Happy Birthday, Ethan?

This past Saturday, the family celebrated another birthday. I thought it was mine, but if you asked Camden he would tell you, "Happy Birthday, Ethan!" Regardless, Camden loves celebrating birthdays, no matter who's it is. On Christmas, we sang happy birthday to Jesus...and Moses...and Moses again, "Happy Birthday TOOO Moses!" Camden would sing.

I had a fantastic birthday weekend. Kim surprised me on Friday when I got home from work by having a babysitter all lined up so that we could go out. We went to Om in downtown Minneapolis. Basically, it's upscale Indian food. It was very good, but would recommend you steer clear of the mango cheesecake.

Later that evening, Grandma and Grandpa Sindt arrived. Always nice to have them around helping out with the boys and the boys love playing with them. It was especially nice to have Grandpa's help putting some IKEA bookshelves together. Kim is much happier with the extra organization and storage as a result. Grandma Sindt made me a Boston Cream Pie from scratch, which the whole family enjoyed.

I have to give Kim credit. She does birthday's right. She has always made birthdays an event to be appreciated and treasured. Our boys are lucky for that.

A New Era

Today marked the end of an era and the start of a new one. Today was Kim's last day of work and marks the end of corporate life for her. She now begins her new career as a stay at home mommy. We're really excited and a bit nervous about the new change. We know it's the best for our family and I know Kim will be very happy being at home with the boys.

For me, it took me some time for me to come to grips with it. I really started to come around after having a discussion with a friend of mine, Nevin. His wife Sheila stays home with their two kids. Sheila, like Kim, plans to go back to work at some point. Nevin helped to put everything in perspective by reminding me, "We figure, by the time Sheila goes back to work, she's going to work another 30 years! So a few years at home with the kids without the extra income is small in the whole scheme of things." That made total sense to me and helped me put my head around the whole idea of Kim staying home.

In the end, we're very excited about the change. Kim is a fantastic mother and she'll do great. We have several friends that also stay home with their kids so play dates will be a plenty. We've received lots of encouragement and support from family and friends. Thank you to all of you for your support and well wishes.

Happy New Year!