It's my birthday!

Actually, it's not, it's my mother's birthday today, but mine is tomorrow and that's close enough.   I was thinking about how much everything has changed since this time last year.  I was so pregnant and itchy and uncomfortable last winter.  Not enough time has passed since Julianna's pregnancy, I can still remember how just miserable I was thru most of it.   But holy moly - it was so incredibly worth every single second of it.  Julianna is such a joy and I can't imagine not having her. 

Marc lost his job in September of this year, and that's also been, in an odd way, an incredible blessing.  In a lot of ways, financially, we're actually better off now, and having this time home with him is wonderful.  I love it, I love having him here, I love seeing him with the kids.  I'm so incredibly fortunate, to have married my best friend and to be able to raise a family with him.  He won't be home forever, obviously, so I cherish my time with him now. 

We've also moved to a new house - and I still love it so much.  I love the big kitchen, the enormous dining room.  I love the backyard (currently covered under eight feet of snow, but I know it's there), and love, love, love the deck.  I love that the girls have their own bedroom, I love the playroom downstairs, and love that Samilicious has his own bedroom as well.  I also love that Sam won't play in his bedroom or downstairs by himself - for such an anti-social boy, he hates being alone.  He'll keep himself busy and amused in the living room or dining room, but he likes to be with Marc and I.  All the time.

I've also seen the growth of a serious bond between my baby girl and her big brother.  She loves the other kids, of course, and adores Jessie in particular, but because Sam is home with her so much, she just lights up when he's around.