The Big THREE!!

And now they are 3! Kinda hard to believe...our little guys are so not-so-little anymore...really. They're as tall/taller as lots of 4 year olds, and taller even than the 5-yr-old we met on the plane. Not that that matters...they're just so...big. And amazing, too. And funny and smart and sweet and rascally and just about the awesomest things EVer. And their mom is not biased at ALL...heheheh... ;)

Their birthday was Saturday, which turned out to be a kinda long day. We left my parents' house at 4:30 in the morning to go to the Houston area for my cousin's little boy's funeral. Little Peyton just turned 8, and had been battling a brain tumor for a year and a half. As heartbreaking as the situation is, Robert Owen and Jenna and their family are so strong...have such strong faith. The service was so uplifting. He was (is) a very special little guy and I wish I could have gotten to know him better. He touched many, many lives in his short sojourn on earth, especially during his illness. Seriously, if you have time/the desire, his CaringBridge website is wonderful.

It was nice to briefly see so much family, since we don't get with the "Victoria Rickers," as that branch of the fam is known, very often anymore. After the funeral, we played at a park and then drove five hours to my sister Aislinn's house to stay the night and listen to Patrick give his very first talk in church the next day. He did awesome! Only 10 years old, but was up there in front of the entire church congregation and did a great job. He spoke for 6-1/2 minutes about Christmas and didn't even sound nervous (even though he was). Here are all the cousins, except for Tara's little Teresa:

We weren't too bright (though the day was, haha!) and tried to take a picture of them all facing right into the sun.

Finally we had some compassion on their little sizzling retinas, and took a pic NOT into the sun. Believe it or not, Bran is the darkest-haired cousin. Yeah. Well, except for little Teresa, who we assume will grow out of her brown-ish locks into another blond.

Nuala with the yummy bday cake Auntie Aislinn got from Costco. Really, the celebration was for two of Aislinn's kiddos, too, but their doting daddy neglected to get their names on the cake... ;)

And our little Muffin Man. BIG Muffin Man. He's THREE now, after all... I always ask him to stay little longer, tell him he's my little boy, etc, etc., and the other day he asked me as we were snuggling, "You like big boys, too?" Cute little fella...he was making sure that since he was a "big boy" (kinda) I would still like him. And I sure do! I love him (and her) more and more every day!

Playing with Uncle Gary. It's nice to have fun uncles around! He's one of the main attractions here, actually. He's quite popular. You should see the mad rush to the door when Uncle Gary arrives.

And Brigit and Nuala...together again! Such fun. They play super well together and have a blast. Especially when they come down covered in Auntie Erin's makeup...at least they are quietly destructive. Though that is worse, in a major way...

We're having fun! It's AWESOME being back in Texas. I love Texas. I love Taco Cabana. I love HEB. I love being here. I really like Bulgaria, also, but it's very nice to be here :)

Happy Birthday, Nuala and Bran!