20 Years!!

This week brought a milestone for our marriage, and subsequent family. On Wednesday, June 27th, Tim and I had our 20th anniversary!! On that day, in addition to all of our daily duties, we reflected on our wedding day. It was the most fabulous day....the most fun reception ever!!

We had a beautiful, warm but not too hot, June day. Our reception was held in the front lawn at the cottage on Lake Okoboji. We instructed our guests to "come casual" for the reception. (We did have a formal reception in the church hall, right after the wedding Mass.) During the party, people swam, played volleyball, went boating, or just hung out and had a good time. It was fabulous!!

Twenty years ago, I never could have imagined what our family would look like today!! And yet, despite my lack of foresight, here we are! Parents to 11 wonderful children. Our youngest, AJ, has especially changed our world with his arrival. By joining our family, AJ has changed our preconceived notions of what it would be like to care for a special needs child. AJ has Down Syndrome. We knew prenatally about AJ's diagnosis, and I knew in my heart everything would be okay. But what I didn't know was that we would be so very happy!!!

Lord, I want to thank you for this twenty years....for the give of a wonderful husband....for the gift of my children....and especially our dear AJ, who has oppened our eyes and our hearts.