Boy, oh, BOY!

We are thrilled to announce that Baby #3 is a boy! It was so much fun waiting this past week to find out and be with some of our family as we all found out the news together. We sure wish more of our family would have been able to join us, but it was nice to have some of them there. I don't know if I will ever be able to duplicate the anticipation of wondering as we cut into the cake...it was so exciting, and such a blessing to be able to share this happy moment with loved ones. What a fun experience! Wow. Wow. Wow! We are going to have a son! It's just now starting to sink in...  

Mark and I weren't the only ones who were eager to cut into the cake.

In fact, we cheated a little, and cut the cake before dinner, just because we thought it would be make for better conversation during dinner (and because we just couldn't stand waiting any longer!) This followed well with one of my dad's most cherished mottos: Life is uncertain, eat dessert first! 

Pop even had a T-Shirt emblazoned with that sentiment, so when we told Carrie and Mom the plan to cut the cake before dinner, that was immediately the first thing out of their mouths (after squealing in joy, that is.)

Oh, and did I mention that the cake was absolutely delicious!?! There's a very special back story to go with that too...Rather than just take the sealed card with the news to the bakery and order a cake, I had one of my students, M, make it. I realize that seems a little odd (and it was awkward for a couple days...), but there is more to it than that.

We know her family from a long way back because her mother was my elementary music and piano teacher. Not only that, but M's grandma made our wedding cake exactly eight years ago (it's our anniversary today!). I knew that M enjoyed making and decorating cakes (her chocolate cake took first prize at the county fair!), so I thought it would be a very sentimental thing for her to share in this story with us. I think she did a stunning job and I'm so pleased with her work!

 And in case you care to watch, here's a two minute video of us cutting the cake. It really is precious seeing the girls' reactions. Fyi, Karamea's covering her ears is probably more from the noise of everyone cheering than anything else...she has reacted that way to loud noises and surprises ever since she was a baby.