah."

I also remember him saying to me that day, when we were playing ball. "Go get the ball Auntie." I said, "No, you go get it." He came over put his hand on my knee and said in a VERY sweet voice, "Please." Well, I really had no choice at that point did I.

Well, he is no longer a curly haired little cherub, he is a young man! 18 years old. Wow.

So Jared, just know we love you very much and are very proud of you (and your brother and sister too).

On a related note, some of you have asked how Pam is doing.

The reports are that she has made it through her first month or so of the treatment and the doctors were extremely pleased with her success. She has proven to be strong and resilient. She has now entered into the next part of the treatment, which she can administer at home. I now ask for your prayers that this will go well, have the desired results and that the side affects will not be too severe.