happy birthday, jonah!

My dear, sweet, hilarious, miraculous, tender-hearted Jonah,

Today you turn four years old... and what an amazing four years they've been. Jonah, we didn't know if we'd get even one year with you and God has given us an incredible FOUR! You are probably the most affectionate, compassionate, caring child I have ever known.

When people are hurting or upset, you are hurting and upset with them. When I told you a few weeks ago that your baby brother was sick, you burst into tears and cried, "But babies aren't supposed to be sick!" That's your heart, my sweet boy - constantly thinking of others.

You could dwell on your own pain and boo boos, but you don't. You focus on the fun and joy in life. You pray for others and then ask about them days later, when we're not even talking about them, wondering if they're doing better.

We could not ask for more, Jonah. Of course we pray for your healing and that God would take your pain away. And we will continue to ask and have confidence you will one day be healed. BUT, the struggles you've faced and the pain you know has made you who you are, and we couldn't be happier with who you've become.

You are so sweet and kind, but on top of those things, you have a silly, funny little personality that goes along with a smile that lights up a room. You keep us laughing and we DAILY recount stories to each other of the hilarious things you've done and said. Thank you for being such a bright light in an often dark world!

You love Jesus, Jonah. You talk about Him and ask about Him and credit Him when good things happen and when your boo boos heal. You know that one day we will all go live with Him and you won't have boo boos anymore. And you know that He lives in your heart and takes care of you... of our whole family. Your tender heart and love for Him is the greatest gift I could think of. So even though EB is hard and your "normal" is so much more complicated than most kids your age, you have come through it all with an amazing, resilient little spirit.

When you were born, we were so sad and scared and uncertain of your future. Many days all I could do was live in fear for your future.

Would you live? Would you have friends? Would you get married, have kids? But as time has gone on and we see how amazing you are, how wonderful you are IN THIS MOMENT, it's easier not to worry about your future. Because God is on your side, Jonah. He has called you by name, and you are HIS.

His hands are on you and I am certain a legion of angels still protects you. We are confident of your future, Jonah. Sure that God has a great purpose for your amazing life... knowing that He is not done with you yet.

We stand in awe of your life and what God has done every day. We are so thankful for you - for who you are and who you will become. You have a sweet spirit and an amazing heart, and people who meet you are changed, Sweet Jonah. Don't ever lose sight of what He has done and who you are in Him.

Lord, thank you for giving us Jonah. When I was pregnant you know that I prayed, "Lord, let him live so that he can praise you." And God, his little life sings out your glory every single day. You have answered our prayer. You are faithful and ever present and so clearly obvious in Jonah's life and in our family. We will always give you the glory for who you are and what you've done. Thank you for an amazing four years.

jonah's THIRD! birthday party

We had Jonah's birthday party last Saturday. We were going to have it outside at our house, but the weather didn't cooperate. It was supposed to be sunny and a high of 49, which was all fine, but there were 20 to 30 mph winds, so it was freezing. Quite the kink in our plans. Thankfully, I had reserved the youth room at our church in case of rain, so on Friday, Matt's mom and I starting taking stuff over there and began setting up. Then, my mom, sisters, Kathryn, and Aunt Melanie all chipped in early Saturday morning, and by 11 we were ready.

We did a construction themed party this year. Trains are, of course, Jonah's first love, but he had a train cake last year, and I didn't really have any ideas for a train party, so construction it was. Next to trains, he's all about the excavators, dump trucks, cement mixers, and bulldozers. It was a GREAT party, and it really wasn't chaotic at all, even with us all being in one room. The kids were so great, and it was so fun. I loved Jonah's first birthday party for so many reasons, but I got to be so much more present for this one. Last year was just really small and family only, so this was the first "formal" birthday party since the birthday party of the century. And it was just about as perfect as it could be. Jonah had a blast! He smiled and laughed and giggled the whole time (except when he started crying when we announced it was lunch time and thought we were going to make him eat - we didn't!).

Jonah's wonderful feeding therapist and our friend, Jeanette, made a wonderful birthday cake. We had Subway subs (PB and J's for the kids), chips, fruit, and pasta salad for lunch. We got some balloons, a construction themed happy birthday sign, some construction table cloths, and I made some construction signs to go along with our different play "stations." Thanks to some stuff we had/bought, some stuff Debbie got, and some toys my mom had, we were able to come up with some different play areas. I made construction related signs for each station. There were blocks for building ("Construction Zone"), trucks and cars to drive around ("Watch for Trucks"), a house to paint ("Wet Paint"), small construction vehicles in bins of corn ("Heavy Machinery"), a Play-Doh table ("Falling Dough"), construction books to read ("Reading in Progress"), a hammering and tools table ("Hard Hat Area"), and construction sticker sheets. Each kid got a hard hat, an apron, and some tools on their way in.

And that was about it. It was all just "play as you will" except for lunch time and delicious birthday cake time (carrot cake with cream cheese icing, if you were wondering... mine and Matt's favorite... when you have a kid who doesn't eat, you get to pick YOUR favorite cake... just an FYI.)

Anyway, super great party. Super fun time. These photos are out of order because they were taken on two different cameras (thanks Katie and Shaina!) and there are over 50 of them. Sorry. I couldn't narrow it down anymore. Thanks for praying for Jonah and being part of our lives for the last three years. I hope you feel like you were there too. :)