A Day to Celebrate!

Hard to believe we have a 2-year old. Will's birthday was last Wednesday, August 19th. I know it sounds cliche, but I honestly do not know where the last couple years have gone...I'm starting to understand all of those things that parents say about time flying. I feel like I was literally just pregnant with Will and now we're only two months away from welcoming our second little boy. And since we're on the topic, we're pretty sure we've decided on Graham for the name. It was in the running when we were pregnant with Will, and we keep coming back to it, so most likely that's the one :)

Between the move and all of our recent travels, we kept the birthday celebration pretty low-key. I knew I wanted to do something fun and memorable with Will on his birthday, though. Since he loves animals of all kinds, I decided to take him to a petshop. We found ourselves with a Betta fish in tow...if we were going to get a pet, wanted the lowest maintenance animal possible! Unlike the ever popular goldfish, the Betta doesn't even require a bubbler, so I didn't think it was too big of a commitment. Will requested the name, "Bubbles" for his first fish :)





















































In addition to Will's birthday, we had another BIG reason to celebrate...Dave passed the CFA exam!! I wish I could somehow communicate what an accomplishment this is. To break it down, it's been a 4+ year process, and at times, extremely stressful. In my twisted little mind, the testing process is a conspiracy. Everyone in the world being tested for this exam takes it on the same day. They actually put a cap on how many people they allow to pass every year (their lovely way of keeping it elite). To make it even more "exciting," you don't even receive a score. This is the scenario...you get an email stating that the test results are in, and they supply you with a username/login. Once you get to your test results page, you're given one of two answers, "pass" or "fail." Thrilling. There are 3 levels, and if you don't pass a level, you have to wait an entire year to take it again. It requires an insane amount of study time, so pretty much every night and every weekend was devoted to studying for 6-month long increments. And between days spent in the office, travel for work, and other commitments, it didn't leave much time for Dave and me - not to mention other fun social activities with friends.

To be honest, I don't think it's really sunk in quite yet that it's all behind us. The test is typically scheduled for the 1st Saturday in June, but the results aren't posted until mid-end of August. Two days before Will was born, Dave got the news that he passed Level 2 (hooray - two down, 1 to go). On Will's 1st birthday last year, we were disappointed to find out that he did not pass Level 3 (not exactly a fun day). Thankfully this year, we found out the day before Will's birthday that Dave indeed passed Level 3, and he was done for GOOD!!!!!!! Although my attitude was not always the best (nor, ashamed to admit, the most encouraging at times) throughout the process, I am so proud of Dave for all the blood, sweat & tears he poured into that nasty exam. He certainly gave it his all, and we're thrilled that it's officially said and done (whew!).

Sooooo, to celebrate these joyous occasions, Dave's parents came over that evening for dinner, cake, the present-opening festivities, and to breathe a sigh of relief for Dave :) Thank you to all who prayed so fervently for Dave and Will and me during that time - what a huge answer to prayer - we cannot thank you enough for the prayers you prayed on our behalf!

Speaking of being thankful, Dave and I seem to fall more and more in love with our little toddler every day. He has brought us so much joy and has been such a gift from the Lord. We find it hard to believe that we could love another child as much as we love him...but I know we will :) Will makes us laugh so hard with his funny little antics, and can't wait to see what the Lord has planned for his life. He has such a sweet spirit. We pray every day that he would come to know the Lord at a young age, that the Lord would grow him in "wisdom & stature, and in favor with God and man," and that he would be filled with Christ's love, and a heart to serve others. It's a tall order, I know, but we're asking the Lord to give us His wisdom as we parent, and that's gotta help, right ;-)? We love you, William Allen, and can't wait to see what this next year holds...we're so proud of you!!