Three Years Old!

James Daniel born 4:12 weighed 2 lbs9oz

John David born 4:13 weighted 2 lbs14oz

ONE YEAR- December 11, 2009

TWO YEARS- December 11, 2010


THREE YEARS- December 11, 2011


I woke up this morning, and my first thought was, "I remember this morning 3 years ago...." and then every hour throughtout the day until 4:12pm. I remember the pink fleece pj pants I had on, the waffles and saugsage I had just eaten prior to my ultrasound that gave us the dreaded news, even the cocunut verbena shampoo I washed my hair with prior to being prepped for surgery, from calling our family, to seeing Dr. Gonzales look up scripture in my bible that rested on my night stand before he left my room....all the way until the moment they were born and their lifeless 2 pound bodies streamed pass me....I guess when you live through something so profound as the life or death of your children, you freeze that time and remember it richly forever. I am sure for those of you who knew me well during that entire time from the pregnancy to the joyous homecoming with the boys, I walked around in a fog, (rightfully so...geez),but the day of their birth is like the aroma of a freshly sliced orange, I can sense it all. I can see it all, hear it all, the sights, sounds, smells and feelings are still so alive for me to this day. And so I guess on every single birthday, I will reminisce the details (good and bad) and savor those memories in my heart and soul forever.

Today we celebrated the birth of our boys ALL DAY long....breakfast was three chocolate doughnuts stacked high with a dumb dumb sucker atop. They wore their Miracle Boy shirts to church and were wished Happy Birthday from many of our friends. We celebrated with dinner at Habenaro's, John David asked for "baskettie" and James asked for "fench fies"..James loved the guitar and maracas when the restaurant staff sang to them, and of course, John David hated it!

On the way home, Daddy stopped at Dairy Queen and bought them a chocolate Reese blizzard to enjoy...and I even let them share it by the Christmas tree. As we tucked them in for bed, we told them "Happy Birthday" one more time...they both just grinned huge and said "Happy Birthday Daddy"....the end of this beautiful day of celebration came to close when I prayed with them...just as I did 3 years ago, same time, bedtime around 8pm...I thanked God for their lives, and prayed that He would wrap them tightly and protect them, just as I did 3 years ago today!

I will never understand why we were chosen for God's miracle babies, but I will always be willing to share the story. The story of how two baby boys weren't given much of a chance from the beginning, and then a whole bunch of folks started praying, hoping, and believing.... and we ended up with these two beautiful, healthy, smart little boys! I am grateful beyond words to describe with.

Happy 3rd Birthday James Daniel and John David Pate!