I cannot believe Jude is already six months old! It seems like just yesterday we were taking him home from the hospital! He is so much fun, it is amazing. We are so in love with this little boy and can't imagine our lives without him. He is so incredibly happy and full of life! Here are Jude's 6 month photos... :) 

Today is World Autism Awareness Day! I thought I would share my feelings to help raise awareness for this very real struggle. Autism does not define my little boy but it comes with daily struggles. Most of the time, when I look at my son, I do not think "this is my child with autism" but sometimes I do. Sometimes it's so difficult that it's hard to ignore. Jaxton has so many amazing things about him. He is very loving, very sweet, beautiful, smart, funny...he lights up our lives. We wouldn't be whole without him. Jaxton also has many daily struggles. He gets sensory overload very easily...certain sounds are too much to handle, certain tastes, textures, touch. Meal time can be a difficult time at our house. Sometimes he has a hard time keeping his anger under control. Little things can set him off. I can usually get him to calm down quickly by giving him a big, tight hug. It's still hard though. I don't want to see my son upset because of something he cannot express to me. He can't explain to me what is going on. He can usually tell me and show me if something hurts on the outside, but not on the inside. He doesn't know how to express if he's sad/mad/hurt about something. That kills me. School is a struggle for him because of his autism. He cannot sit and focus like other kids can. He doesn't know how to socialize with other kids, so he misses out on that part of his childhood...making friends, having play dates, playing sports...these are all things that are just too difficult for him at this time. Church is a major struggle every week. Our sweet little boy can't sit still for even a few minutes so sacrament is usually spent with one of us out walking the halls with him. Primary is a no-go right now. We step foot in the primary room or his classroom and he cries and screams and shouts things out until we leave. It is just too much for him. It's not his fault. So, while most of our time is spent playing with him and talking to each other about how adorable he is, we do have tough times as well because of his autism. I don't say all of this to complain or be negative about my son. He is my life and I adore him more than I could ever express. I say all of this to raise awareness...to be real about a real problem so many parents are dealing with right now. We don't want pity. We want support and understanding. Autism does not define us. It does not define my son, but it is a real part of our daily lives.

All I want is for my son to be happy in his life. I want him to know that I fought to find help for him. I don't know if there will ever be a cure for autism, but my prayer is that we can find out what things are contributing to this huge rise in autism and we can then try to prevent. Jaxton has taught us so many profound life lessons and I am so grateful for that. He is AMAZING!! I just wish, for him, that he didn't have to go through so many struggles in his little life. He should be able to just play, explore, make friends, do all of the fun, silly things little boys do and not have to always deal with speech therapy, occupational therapy, etc. He should be able to just be a 5 year old little boy!! But this is the way it is and we make the best of it. :)

Hearing the words "your child has Autism" was one of the most difficult moments in my life. My hope and prayer is that other mommy's and daddy's never have to hear those words. It is life changing.

Jaxton has taught us so many profound life lessons and I am so grateful for that. Even with our struggles with Autism, we are so thankful every single day for our beautiful little boy.

We will be celebrating today. We will be celebrating because we are so proud of our son. We love him and adore him for who he is and what he brings into our lives. He gives to us a gift of happiness and love. A special kind of happiness and love that could not be given by any other child. He truly is a gift. We celebrate to show him how special and amazing he is. It's Jaxton's day today!!

We released blue balloons into the air with a little note attached to each one. I loved reading Makailee's. She wrote things like, "My brother is special. He has autism." So sweet...











We ate blue sugar cookies. We also made blue rice krispy treats with blue m&m's in them. If you couldn't tell, BLUE is the color for Autism Awareness. :D



Poor Makailee is sick today, but she was still a good sport. :)

8 years ago today, our first baby was born. She immediately stole our hearts. We both wanted a baby girl so badly and she was absolutely perfect. We had her name picked out since we were dating in high school. We were totally in love. From day one, she has been the sweetest little girl. She has such a tender heart and is so kind. Not only is she sweet, but she is hilarious too. She has her daddy's sense of humor, for sure. She makes us laugh every single day. As she gets older, I realize that she is not only my daughter, but she is becoming my best friend too.

Makailee, happy birthday sweetie!! Thank you for being YOU! We love you!!

3 months pregnant with Makailee.

Makailee - 1 day old