I just made myself LOL and snort coffee out of my nose. I had a feeling I’d told the story of Christian before, how my beautiful boy came to be my son, but when I searched the blog… lo and behold! It has the exact same title I used today: Happy Birthday Beautiful Boy!

I appear not to be very original. It doesn’t matter.  What matters is my beautiful boy is having yet another birthday today. Again without me. Thankfully not in Afghanistan this time. And, as always, near and close to my heart. I miss him.

This morning, on one of my busiest days of the year, I spent too much time looking at pictures of him. I cannot pick favorites. I cannot even find some of my favorites.  But these are definitely amongst my favorites out of all my years being his mom.  When he came into my life, bottles in hand, diapers on his bottom, my life got a whole lot bigger, a whole happier, a whole lot better. I miss you so much. I love you son!

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The very first picture of Dave with all three boys at Monterey Bay Aquarium in 1994

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The day I officially became a mom of three. Califoria 1996.

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We call you the “baby whisper” for a reason. In Minnesota in 2001.

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Tess, Senior Mama, Cole, Who-Who and You. Los Angles 2002.

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You & Tess. California 2002.

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Chris, Tess & Cole. Disneyland 2006.

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Family photo at the pumpkin farm 2004

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Lake Tahoe 2006

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Carving The Big One. Minnesota 2006

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North Carolina 2008

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Garmisch, Germany 2009

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Home. Germany 2010. All six!

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Of course you & the wingman both break yourselves while Dad is away. Of course.

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Chris in Amsterdam 2010

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Chris at Weihnachtsmarkt, Stuttgart 2011

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Chris & Dane at Neuschwanstein 2016

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Chris 2016