The one who started it all

After Jason and I got married in 2001, we wanted to start a family right away. We tried to get pregnant for 2 years and ended up thinking that something may be wrong with one or both of us. Then the unexpected happened. My lupus had been in remission for 9 years and out of the blue I was in a full blown flare. My specialist advised us to not get pregnant during a flare but Jason and I were not concerned...we had been trying to get pregnant for some time now without success so there was no way I was going to turn up pregnant now. Ayden - 6 months
Ayden - 1 year

I went in for my routine "girlie exam" right after Christmas in 2003. Because I couldn't recall when my last period was (they were always a little on again-off again), they made me take a pregnancy test. I remember thinking it was such a waste of time and was actually annoyed at my doctor. Imagine my surprise when she walked in the door to tell me that I was pregnant! I almost fell off the exam table!! All through out my pregnancy, my Lupus continued to improve despite my specialist predicting worse case scenario. I never experienced morning sickness or any other typical pregnancy problems. If it weren't for my expanding belly, I would never have known that I was pregnant. Ayden - 2 years

Ayden - 3 years

On August 18th, 2004 I gave birth to Ayden Steven. He was beautiful and we were so excited to finally be parents. It was an easy delivery and Ayden proved to be a very easy baby. We have been through many stages with Ayden and with each one I'm convinced it's the end of the world. We were doomed to never make it through the biting stage and I would cry my eyes out at work because I was convinced that nothing could be worse. Surprisingly, we were on to a new stage about 1 month later and then that became the worse thing ever. When I look back at it all, he may go through the typical stages of childhood but they're short lived and easy to get through.

Ayden - 4 years

Right now Ayden is in the Pre-K program at Royal Learners and is doing fantastic. He participates in the karate, soccer and playball programs as well. He loves it...all of it! He loves to learn and I get so excited every night to hear about what they're working on. Ayden is our squishy little 4 year old. He's super sensitive and can easily get his feelings hurt simply by having mommy or daddy upset with him. I love that he still has his baby fat. I love that he lets me kiss him as much as I want. I love that he is such a chatter box. I love that his imagination seems to constantly be working at high speed. I love that he can be so loving and such a helpful brother. Ayden is a such a wonderful little boy and I enjoy being his mommy every day. Ayden - Thanksgiving 2008