Noe at 11

Noe in his classroom being goofy, last day before winter break!

Noe had a good birthday.  It was the first time he's had a party with other kids, even if they were his cousins.  And, honestly, he was ready to enjoy it.  I think doing it earlier with kids he knew less well would have stressed him out.

We were down in Portland, visiting my mom for Christmas, so we took everyone swimming at the nearby community center pool.  This pool has a great set-up.... a lazy river, a big slide, and a wading area for younger kids.  Luckily, some of my brothers and sisters helped me keep track of the kiddos and  everyone had fun.  Because some of the cousins were under-sized, I think I went down the slide at least 30 times in the 90 minutes we were at the pool. Noe went down independently and did a great job all around (only one whistle violation for standing on the wall!)

After swimming, we went back to my mom's for pizza and root beer floats.  Noe was in heaven.  He was so excited to blow his candles out of the pizza and after a long pause, blew them out with a big grin!  I even got him to sit down and open some of his presents.  He received a red scooter from grandma, and had a great time riding it for the rest of winter break.

I was teary-eyed through out the day.  I am so thankful he is happy and thriving at his own pace.  I am so thankful that my family loves and supports him, always finding ways to make him feel special and included.  Despite our ups and downs with Noe, we have much to be grateful for!