October Bdays

We Idiarts have 3 birthdays to celebrate in October: Elise on the 15th and Josh and Christine were BOTH born on the 22nd! We all came home from church to have a big family party and Grandma and Grandpa Idiart were visiting from their mission! What a fun surprise!

Josh went shopping with Aunt Allison and showed her everything under the sun that he wanted. Then, she took orders from all the aunts/grandmas and went later and picked things out for him. He was really excited opening his presents, knowing before hand that he'd get an assortment of things he really wanted. Pretty good system! She's such a nice Auntie!

I loved how ALL 13 of the grandkids crowded all around Josh. He loved all the attention, too!

Next, it was Little Elise's turn for presents. She's already had a cute bday party, earlier in the week, with her baby friends. It was a polka-dot tea-party, and her polka-dot skirt matched all the party decorations! Her mamma is so creative and Elise is a little darling.

This particular present was the highlight of the night. Allison made a special frame for Christine. All the adults knew about it and gathered round to see her reaction. She was so happy and brought to tears with the emotional feelings that came with the gift.

The top photo is of Christine Elise, as a toddler with Donna Gardner, her mom. Donna passed away when Christine was young. Christine really misses her mom and loves her very much. The bottom photo is of Christine with her little Elise Donna. What a sweet gift.

Here are the 3 October Bday cuties. And here is a little tribute to each of them.

Josh is a light in my life. He's 11 now and what a wonderful boy. He's so smart, talented and athletic. He's got a great sense of humor and he's very fun to be around. He's a natural leader and he tries to help others do the right thing. I am very proud of the young man he is. I loved him from the first minute I held him in my arms and will love him forever. Josh, you are a joy and I am having a great time being your mom!

Christine is one of my favorite people in the world. She's my sister and a dear, dear friend. I look up to her, I enjoy being with her, she makes me laugh and I love her. She's beautiful inside and out. She's a wonderful woman, wife and mother. Happy Birthday you young thing! I really wish she and Jared were going with Damian and I to Las Vegas this weekend. She loves U2 ALMOST as much as me and she's really fun to travel with. Darn it!

Elise, or Leesie, is such a gem. She is a little piece of growly heaven. I adore the chunky little angel. I love to watch her, she's so interesting. As she unwrapped her present, she crinkled up each little scrap she tore off, then waddled over to place it in a special pile. It took about all the other cousin's concentration not to "help" her. She just cracks me up. And her blue eyes and grand smile are SOOO cute! I love all of you Octobers! You're the BEST!