Happy 1st Birthday Matthew!

We had a great party at Discovery Park in Pleasant Grove today for Matthew's first birthday. He was a little overwhelmed by all the people but we all had fun.
Party Guests:
Great Grandma Anderson
Nana Anderson
Mommy and Daddy
Uncle Jake, Aunt Amber, Jared, and Zach
Uncle Seth, Aunt Meagan, and Sage
Uncle Dave, Aunt Jackie, Sam, Ben, Jacob, and Eden
Babysitter and friends Lylian and Julio
Friends Erin and Wayne Carbajal, Aliea, and Jaxon
Friends Michelle and Mark Hiles, Cooper, and Madison
Friends Josephine Peters, Stephania, and Mellania

Daddy and Matthew. What a perfect day for a party!

We had dinner. Pulled pork sandwiches, potato salad, and fresh tomatoes from the garden.

The spread. So many people brought gifts. They were so generous. The cake was made by Daddy and frosted by me.

There were so many toys he didn't know which one to look at.

Daddy got a big tractor for Matthew. I think Daddy likes it more than Matthew does.

He didn't like the had at all.

Blowing out the candles. He was very interested in the fire.

He was more interested in looking at and playing with the cake than eating it.

Pretty much all of it ended up on the ground instead of in his mouth.

At the end of the party we carved pumpkins. Here are Amber (my sister in law) and Josephine (a friend and mother of a patient I used to work with).

Dave (my brother in law) really went to town on his pumpkin. Erin told me that this was Wayne's first time carving a pumpkin.

It is hard to believe that one year ago Matthew came into our lives. I had been waiting for that day for so long. I remember the feelings I had when I first held him. How could I be blessed with such a perfect child of God. This first year has been hard but incredibly rewarding. I couldn't ask for a better child. He makes me want to be a better person in order to give him the best life possible. I pray that there are many many more birthdays to come and that all of them are as happy as that first day I held him in my arms.