I Legally Pronounce You....

It has been a while since my last update and there is tons to share. Most importantly, we recently heard those 11 magical words, "I now pronounce you the legal parents of Shawn Mykal Nino." Last Wednesday, March 17, Jason, Uncle Zach, Shawn and I headed to the courthouse to visit Judge Moulder who consummated Shawn's adoption. We are so excited to say that this whole process is over and as silly as it sounds after over a year together it really does feel different. I don't know if a protective "just-in-case" wall was up before or what, but it has definitely been broken down. Shawn is the love of our lives and the life in our party. It is so bad now that we fight over who he is cuddled up next to. We had family in town this weekend, so Shawn had to stay in our bed. Of course he was cuddled up to Mommy, but when I left the room to go to the restroom, I come back and Jason has snatched him away and is spooning with Shawn. We are in a very happy place and are so thankful that our beautiful son is blessed with so many wonderful friends and family in his life. I especially want to thank Uncle Zach who traveled a miserable 4 hour drive with our 3 month old nephew, Luke, to be there for Shawn's anti-climactical (yes it is a word) adoption hearing. Poor Luke was exhausted and could not get comfortable on the trip to Houston.



As always, I have to share a few of the most recent topics of conversation according to Shawn. These are the latest:

• As we ride the Bat Boat on Lady Bird Lake with cousins Charity, Chris, Cheyanne, and Tristan, some fool shouts from the Congress Street Bridge, "SHOW ME YOUR CANS!" I am sure that you can guess what comes next...Shawn Mykal Nino shouting back multiple times, "NO SHOW ME YOU CANS!" This resulted in the whole boat with approximately 70 people on board bursting into laughter only to be followed by Shawn's favorite chant for his favorite 2 x high school wrestling champion, "CODY DAVIS clap x clap x clapclapclap!".


• After Shawn's adoption we go to eat lunch at a wing place in Montgomery. There was a sweet little girl waiting on us of all tables for her very first day on the job as a waitress. Needless to say, she fumbled a bit only to be pointed out by our very well mannered son, "Hey LADY, OH MY GOODNESS!"

I love the honesty of a 2 year old.

Spring Break was a great time for all of us. We actually got to spend quality time together. Not only was the adoption final, but Shawn also made his first trip to Sea World. He LOVED it and Shamu shocked him with a huge splash on a cool morning. Shawn was able to feed the Sea Lions, watch the Dolphins up close, and learn a new Shamu dance. We had so much fun enjoying his first trip to Sea World with Uncle Andrew, Emilio, Aida, Luke and Kayla.

He also went to his first Bull Ride at the Austin Stockshow and Rodeo. Thank you Nana and Butchy Boy for the fun trip. He loved watching as, "Dee horses run faster to get the bull." He has definitely mastered the "YEE-HAW!" but I have to say that the only part of the rodeo that he is still talking about is, "Dee Yucky Llama pooped by my foot." How fortunate we are that bodily functions are very interesting to our 2 year old.

Finally, last night we ended the week with a Pizza Party with the Larra's. We each got our own pizza crust, accept for poor Jason. Teresa and I accidentally made his pizza for him. All of the toppings you could dream of were out on the table and everyone got to make there own. The Pizza Party was supposed to be fun for Kaleb and Shawn (and it was) but I think that the adults enjoyed it a little bit more. Jacob of course got a little bit carried away, had to leave to go purchase more toppings mid preparation only to come back with a business plan for his own Pizzeria. We all shared and enjoyed each other's pizzas, however, Jacob would not share without a 2 dollar charge per slice. I will post pictures so that you can place your orders.

What this week made us realize more than anything is how much we love spending time with friends and family and celebrating our many blessings together.

We just returned home from a much needed break at my brother's house. As we are both 1st time parents this year, Jason and I spent Valentines Day weekend with Zach and Nicole along with our handsome boys Shawn and Luke.

I can not believe how much Luke has grown. He is so handsome and has the greatest smile ever. I don't think Shawn knows what to think of him or do with him and all I want for him to do is love on him. We were able to manipulate to get a couple of posed pictures but Shawn quickly said, "I'm done!" as he pushed Luke away. I think it is more that his busy body can not sit still for more than 2 minutes.

None the less, we had a great Valentine dinner, and are so happy that we were able to spend time with The Corbell Crew.