Happy 3rd Birthday Luke and Liam!!

Brothers

AJ opening his big birthday gift last weekend


Very patient big brothers waiting for AJ to open his gift

Liam (yellow) and Luke (white) in the NICU shortly after their birth

They love their Daddy!

Liam (left) and Luke (right)-3 mo

Luke (l) and Liam (r)-1 mo

Day 1: Luke (left) and Liam (right)

It is about this time three years ago that I went in for a routine OB check-up at 36 weeks and was sent immediately to the hospital because I was already about 5cm or more dilated. The well-seasoned physician on call asked me if I wanted to have a c-section or try to deliver naturally. I told him I wanted to try and deliver naturally despite the fact that Liam was transverse (Luke was head down). He then asked me if I was a morning or night person which seemed like an odd question, but he wanted to know if I wanted to deliver the boys on the 10th or try to get a good night of sleep and start fresh in the morning. I opted to go home (it was early evening by the time we left the hospital) and come back early the next morning. We called in our friends to take the pets, packed our bags, and ordered pizza. I was having some contractions and was mildly uncomfortable, but not too bad. We left the next morning for the hospital after I started going into labor early that morning. The boys were here by noon on January 11, 2008. Oddly enough, their cousin Calvin was born shortly before midnight on January 11th as well.

The past three years have gone so fast. There are days and weeks like feel like an eternity, but when you look back it is so hard to believe the boys are already three. Although our lives are nothing like they were before we had kids, we have a hard time thinking about what we would do without them. We love their different personalities, their laughs, their funny way of saying things, but most of all we are so thankful for the opportunity to be their parents. Happy 3rd Birthdays to Luke Allen and Liam Carey Carrithers as well as to our cousin James Calvin McClure!