Titus Anthony Sobel

He's here!

Titus Anthony Sobel

Born September 24, 2013

7 lb. 9 oz. 19.5 in.

Birth story to follow

Clara Turns 6

Clara Mae is my sweet niece born in July. Because of her July birthday, I have not yet been able to make it to one of her birthday parties! Poor neglected Clara. Over the past 6 years I have been on some trip or another when she celebrates her special day! So this year we made up for it by hosting her 6th birthday party at our house. Her family was on their way to the beach to go camping and stayed a night with us on the way. It was fun celebrating with the family and while mostly a low key evening, we did put up a few decorations in honor of the birthday girl. We spent the evening having a yummy BBQ'd by Chris dinner, eating yummy birthday cake, presents were opened, gift bags were passed out to siblings, and s'mores and story time with glow sticks around the camp fire rounded out the evening.

Not enough couch space for Greta so she had the privilege of sleeping on the floor. Wolfie made sure she was not lonely during the night (or perhaps rather, he liked the special treatment of having a blanket for a bed on the floor).

Happy 60th Dad!

Look who's turning 60 today!

Happy birthday, Dad! We love you very much and are so grateful to celebrate 60 years of your life today. You have always been a kind, loving, and patient father, exemplifying to us what kind of love our Heavenly Father has for us. Your love for the Lord is most evident in how you've raised your family and in your life of faithful Christian service. Love you, Dad!

For more photos, you can check out the slideshow we put together for his birthday celebration:

Dad's 60th from Charissa Sobel on Vimeo.

Happy birthday, Mom!

Happy birthday to my sweet and loving Mama! We couldn't ask for a better wife, mother, and grandmother. You are loved by all of us and we thank God for you!

27

I turned 27 last week and Chris made sure that I had a very special day. He started out by surprising me with getting the day off work so he could spend the whole day with me. That would've been enough for me but he continued to spoil me with:

A matinee to see Les Miserables at the nicest theater on the planet.

There was only one other couple in there with us and we got to lounge on the comfy couch.

We splurged on the nachos. Yes, that is a big pile of sour cream on top. :) This theater is so fun because they come in to take your order before the movie begins with a full lunch/dinner menu. Then they deliver it before the show.

We both loved the movie. I have seen Les Mis three times in person before so I did have high expectations going into it but the movie did not disappoint. Perhaps another blog post would be a better space to write out my opinions, but we did come away thankful for the mercy of God and also noticing the similarities to the Prodigal Son story which I had never connected to Les Mis before.

After the movie we drove into Portland to run a few errands and actually enjoyed some sunshine on my birthday which is a rare occurrence in my life. Can you see Mt. Hood in the background?

In the afternoon we went for a hike at our nearby horse trail with our Wolfie. There was still some snow on the ground so it made for a beautiful winter hike. Just as we were heading back and it was getting dark, Wolfie darted into the woods after a baby deer and we spent the next half hour calling him and looking for him with no response. We were just about to give up when he came bounding up to us--completely soaked and the most tired I have ever seen him! Poor guy must've fallen in the river while chasing the deer and then spent the next while sprinting around looking for us again. We were relieved not to have lost him for good! Crazy dog!

In the evening we met up with my dear friends Talitha and Jesse for a dinner out on the town. We had so much fun that I forgot to take a concluding picture of the day. All this plus many messages of love from friends and family made it a wonderful way to start my new year. I think 27 will be a good one!

26

Remember when you were a kid and it was oh so important to add on that half to your age in the middle of the year? Like I am 6 and 1/2! Not to be confused with a measly little 6 year old... Well, today I'm 26 and one month old...does that count for 26 1/2 yet? I'm not sure that the half holds as much charm once you reach your 20s.

My birthday is 10 days after Christmas and although there are some years when July comes around and I think it might be nice to get a gift right about then, I really don't mind having all my holidays/gifts at one time a year. My mom always made sure to make my birthday a separate event from Christmas and was always a special day. And since I'm always around lots of family and friends over the holidays, I definitely begin to get spoiled by everyone as they remember that the next big celebration is my birthday. This year was no different and I was so blessed and loved on! Thanks everyone!

It started with a special birthday lunch with the in-laws in Santa Fe. Complete with Vanilla Coke! Yum!

Then when I made it to L.A. in the midst of a busy wedding week, my sister Karen made sure to have a special evening set aside to celebrate me. Complete with a "Cream Puff Cake!" It sure was delicious!

Chris made all my dreams come true on my actual birthday with a trip to Disneyland. I've never been there for my birthday and it was a wonderful day!

We picked up our birthday pins at City Hall and everyone wished me a happy birthday all day long. It was fantastic! Mine said "Happy birthday, Charissa." And Chris' said, "I'm celebrating."

The Christmas lights were still up on the castle and it even snows on main street every night during the holidays! It certainly was a magical day in Disneyland and I was so happy to spend the day with my Prince Charming.

Happy 22nd Ben!!

Happy 22nd birthday to my dear brother! Even though I am 3 years older than you, I can't really remember life without you... How thankful I am that you are a huge part of my life! Yes, we had our rough years of not getting along, but perhaps through those difficulties we are even closer today. I'm so glad to call you one of my best friends! I hope your 22nd birthday is fantastic and that this coming year is full of joy, growth, and knowing the goodness of God. I love you!