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Caitlin’s 13th Birthday Party
Caitlin and Kylye at Mac Cosmetics
Caitlin had a birthday fit for a Princess. Hair, makeup, pedi/mani, great dinner and good friends.
2 Years
Dearest Jessalyn,Wow! You’re 2 now! We’ve had a really exciting year haven’t we? You’ve grown so much and learned so many new things this year.
Let’s take a look back at the past 12 months.
Here you are 1 year ago. 
However, just as the Previous year marched on, so did the next.
We couldn’t celebrate your birthday without a cake 
As we served you a piece, you seemed puzzled. 
We waited for you to shove cake and frosting in your face and make a huge mess. Well, it wasn’t quite the mess we were expecting, 
but you seemed to enjoy it anyway.
You also share your birthday month with your newest cousin whom you met for the first time. 
Unfortunately we had to move out of a roomy house into an apartment just about the same time that you became mobile. You absolutely loved being outside, but there wasn’t anyplace to be. So to remedy that daddy decided to take you to the park for the first time. 
Every Saturday we saw a lot of this 
and it was soon clear who Christian’s #1 Fan was, 
September became October and you go to go to your first wedding. Here you are with daddy and your great grandma Evelyn 
And you even shared a dance with your daddy. 
You also got to meet your Great Grandma Katie for the first time. 
She fed you a lot of M&M’s and quickly became your favorite grandma.
With October comes Halloween 
Not sure what’s going on with your brother and sister in this picture, but you were sure happy! This year we actually put you in a costume and you were a pretty flower. 
You rode along in the stroller some of the time, and other times you hitched a ride on daddy’s shoulders. 
November brings Thanksgiving and the best celebration is always hosted by the Romero’s. 
We all gathered at Tia’s house 
and the cousins head out front with “Oompa/Uncle Eddie” to play ball.
Before we knew it, Christmas was here! 
You were surrounded by gifts at every turn
Merry Christmas! 
Soon after, The new year was moments away, but you were sound asleep, so mommy and daddy celebrated for you 
Daddy got his new computer in February and the two of you spent a lot of time taking silly pictures.
and my personal favorite 
When March rolls around, you can be sure of one thing, softball season!
You spent a lot of time with daddy because I was stuck in a cage 
with your sister 
Who was Caitlin’s #1 fan? 
April rolled around and you learned a new skill! 
You also really like playing with your toys! 
One of the highlights for April was a trip to Disneyland! You didn’t know where we were going, but you sure were happy to be going there. 
We rode some rides 
and met some characters 
which you weren’t too thrilled about 
even though you’re a huge fan of Mickey Mouse. All in all you had a great time at Disneyland!
The weather warmed up and it was time to get back in the pool
May means Mother’s Day and the family picnic 
We even tried to fly a kite 
I think Daddy’s favorite month is June because that’s when we gets to be spoiled by his favorite little girl in the world for Father’s Day We made him a gift, remember? 
Look how much you’ve grown!
Then Daddy took you to the park to play. Look at what a big girl you are sliding down all by yourself! 
June also means Family Vacation around here. This year we visited
grandma and grandpa 
in Arizona 
It was a long drive and you did a lot of this 
We went to a place called Oatman and there sure were a lot of donkey’s running around. This is the cutest one we saw 
Oops! I mean 
We saw the Grand Canyon 
We went to Slide Rock and played in the water 
and you tried to catch a fish in the little water hole 
We also went to Phoenix and made some good friends 
Another month gone and now it’s July. You know what that means right? 
Fireworks!
Mama even made a special dress for you to wear 
And finally we took you to the beach for the very first time.
You played in the sand 
and played in the water with daddy 
and played in your new tent 
and even made S’mores 
with daddy. You got good and messy!
We’ve had a fun filled year, and it’s been wonderful watching you grow and discover new things. We’re so thankful you’ve come into our lives and can’t wait to share another year with you. Welcome to 2! Try not to make it too “terrible!”
1 year later
To my dearest little Jessalyn,
It was a year ago today you came into the world and changed our lives forever.
The past year has been amazing. Who knew you could bring so much joy to our lives? Our family wasn’t complete until you came along.
You’ve come a long way since the day you were born. You were so small and fragile the day you came home from the hospital.
I have to admit, your dad and I were feeling a little overwhelmed by the whole thing. It was rough going at first. It was really hot and you weren’t sure what to do with yourself so you cried. And when you cried, I cried. We spent many sleepless nights together. Your dad and I trading off so the other could get some rest.
Daddy would hold you and bounce you because that made you happy. He’d sing silly songs and you’d listen.
It took some time, but we started to settle into a routine. Granted it wasn’t the best routine in the world, but that’s only because you wanted to be held all the time. Housework and chores all had to be put aside so we could tend to you. We managed to get things done though. We just had to hold you while doing them.
Before we knew it, you started filling out and looking less like a newborn, and more like a baby.
You still didn’t do much, but you were more content just being next to us, instead of being held.
By the time you were going on 4 months old, you were a head holding up pro and so we decided it was time to bring out the jumper.
You looked so cute and had fun for a few minutes before deciding you’d had enough.
Before we knew it, it was Christmas, your first, and you were smiling, babbling, and amazed by all the pretty things you saw.
Soon the new year was upon us.
Each day you were changing, growing, becoming more you. Your interests became less focused on mommy and daddy, and more on your surroundings. You spent time playing with toys now. 
and checking out what was happening around you.
The doctor told us it was time to venture into the world of “solid foods” so we got some spoons, bowls, and baby cereal. Rice cereal to be exact. What dd you think? 
Yeah, you didn’t think it was so great. But we pushed on and pretty soon, you were getting the hang of it. So much so that you decided you were done nursing and wanted food exclusively.
Life was in full swing. You couldn’t get enough of it. You played hard. So hard that you sometimes crashed out while doing so. 
By now you were 6 months old, 
and loving life. You smiled all the time and even laughed now and then. It took a lot to get you to laugh, you squealed a lot more than you actually laughed. However they were always squeals of delight.
You still loved paying with toys 
and hanging out with your daddy while he was playing video games. 
Before we knew it, your sister’s softball season began and it was off to games several times a week. 
But one Saturday there wasn’t a game and so we decided to take you to the Happiest Place on Earth, DISNEYLAND!
You were 8 months old when you met Mickey and Minnie Mouse for the first time ever. Your eyes were wide the whole time we were there. Well until you crashed out for a nap that is.
Easter came and we went over to your grandparen’t house for an Easter egg hunt and BBQ. You even found an egg!
In June, school let out and we packed up the car and headed up to the High Sierras with the family.
This was your first camping trip. You spent a lot of time on daddy’s back 
checking everything out. We saw a lot of things while there. You even stuck your toes in a lake. 
I won’t mention how we gave you a bath in a dishpan. 
OOPS! Too late.
We even took you to San Francisco! 
The 4th of July came and we headed off to watch fireworks. 
July was hot and so we had to find a way to cool you down. What did we do? We went in the pool of course!
Shocking, I know. But you loved being in the water.
Anyhow, the end of July brings us to August and with it, your birthday You’re a big 1 year old now.
You’ve gone from not being able to do much aside from just being, to smiling, lauging, babbling, clapping, giving kisses, rolling, sitting, standing, surfing the furniture, and beyond.
Who knew that your presence would have such a profound impact on our lives. You’ve brough us so much joy over the past year. My heart swells with love every time I go into the room to get you out of the crib in the morning. How can it not when you have a grin that goes from ear to ear and you’re bouncing your little heart out because you’re so happy to see me.
Jessalyn, we love you so very much and look forward to seeing what this year holds for us. Thank you for being a shining light.
Happy Birthday little girl!
Love always,
“Maaa ma!”
Jessalyn’s 1 Year baby pictures
Ok family, here are the pictures we took over at Picture People:
http://www.jasonandjen.com/photos/album/jessalyn-1-year-photo-shoot/
