wendel.

I've always assumed that when you have kids, things just get really, really fun again. You know, in that overly magical and whimsical sense. I was right. The prospect of building Ethan his first bear at Build-A-Bear was so exciting that it was only right to make it a ginormous family affair. There we were, cameras flashing and taking turns making wishes on hearts, bathing a stuffed bear under a stream of fast-blowing air and working on said bear's birth certificate as if we were taking a standardized test. Ethan was a bit confused but, in the end, left snuggling his little bear who somehow ended up being named Wendel.

Ethan's grandma -- my mom -- was unfortunately at home not feeling too well and therefore unable to make the Build-A-Bear festivities. There were enough of us to yell "we love you, Ethan!" into the little sound recorder placed in Wendel's paw where Ethan probably won't notice one voice missing, but mostly Grandma Edie was there in spirit. (Though she never would have gone for our selection of the plaid hoodie and tattered bluejeans. Love you, mom!)

Wendel's birth certificate has been tucked away safely into Ethan's baby book and as Ethan snoozes away for the evening (you know, not to jinx that or anything), Wendel is taking it easy on Ethan's baby swing. It's the little things that make for such bigmemories when you have a baby. Just as fun as I predicted, but I never could have guessed how much!