We were in California when we got a phone call from our son Matthew, telling us that he had proposed to Emily Brown . . . and that she had said "yes."

[caption id="attachment_1185" align="aligncenter" width="480" caption="The evening Matthew proposed. How could we not love a woman who looked at our son like that!"]<a href="http://motherhoodstress.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/MattEmilyRed_1.jpg"><img class=" wp-image-1185 " title="MattEmilyRed_1" src="http://motherhoodstress.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/MattEmilyRed_1.jpg" alt="" width="480" height="506" /></a>[/caption]

We had met Emily - and fallen in love with her - when we'd visited Matthew in New Hampshire earlier that year.  We were overjoyed with their good news.

[caption id="attachment_1186" align="aligncenter" width="479" caption="Matthew and Emily, at the top of Moosilauke"]<a href="http://motherhoodstress.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/moosilauke.jpg"><img class=" wp-image-1186 " title="moosilauke" src="http://motherhoodstress.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/moosilauke.jpg" alt="" width="479" height="356" /></a>[/caption]

How well suited Emily is for Matthew! They both love hiking.

[caption id="attachment_1193" align="aligncenter" width="512" caption="Emily grew up doing some mountain climbing. Here she is at 7 years old."]<a href="http://motherhoodstress.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/EmilyClimbing7rs.jpg"><img class="size-full wp-image-1193" title="EmilyClimbing7rs" src="http://motherhoodstress.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/EmilyClimbing7rs.jpg" alt="" width="512" height="629" /></a>[/caption]
<p style="text-align: center;">And she is an incredibly gifted artist. You should check out her quilts, and her photography on her website at <a href="http://greensandjeans.com/">http://greensandjeans.com/</a></p>


[caption id="attachment_1194" align="aligncenter" width="580" caption="Emily at 3 years. What a cutie!"]<a href="http://motherhoodstress.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/Emily3yr.jpg"><img class="size-large wp-image-1194" title="Emily3yr" src="http://motherhoodstress.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/Emily3yr-759x1024.jpg" alt="" width="580" height="782" /></a>[/caption]

One of the joys of their wedding on July 7, 2007 was that, in preparation for the rehearsal dinner, I got to put together a slide show of photographs of Emily and Matthew, as they were growing up.  By the time I had gone through all the adorable pictures of Emily as a baby. . . and a two year old . . . and a teen, I felt almost as if I'd gotten to see her blossom as a child.

[caption id="attachment_1192" align="aligncenter" width="457" caption="Emiy at 9 years old"]<a href="http://motherhoodstress.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/Emily-9yrs.jpg"><img class=" wp-image-1192 " title="Emily 9yrs" src="http://motherhoodstress.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/Emily-9yrs.jpg" alt="" width="457" height="360" /></a>[/caption]

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[caption id="attachment_1190" align="aligncenter" width="493" caption="Emily in high school"]<a href="http://motherhoodstress.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/Emily-teen.jpg"><img class="size-full wp-image-1190" title="Emily teen" src="http://motherhoodstress.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/Emily-teen.jpg" alt="" width="493" height="512" /></a>[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_1188" align="aligncenter" width="479" caption="Emily and Matthew have done a LOT of mountain climbing."]<a href="http://motherhoodstress.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/MattEmilyGile.jpg"><img class=" wp-image-1188 " title="MattEmilyGile" src="http://motherhoodstress.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/MattEmilyGile.jpg" alt="" width="479" height="234" /></a>[/caption]

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[caption id="attachment_1187" align="aligncenter" width="480" caption="A few months before their wedding"]<a href="http://motherhoodstress.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/MattEmilyBaltimore.jpg"><img class=" wp-image-1187 " title="MattEmilyBaltimore" src="http://motherhoodstress.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/MattEmilyBaltimore.jpg" alt="" width="480" height="535" /></a>[/caption]

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[caption id="attachment_1070" align="aligncenter" width="232" caption="Matthew and Emily on their wedding day, July 7, 2007"]<a href="http://motherhoodstress.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/EmilyMatthew-7-7-07.jpg"><img class="size-full wp-image-1070" title="Emily&amp;Matthew 7-7-07" src="http://motherhoodstress.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/EmilyMatthew-7-7-07.jpg" alt="" width="232" height="234" /></a>[/caption]

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[caption id="attachment_1184" align="aligncenter" width="480" caption="Last Christmas Eve, Emily and Matthew played the roles of Mary and Joseph, in our church&#39;s Live Nativity."]<a href="http://motherhoodstress.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/MENativity.jpg"><img class=" wp-image-1184 " title="M&amp;ENativity" src="http://motherhoodstress.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/MENativity.jpg" alt="" width="480" height="360" /></a>[/caption]

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Happy Birthday, precious Emily.....We love you!