Dear Hayden,

Today we made an Ouchy Pouchy for each family in our playgroup! You had a great time helping me fill each pouch with rice! We are lucky to have such awesome kiddos and mommies in our playgroup, so this is a fun way to let them know we appreciate them!

Love you,
Mama

Ouchy Pouchy

Making Ouchy Pouchies

Ouchy Pouchy

Dear Hayden,

Last night, after you went to sleep, I sewed you a dress out of a pillowcase! Today, you are wearing it!

Love you,
Mama

Dear Hayden,

Summer is underway and you are having a great time. Yesterday, Maddy, Kylie and Alex invited you over to Slip-N-Slide with them. You had a fantastic time! This is just the first of many fun things we’ll get to do this summer!

Love you,
Mama

Slip-N-Slide with Kylie

Having Fun!

Dear Hayden,

I have been busy sorting our pictures. Here are some pictures that really should have been on the blog sooner because they are so cute, but somehow they got missed. Enjoy!

Love you,
Mama

9.24.07

10.1.07

10.25.07

10.31.07

11.12.07

2.7.08

10.1.08

10.11.08

10.31.08

11.8.08

12.7.08

2.1.09

2.15.09

2.17.09

3.10.09

4.10.09

4.13.09

4.25.09

5.10.09

Dear Hayden,

Today is my second Mother’s Day as a mother. I think the most amazing thing about becoming a mother is that you realize how very loved you have been your whole life… and you realize that you never even realized it because you hadn’t experienced it for yourself. It’s truly amazing.

Love you,
Mama

Nana, Hay-go, Mommy

Magah, Hay-go, Mama

Reading a Story with Nana

Reading a Story with Grandma

Dear Hayden,

We spent today celebrating the life of your Great Great Grams. She was a remarkable lady whose legacy is 4 generations of people who love her. It has been said of Grams that the harshest words she ever spoke about anything or anyone were, “It just misses.” That’s pretty remarkable! She was faithfully married to your Great Great Poppie for 75 years and is remembered fondly by everyone who knew her. For your dad, Grams was a person who loved him unconditionally, with no suggestions for things he could improve, no advice for who he should be, just unconditinal love for him, just as he was and is, in it’s purest form. You should know, too, that you were the apple of Grams’s eye. In fact, the last time we were there, I tried to take a picture of the two of you together, and Grams would not look at the camera — when I asked her to, she said she could not and would not take her eyes off of you! So, my dear, although you will not remember her, I pray that she will live on in you… that you will inherit the grace with which she approached others and embody the spirit of love that she showed everyone she knew.

Love you,
Mama

Grams and Poppie’s Spot

The cemetary is beautiful… rolling hills of green grass.

Cousins!

Playing Piano with Madison

Dear Hayden,

Today you took your first trip to Disneyland. To say that you loved it is such an understatement! You were wide-eyed the whole time we were there! You loved every bit of it — the Dumbo ride, Peter Pan’s Flight and everything else! You totally loved the Tiki Room, too — which is further proof that birds are by far your favorite animal! They gave you a “First Visit” button when we arrived and you wore that around the park. I’ve been to Disneyland many times, but this trip surpasses them all, because I got to share it with you.

Love you,
Mama

Dear Hayden,

Today, you ate your first Tommy’s burger. This is momumental because Tommy’s is a family Tradition! In fact, 5 generations of McCauleys have enjoyed Tommy’s burgers! Tommy’s is a hamburger shack just down the block from Grams and Poppie’s house. They serve one-of-a-kind hamburgers piled with chili. You thought it was pretty awesome! We had to take some pictures of this rite of passage!

Love you,
Mama

Dear Hayden,

You are a very lucky girl because you get to live next door to three lovely young ladies, who you have become great friends with! This week I painted some stepping stones between the houses for you girls to walk on! Each of you has a stone with your monogram on it — you are all pretty excited about them!

Love you,
Mama

Your Stepping Stone

Walking Next Door

Sitting on the Porch Next Door

At Their Door, Ready to Play!

Dear Hayden,

For the first year of your life, you hardly went ANYWHERE without a bow in your hair. Then, you started pulling them out. This morning, you decided to leave this one in!! I am so excited!

Love you,
Mama