Happy 16th Birthday Sam!

Per my usual, this post is late. I'm usually late but this year I'm blaming it on Covid. This year you started high school at Prosper HS. It is a gigantic school with over 4,000 kids. Thankfully, you had Will to help you navigate. The two of you rode to and from school each day. What special memories you made with the regularities of life. Your friendship is sweet. One that I have prayed for you boys. We tell y'all all the time that you always have a friend, an ally, someone who really gets you, because you have each other. You've made some new friends and are still settling in. It's a very big school, easy to get lost in but you're making the best of it. You are participating in track again. I think you really enjoy track much more than xc. I think track is where you find friendships and it is where your work ethic really shows. No matter how tired or how much it hurts, you push yourself to the brink, beyond expectations. You're becoming very strong and determined. In March we took a Spring Break trip to Colorado to ski. You guys are great skiers. This is your second time skiing. The first time, you managed it but your style was a little odd. I just think you were trying so hard not to fall down. This time, you totally had it. You went fast and furiously, not backing down from the scariest of runs. Thankfully we all survived without any broken bones or major accidents. At the end of the trip, word of the Coronavirus began to circulate. The slopes closed right after we left. There were so many unknowns about this virus from China. Hand sanitizer, disinfecting wipes, and toilet paper were quite the commodity. If you found it at a store, you were only allowed to purchase one package per family. Because of this virus and the rate of transmission, you finished your ninth grade year online. It was fine for awhile but you struggled a bit with it. Academically you did fine but socially, it was tough for you. I don't know that you are a social butterfly like Mac but you need that face-to-face interaction. You need variety in your day but with a schedule. The teachers did their best with Zoom calls and such but it just wasn't the same. Many times you would ride with me to the store. You rarely went into the store because of all the germs but you went just to get out of the house. If you did go into an establishment, masks were required. That's the new norm. Thankfully, we managed through and got to summer. This was the second summer doing "Monday Funday" or "Tuesday Put on Your Shoes Day" or "Wednesday Let's Be Friends Day" or "Friday Friyay!" I guess we never did anything on Thursdays because I can't think of what we would have called it.;0 Regardless, we had our fun times all the other week days. This idea started last summer when I was working 3-4 days a week. I realized that we needed to have a plan if we were going to enjoy the summer. I didn't want the whole summer to just drift by. I came up with "Tuesday Put on Your Shoes Day". Most of you hated the name but at least it was something you all agreed upon. Some weeks we had to do stuff on a different day, thus the variety of silly names. This summer we went to the movies, the water park, Top Golf, even had a poker tournament. One day we went to Outback Steakhouse to have steaks because none of you had ever been before. We just don't get that fancy with ya;) We also made our own movie theater at home and watched Toy Story 3. It was a dine in theater. It was harder this summer to do stuff because so much was closed but we made the best of it and purposefully spent time together. That was the point after all. We finished the summer with the annual whipped cream fight. You're a little too big to get in on the fun but you help out and keep the kids in line. Tenth grade started up which was a prayer answered. Many schools delayed the start because of Covid but Prosper pressed on and was the better for it. Of course there were lots of precautions put in place but they made it as safe as we could have hoped for. Will is off to college so your partner in crime is gone. Papa takes you and picks you up from school now. It isn't the same but it is a different kind of good and wonderful memories are still being made. You turned 16 and you got your license!!! You do not love dad and I working with you on driving. Apparently we make you nervous. So, Papa lets you drive to and from school. Pawpaw took you out driving a time or two as well. I give you opportunities to drive but again, you don't appreciate my teaching style;0 For your birthday, you had some of your friends from Frisco over to stay the night and hang out. You are still close with Karl. Unfortunately, due to Covid, he was not able to come but you still had fun with Tyler, Collin, and Brooks. You hadn't seen them in a very long time. I think it did your heart good to catch up and laugh with old friends you grew up with. Sam, you are becoming a wonderful young man. You have a tender heart and that makes some days more difficult for you. That being said, once you figure out how to make that one of your greatest assets, your life will be blessed. You don't like when I talk about how you're a high feeler. Right now that just sounds weak to you. But boy, knowing how you feel, feeling it, and being able to express it will be a gift for your future wife and family. You are precious and stronger than you'll ever know. I love you Sam! Happy 16th Birthday!!!

Happy 10th Birthday Mac!

Wow! This post is late. I'm usually late but this one is horribly late. 2020 was a chaotic time so maybe that will be my excuse.:) This past year was full of activity. Then again, you are activity Mac. You have energy that doesn't end and an enthusiasm to be jealous of. You spent your summer playing with friends and swimming in the newly finished pool. If we invited one to come join, we invited them all. That is just the way you party, and I appreciate your desire to not want to leave anyone out. We also spent our summer doing "Monday Funday" or "Tuesday Put on Your Shoes Day" or "Wednesday Let's Be Friends Day" or "Friday Friyay!" You might ask why there was no Thursday. Maybe it is because we were busy on Thursdays with boring stuff or maybe it is because nothing rhymes with Thursday. Regardless, we had our fun times all the other week days. This idea was born out of a time when I was working 3-4 days a week. After about a week or two of this summer schedule, I realized that we needed to have a plan. I didn't want the whole summer to just drift by. To get everyone on board, I came up with "Tuesday Put on Your Shoes Day". I think everyone hated the name but you.:) Some weeks we had to do stuff on a different day, thus the variety of silly names. The idea was to spend at least one day each week purposefully going out and doing something fun together. Sometimes everyone was excited about the idea. Other times, it was only you and me excited. The great news was that no matter what attitude went into the activity, there was always joy on the exit. We went to water parks, bowling, roller skating, and even bingo. The bingo got the most dreaded response but everyone had fun and made a memory. It was a really fun summer. It wasn't necessarily what we did but that we did something and everyone was involved. This was the summer you decided you wanted to plant a garden. You clearly have a green thumb because you grew some really beautiful tomatoes. I'm not sure where you got the idea to plant a garden but it was your idea and off you went making it happen. You did your first sleepaway camp at Camp Wyldewood. I know you had a great time but you were nervous in the beginning. Thankfully all of the boys went so you had some familiar faces around camp. We met up with the cousins and Granny and Papa in Florida for a week this summer. It was a lot of kids in one condo but it was wonderful and filled with joyful laughter. At the end of the summer, we had our annual whipped cream fight in the backyard with all the neighborhood kids. It is a hot mess but too fun to let a lot of mess stop us! Mrs. Bates was your third grade teacher. She was very nice especially given the classroom set up she was assigned. ALL of your friends except Alexander were in your class. Everett, Knox, Cooper, Dawson, and several other boys were all in Mrs. Bates class. I think of the 22 students, the boys held the majority. Bless that woman. Maybe that is why she got a rest come Spring;) In March we took a Spring Break trip to Colorado to ski. YOu guys are all great skiers. You scare me to death because you have no fear and no slow speed. But we all survived without any broken bones or major accidents. As our break was coming to a close, word of a new virus from China were beginning to circulate. There were so many unknowns. Hand sanitizer, disinfecting wipes, and toilet paper were hard to come by. If you did find it, you were only allowed to purchase one package per family. Masks were hard to find but required to go into any place that might actually be open. Because of this virus and the rate of transmission, you never went back into the classroom after Spring Break of 2019. You instead began online learning. It was fine and everyone made the best of it but it just wasn't the same. You are my social butterfly. So although there are many days you would like to sleep in and not go to school, you love seeing your friends. Zoom calls are nice but definitely not the same. For your birthday, you and Cooper had a sleepover with all your friends. Cooper's birthday is just before or just after so we just doubled up on the fun. The sleepover was at our house with a Peppa Pig theme. WHy you boys enjoy Peppa Pig, I do not know. You swam in the pool, made tie dyed shirts, and laughed a heck of a lot. That's you though Mac. You are almost always filled with laughter. You make others laugh even without meaning to. YOu have joy in your spirit and lots of love in your heart. If there is room for one, there is room for ten. You're a special kid Macadoo. ALthough you are always busy, always thinking, always idea-ing, you make our world more interesting and our family more fun. I love you Macadoodle. Happy 10th Birthday!

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!