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With the morning’s light bringing with it D’Angelo’s fourth birthday, I wanted to post some photos of the year while he was still just three. An amazing 365 full of adventures and discoveries and miracles…we are thankful. Did you know that we knew D’Lo for a very long time before he was even born? Our fourth child, I knew would be a boy, I knew his name was D’Angelo, and I imagined (pretty accurately, actually) what he looked like. The thing is…I had my tubes tied after our third child. That was a painful time for me. The mourning of a child who was never even conceived, well, that’s a very difficult thing to explain. Sadness over a child who never existed because, to me…he was supposed to.
At the age of twenty-eight, parenting not only our three kids, but also Tony’s seven siblings, we had to make a decision. Unfortunately, although we wanted four kids…we already had ten. Those were difficult times and they often involved difficult choices. Having my tubes tied did offer some sort of relief – like not having to worry about another little life to be responsible for, when we were already struggling for sanity and finances. But still I often thought about him – our unborn, or rather never-to-be-born, son. I cried sometimes thinking about him…but life went on.
After several years of complications, called PTLS, due to my tubal ligation, we decided to have the procedure reversed. We hoped that by reversing the tubal, the monthly pain I was enduring due to the PTLS would end…but we both knew what else the reversal could mean for us.
Within two weeks, I knew that the reversal had done its job to diminish my symptoms. Within two months, I knew that D’Lo was on his way to us from Heaven. Eight years after the birth of our third, we still knew our fourth would be a boy and we knew his name was D’Angelo…and we knew that we were blessed.

Happy 4th birthday, Precious Boy! We waited so long for you, but we know you were patiently waiting on us too. We are so honored to be your parents, and we’d be so incomplete without you. Just as your name means “Heaven Sent” or “From the Angel”, you are both of those things. WE LOVE YOU!

Rock-n-roll, the theme for this year’s Homecoming…Devaney’s very first Homecoming. I cannot believe our little girl is even in high school, let alone going to the Homecoming dance…with a date. Ugh! How can it be?! She looked so beautiful, with a smile broader than the Pacific ~ and more sparkling than its waters on a sunny day. Her date was heard muttering the word “WOW” as she made her way down the stairs, looking like a rock-n-roll queen. Much to her dismay, I took a ton of pictures ~ just shooting away at my whim. She’ll be happy about that someday, but that day was not yesterday, lol. Her date came in with his father, under the guise of concerned dad…I think it was more like “back-up” for a boy nervous to meet his date’s father. He did great though, very respectful, very friendly, very confident.
Daddy also did great. It wasn’t easy for him, and you know that’s right! We’re talking about a man that can’t even watch home movies of her as a little girl, because it’s just too painful to accept those times have passed so quickly. We’re talking about a man who would go to the ends of the earth to protect her. We’re talking about a man who will mourn heavily the day he has to give her away to her husband. He smiled so graciously and made all the small talk he had to…and then he chauffeured his little girl to her very first dance and had to watch her walk in ~ with a boy.

I love you, Mamacita! I’m so glad you had fun on your first date. I love you too, Daddy…I’m so glad you survived her first date!