Happy Third Birthday Aidan!!!!

HAPPY 3RD BIRTHDAY AIDAN MATTHEW!!!!

Gosh how time has flown!! Our little baby is now becoming such a big guy!!

This year was so special with the big guy, he was SO into presents and was so much fun.

Thinking back to exactly three years ago today, as new parents, it was the worst day of our lives for Emmy and I. There lie little Aidan, with cords out of every which way in the NICU. He had been seizuring all morning, and there was very little that any doctor could tell us about his condition, let alone what his prognosis would be for the future. All Emmy and I had were each other and the thoughts and prayers of many of you. At that time I remember being so strong and positive, only to look back now and finally being able to get some of the emotional relief since our little baby has grown into a smart and loving little boy. My God how we are so blessed that this little creature has overcome all of those complications and has grown into something that really cannot be described by words. Really. I have no words for how unbelivably lucky we are to have him well.

With that, let's talk about a little boy and his birthday!

We had Aidan's birthday on Sunday, when everyone was still here in St. Louis, even though technically his birthday was Monday the 28th. Grammies P and T, Aunt Natalie, and Auntie Elizabeth and her family were all here to celebrate too!

This year, we decided to throw a "Thomas the Train" themed party, so just about all things were Thomas...and Aid loved it! Of course there was a reason we decided on the "Thomas" party, Aidan's big present from us was a new Thomas table that Daddy had spent quite a lot of time on. But first, no party is complete without cake!

So on Saturday night, everyone stayed up very late making Aidan's special train cake. All of us had great time decorating with all the sprinkles, candies and the like. In the end, the cake looked awesome!

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Lots of creativity going on here....

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Nice Train Cake!

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Next it was time for the big guy's big day! Aidan's favorite is the the Macaroni and Cheese (He calls is "Mac and a Cheese") and mandarin oranges at Red Robin. So off we went. After a mostly uneventful lunch and a great nap it was time to celebrate.

Grammy T and Mommy did a great job of decorating the house while Aunt Natalie and Grammy P went and got the balloons.

Finally around 4 all our guests arrived for cake and present opening. Here's the birthday song singing:

Aidan (and for that matter the rest of our guests) loved the cake. It was quite good.

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The birthday boy and his special Thomas cake that Daddy decorated and loving his Auntie Elizabeth

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A very happy boy indeed!

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Knowing that his big surprise from us would make it impossible to pull him away, we decided to do presents last. Lots of Thomas Stuff, lots of clothes and a basketball hoop from Grammy P and Jim made this birthday quite special for our guy! But then it was time....the BIG surprise.

Opening presents....and even Ethan got into the spirit with the birthday hat!!

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Opens the present and tosses the clothes...he's looking for toys!!! And opening the big Basketball hoop from Grammy P!

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I decided awhile back that his old Thomas train was pretty junky. There were too many curves, and really just not as useful as Aidan wanted it. He likes to make big trains and with lots of curves on the previous board, derailments happened too frequently. After finding a great deal on some train stuff and putting it together with some imagination, the ***New*** Thomas Table took shape. The trains run awesome on it. The grass is marine carpet from Lowes and yes the runway and ramp use real LED lights. It is a really cool table, and I loved working on it!

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It was tough fitting everything in, but we made it work....and the airport...you KNEW that I had to put an airport on the train board!!!

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Here comes Thomas down the track with all of his friends watching on!!!!

So here's the big surprise video, only Emmy and I had ever seen the new board, so really it was a surprise for everyone! The reaction of Aidan is one that I think I'll remember for all my life. It's so pure, it's so him. So special, guys, so special. He's just something else.

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We couldn't pull him away...and that's a GOOD thing!

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And after some Thomas play, we shot hoops!

Well that was it for Sunday. Yesterday (his actual birthday), Mommy took the day off to stay home and celebrate. He wanted to go to Chuck-E-Cheese for lunch, so we packed up and heading out. It was a great experience as the pictures below show!

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The Chuckster himself...

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Playing games with Daddy and Mommy

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And of course his favorite game, run the BIG diesel engine!!

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And finally a birthday hug from the "man" himself....Chuck E Cheese!

Then last night he wanted is other favorite, steak, so we drove out to the Texas Roadhouse, and he loved it!

So with that...here's Aidan's "Top Highlights of being a Two Year Old" movie! Enjoy!

Aidan...we love you buddy...you are so amazing!

Daddy, Mommy, and Ethan!