Happy 12th Birthday Isaac!

Isaac - Well this was a year of transition but you killed it! You started 5th grade at a new school. You were not happy about moving at all but you found a place and made some great new friends. Although you miss Landon and Antonio, you have found some great new friendships in Sam, Owen, and Grayson to add to your circle. You continued in GT at Light Farms and seem to still enjoy it. I am not sure you enjoy it as much as last year but I think you do enjoy the challenge and just knowing you might be a little smarter than the other kids;0 Your teachers are good and classes are great. You do have a girl in your class who has challenges and every day you have a new story to tell of what she did in class that day. She is a bit of a disruption but I think you find her more interesting than a problem. You are still playing soccer on the Fighting Irish. Your team isn't the best but definitely better than some in the past. Dad is your coach again and you two like to rehash the issues of the game afterwards. You are getting better all the time and finding your footing there. You are becoming more confident and competitive but still don't get too upset with a loss. You just take it all in stride and move on. You are doing well in school. Your brothers find it surprising that you are quite the rule follower when it comes to academics. You kind of like to bend the rules at home when they don't really make the most sense to you;) You enjoy pushing the boys buttons at home but at school, you stick to the rules and stay out of trouble. Isaac, you are still quiet and thoughtful. You save you words for when it matters. You save your hugs for a select few. This drives Mac crazy. He is a hugger and the more you don't want him to hug you, the more he is dying for it. I try to tell you often to open yourself up to him and that one day you will miss our overly affectionate Mac. You assure me that you will not but one day you will. He looks up to you and you do a pretty good job of looking after him. You are a good boy Isaac, ornery, but very good. I love you and Happy 12th Birthday!

Happy 18th Birthday Will!

Will - This was a year of challenges. We decided to move to Celina which meant new schools. This was your junior year of high school and you made the decision to move high schools even though we gave you the option of remaining at Independence. You said that you wanted to be able to spend your senior year going to school once more with Sam. You said that there will be lots of friends but only one Sam;) So, you transferred to Prosper HS, a school of almost 4,000. You also had knee surgery the summer before your junior year. Dad and I encouraged/ made you join the cross country team even though you weren't allowed to run for the entire season. We told you that was how you would make friends. You reminded us that this was a distance running sport and that it is hard to meet people when they are running away from you for miles at a time. But, you stuck with it. Your attitude wasn't super positive but you did it. You worked as a team manager helping out however you could. You found friends out of it just like we said you would:) Your knee surgery was a big deal. We thought you would just get the meniscus repaired but during surgery, the surgeon decided that you didn't have enough stability in your knee without an ACL. So, they repaired both your meniscus and built you an ACL with part of your quad muscle and your patella tendon. The doctors weren't really sure how recovery would work because rarely do they have someone with your situation who is also so active. Many of these kiddos are missing toes or even a foot. The fact that you are perfectly imperfect created a little challenge for them. But, you showed them how awesome you are! You did physical therapy and put the work in. Now you have two whole knees. You started working mowing lawns with some of the cross country kids. Although you have never mowed our own lawn before, you took some allergy meds and took on this new challenge. Ayden is your friend and also your boss. He says you are one of his hardest workers and that doesn't surprise me. You are a good kid and when you commit to someone, you commit. You spend a lot of time drawing in your room. You have made new friends but you still keep your circle small. Conner is still in that circle along with Braden but you don't see him too much. You do get together with Conner from time to time and still enjoy that time. You do hang out the the cross country boys now and again but you mostly enjoy staying at home and drawing. You are developing your craft and enjoy creating characters and storyboards. You have dreams and although I don't totally understand your creativity, I believe in you and will encourage your passion. You went to your first dance this year. You went with a group of girls and your friend Phoenix. He is your friend from cross country. Although you didn't really want to go to the dance, you did and actually enjoyed yourself. As a fellow introvert, I try to regularly remind you to go and do even when you don't feel like it. You rarely regret saying yes but often may regret saying no. Will, I know this year was tough and you challenged yourself more than you wanted to but I am super proud of you. You found a strength inside yourself I am not sure you knew you had. You went outside your comfort zone and found a place for yourself. Although you continue to try and fall back into your comfy spaces, I do try to continue to push you. You are a super sweet guy and many kids need a friend like you. I love you and Happy 18th Birthday Will!

Happy 15th Birthday Sam!

Sam - so you started 8th grade at a new school. Although you weren't super excited about it, you made the best of it. You played it cool and made friends. You found your place in this new place. You did track again this year. Although you personally did well, it was a frustrating time for you. Your track class was the last period of each school day. Unfortunately, not all 8th graders are committed to athletic excellence like you. So, you spent a lot of time frustrated. The coaches were kind of lazy and would punish everyone when specific students were jacking around. This was very frustrating to you as you are the rule follower and HATE getting punished for other people's issues. I am amazed I never got a call from school. I was certain you were gonna throw a punch one day. (Honestly though, I would have had a hard time blaming you.:) You have a new circle of friends now. I have no idea who they are because you kind of like to just relax at home. You text with people from time to time but if you decide to hang out with someone, it is usually good ole' Karl. You two have been friends forever. Although you now go to different schools and rarely talk, you can pick up right where you left off without missing a beat. You continue to workout and seem to be finding your own way about this new school. My little Sam is no longer little and finding muscles we never knew were there. Seventh grade was a rough year for you. I think hormones got the best of you. But, that seems to have leveled off and my old Sam is back. You are pretty chill unless I throw an unexpected activity into the plans. You hate that! But 8th grade has been good to you. You didn't want to move but you have made the best of it. You have found new friends and learned that no matter where you are, you can always find your spot. I am proud of the man you are becoming. You are taking more of a leadership role in our family, helping guide your younger brothers and showing them how and who they want to be. Although your exterior is strong, your heart is still soft. You are sweet Sam and I love you. Happy 15th Birthday Sam!

Happy 9th Birthday Mac!

Mac - I am late on this but not nearly as late as I was with your brothers' birthday posts.;) This year you started a new school. You had so many friends at your old school but it didn't take you long to gather a whole new gang of buddies. You miss your old friends but have found great new ones. Cooper and Dawson are some of the boys you have become closest with. You are my social butterfly so you are always ready to go play. Thankfully, we now live in a neighborhood with lots of kiddos so you can almost always find someone to do something. Our next door neighbor, Morgan is also a new partner in crime. When we moved to Light Farms, you were able to start riding your bike to school everyday. You usually ride with Morgan and Dawson but some days you just ride alone. You just love the freedom of riding your bike to and from school. I think it makes you feel so independent and you are an independent kind of kid. You finished up with soccer and now have moved onto baseball and flag football. I think you loved soccer and were really quite good but your friends are playing baseball so that is where you wanted to be too. Although it was totally new to you, you picked it up quickly and tried hard. You are very competitive so when you didn't make a play or hit, you were pretty hard on yourself. Thankfully you have some great coaches, Knox's and Cooper's dads, so that made for a nice start to a new sport. They were always very encouraging and super impressed with your speed. Your team won the championship so you even got a ring. Ha! You also began playing flag football. Of course, your competitive spirit and your quickness served you well. You played with a bunch of kids you didn't know but you held your own and your team won the championship. It was a good season and you learned a lot, including a love for football. Mac, when we moved to Celina, I knew there was one kid I didn't have to worry about and that was you. You can find a friend anywhere. You live life to do stuff. You are always ready to a be a part of something. You are hilarious and challenging. You hold your own with three older brothers. You are spectacular and fun. You give the best hugs and one of these days Isaac is gonna be sorry he rejected so many of them. Happy 9th Birthday Mac!

Happy 11th Birthday Isaac!

Isaac - Yep, another late birthday post. But, it's me so what do you expect?;0 This year you fished out fourth grade. You were in GT which allowed you to be challenged and think outside the box. You enjoy GT even if you don't always love the extra work. You excel in this class. You just think of things in ways that most kids your age don't. You process ideas and concepts beyond that of your peers. This is a skill that has served you well and that will continue into your future. It kind of irritates your brothers but I think irritating your brothers is something you rather enjoy;) Your circle of friends is quite large. You don't really have a best friend but a lot of really good friends. Some of your closest friends are Landon and Antonio. They live in the neighborhood and come over to play often. When you don't feel like playing, which is rare, they play with Mac. Thankfully, you don't seem to mind which is super nice for him. You are playing soccer on the Fighting Irish team again this year. Dad coaches you and you really enjoy that. Your team isn't very good but you don't seem to mind. You might be annoyed for about 5 seconds but you have a good perspective and know it is just a game. You find the fun in being with your friends and the sport. That is what really matters to you. We give you a hard time around here because you hate cold cheese. I am not sure what it is because you like hot cheese. But cold cheese, it makes you gag. We tried to make homemade pizzas and that just about sent you over the edge. You were a willing participant until it was time for the cheese. You just couldn't take it. The boys got a good laugh out of that. Isaac, you are usually quiet and introspective. You ask questions with purpose and process it all. You march to your own drum and usually have a funny dance to go with it. You often fight with one of your brothers but I think you enjoy to challenge of it all. You are a handful but thankfully, God gave me two:) Happy 11th Birthday Isaac!

Happy 17th Birthday Will!

Will - like your brothers' posts, your too is super late. I guess I thought I got it done but I didn't. I know that is shocking:). So year 16 was a good one. You started your Sophomore year in HS at Independence. You ran Cross Country for the second year in a row. Although you don't love it, you tolerate it and have made some good friends through it. You are not a super competitive kid so this is a good sport for you. It allows you to be social but still be alone. It allows you to challenge yourself without having to worry about letting your team down. You are a natural distance runner. I am not sure where you got that from.;0 This year you got a car for Christmas. It is a Honda Civic. I am certain that it isn't your dream car but you were still excited none the less. Dad and I wanted you to have a safe and reliable car. This checked all the boxes. Thank you for being a gracious kid and not complaining that it isn't a sports car. Conner and Braden are still your closest friends. Although you don't see them as much as you used to, time and space doesn't really seem to change much for you. You are my introvert. You enjoy your own company and sometimes like to fill your space with other people. Generally, you don't want to fill it with just people. You are intentional and want to use your time with the people that matter. It makes your friendship circle quite small but you like it that way. As a fellow introvert, I understand it. Will, so many teenagers these days give their parents a run for their money but not you. You are a pretty easy kid. Your Type B personality sometimes confuses Dad and I but we are trying to better understand your perspective. Not much frustrates you which works to your advantage. God knew you would have three younger brothers so he knew you would need an extra amount of patience. You are easy-going and don't let much rattle you. You take things as they come and make adjustments without much concern. This will serve you well and you will probably live an ulcer free life!:0 In May of this year, you made your public proclamation to follow Jesus and be baptized. Dad and I were both so proud of this decision. I know Jesus has been in your heart for many years. I know you were nervous about being in front of people, all them looking at you. But you did it and it was awesome! Granny and Papa came to see it. Nana and Pawpaw watched online from home. Everyone was really excited for you and of course, I was filled with joy, so I cried. I love you bud! Happy 17th Birthday!!

Happy 14th Birthday Sam! (Wow this is late!)

Sam - I am not sure where my post for your 2018 birthday or anyone else's for that matter went, so I will just get it done now!;) This was 7th grade and it was a bit of a rough year for you. Your grades were fine. Your friendships were great. You were just feeling all of being 13 and the hormones that come with that. Every day I would pick you up from school and ask you how the day was. Usually your response had something to do with the stupid kids in your stupid class were being stupid so your stupid teacher assigned you all a stupid amount of homework. A lot of things in 7th grade were stupid;0, thankfully you made it through without getting into a fight with any of those stupid kids or getting detention from those stupid teachers. And you seemed to always get good grades on all that stupid homework. Since you stopped playing soccer last year, this year you tried your hand at track. Although you're super fast, the coach was a little/ a lot disorganized so you really didn't get much exposure to the track. But, you got an idea of what to expect. You learned a little bit more and next year, you'll be ready to run all over this sport. Karl is still one of your best friends. His parents got divorced not long ago so I think you are a really nice constant to have. Although your interests are changing, you still love to hang out. You have a large circle of friends. Your inner circle is very small which allows a lot of room for a big outer circle and are always willing to make room for one more. This summer, I asked Will to start a workout routine with your boys. Of course, you are my rule follower so you took that to another level. Every night before bed, you do sit-ups and push-ups. You are a committed person and I admire that. You plan to do something and then just do it. It makes you a little challenging at times though because you don't like things up ending your plans. If we have something to do, you want to know about it far enough ahead of time so that you can include it on your calendar. In May of this year, you and Will were baptized. For many years, you have had a love for Jesus in your heart but you made that love public. Dad and I were super proud of that decision. Granny and Papa came to see it. Nana and Pawpaw watched online. It was a very big day for all of us. We were very excited and of course, I cried ugly.;) Sam, every year, I write your birthday post about you and your big heart and your big emotions. Every year, I think you hate it. But you know what, I think you are really awesome. You feel and that is fantastic. Your wife will appreciate that very much. I know you don't see it now but one day you will win big because of this. People are drawn to feelers. It makes them feel heard and understood. It makes you compassionate. It makes you pretty special. Happy 14th birthday Sam. I am sorry I am so late. I guess we were just busy having fun!!! Love, Mom