10 Years Old

 Ten years we have been blessed with Levi!  He is one of the most perfect gifts God has given us.  He brings such joy and fun everywhere he goes.  Levi’s wit and humor is perfect and continues to be far advanced for his age.  His one-liners and the timing of them throw us off sometimes because they sound like they are coming from an adult!  Levi picks up on everything….he has a great memory, listens closely, and can read between the lines in most instances.  Because of the nature of this year with no school, Levi has become even closer with his sisters.  He loves being on FaceTime and other video chats with his friends from school, but is so happy to just play with Erika and Laurel.  He was outside from sun up to sun down all summer.  He loves playing in the woods and climbing trees or swinging from trees.  Together with his sisters, they made up several games to play outside.  His imagination is amazing and he can find several things to modify or create to his exact needs.  He made a rocket ship themed skateboard out of scraps of wood and PVC pipe this summer, a pulley system for their tree fort, and other items I don’t know the use for but they are nailed to trees all around the property.  Levi is very helpful and continues to be our only child who will do his specific chores without being asked.  He loves going to the river, fruit bowls, trees, I Survived books, chicken, and hooded pajamas.  He doesn’t like shopping, sloppy joes, getting his hair cut, making mistakes, or soccer.  He is kind to everyone and never says anything bad about people.  Levi is in a stage where he is becoming the older kid in various situations, like at church, and it is a little weird for him to have that role since he is the baby of the family.  He is definitely trying out his independence more and luckily knows when he needs a break from the rest of the family.  In frustration, he will go to his room, close the door, and just be alone until he can come out and join the family.  There is no more discussion after those times….he’s just done being mad/sad/angry and is ready to move on.  He has such a forgiving nature and truly only wants to remember all the good he has experienced.  We are so lucky every day to be with Levi and witness how God is shaping him into a young man who will no doubt serve others and God for the rest of his life.  We love you little buddy!

1. What is your favorite color?  Green
2. What is your favorite sport? Swimming
3. What is your favorite fruit?  Blueberries
4. What is your favorite movie? Avengers Age of Ultron
5. What is your favorite thing to eat for lunch? Peanut butter and honey sandwich
6. What is your favorite subject in school? Art
7. What is your favorite game? Monopoly
8. What is your favorite snack? Trail mix
9. What is your favorite animal? Dolphin
10. What is your favorite song? Wake Me Up When It’s All Over
11. What is your favorite book? I Survived
12. Who is your best friend? Cameron, Cooper, Leah and Brandon
13. What is your favorite cereal? Honey Bunches of Oats
14. What is your favorite thing to do outside? Climbing trees and swinging on trees
15. What is your favorite drink? Green Apple smoothie
16. What is your favorite holiday? Halloween
17. What is your favorite restaurant? Claim Jumper
18. What is your favorite thing to eat for breakfast? Waffles and a fruit cup
19. What do you want for dinner on your birthday? Teryaki chicken and rice
20. What do you want to be when you grow up? An astronaut and explore Venus

13

Happy 13th birthday to our first born baby girl, Erika!  We cannot believe how lucky we have been to have this sweet young woman in our lives every day for the past 13 years.  Erika is truly the most kind, loving, compassionate, humble, funny, encouraging, smart and dedicated new teenager.  She has always played the role of big sister well but at this time of new routines and staying home and home learning, we are so fortunate that she is here to look after and encourage and entertain her brother and sister while we work.  Erika loves decorating, taking care of little kids, spaghetti, art, taking pictures, Panda Express, sweets, and being with friends.  She does not like action movies, chicken cordon bleu, being forced to stay home, having a surprise ruined, or cleaning the bathrooms. Every year is honestly better to watch her grow than the last year.  No one told me how much fun it would be as a mom to watch this child who you have raised and loved and taught become their own independent person.  Erika is very similar to me in many ways, but I am constantly amazed where she excels in areas that I do not.  She is an amazing artist....her photography is lovely and thoughtful; her poetry in deep and true; her drawings are lifelike and cute; her sense of decor is inspirational and mature.  She expresses her thoughts rationally to us and has deep convictions of justice.  Erika is an extreme optimist and many times has encouraged her girlfriends with positive words and suggestions when they have been depressed or disappointed.  She is a friend to everyone, even the kids who annoy her.  Her teachers and classmates know her as someone who helps others selflessly and does her best work in everything. The emerging teenager part of Erika reared its ugly head at times this past year with declarations of "you can't tell me what to do" and "I'm not doing that" during a few discussions.  Although it is frustrating to deal with, we are glad Erika has a level head enough to calm down and talk about underlying issues when she gets to that point of frustration.  She is nearly as tall as me, about a half-inch shorter, and I suspect she isn't quite done growing yet.  She is the first kid who wants to accompany us on little errands and it is a lot of fun to talk with her one on one in the car, although exhausting because she has a lot to say!  We are blessed and proud to be called her parents and thank God every day for taking care of our child and developing her into a Christ-like woman who loves with her entire heart.  We love you Baby Boo!!

1. What is your favorite color?  Maya Blue
2. What is your favorite sport? Soccer
3. What is your favorite fruit?  Raspberries
4. What is your favorite movie? Aladdin
5. What is your favorite thing to eat for lunch? Mac and cheese
6. What is your favorite subject in school? Math
7. What is your favorite game? Rocks
8. What is your favorite snack? Nutri-grain bars
9. What is your favorite animal? Dog
10. What is your favorite song?  “22” by Taylor Swift
11. What is your favorite book? Best Friends Next Door
12. Who is your best friend? Kennedy, Moorea and Emma
13. What is your favorite cereal? Cinnamon Toast Crunch
14. What is your favorite thing to do outside? Swing on the black swing
15. What is your favorite drink? Dutch Bros Cotton Candy Frost
16. What is your favorite holiday? 4th of July
17. What is your favorite restaurant? Wendy’s
18. What is your favorite thing to eat for breakfast? Pancakes
19. What do you want for dinner on your birthday? Spaghetti and meatballs and white chocolate raspberry cheesecake
20. What do you want to be when you grow up? An interior designer

 My favorite birthday memory of Erika...she wanted a "blue princess rock" and was so grateful when she opened her present.

Who knew this three year old would grow to have quite the sense of fashion!

Happy Birthday Laurel!

Our kind, thoughtful, beautiful, challenging, appreciative daughter Laurel turns 11 years old today!  She is such a fun friend, diligent student, hard worker, gifted athlete, and loyal sister.  Laurel continues to be the most logical child we are raising who takes her time reasoning through new ideas before she comes to conclusions.  She asks thought provoking questions that throw us off guard sometimes, but is very content to discuss the answers to those questions without getting bored or frustrated.  Laurel leaves the sweetest notes for her family members to encourage them and tell them how much she appreciates them....she is very heartfelt with her writing!  She is the first child in the family to break a bone this summer and was such a brave young lady....she shed no tears the entire 24 hours it took us to realize her wrist was actually broken and not just a little sore from falling off her bike. She didn't get upset that she had to wear a cast for four weeks during the summer, which meant limiting her water activity time (one of her favorite things to do!) and being at church camp with limited activities.  Laurel doesn't strive to be the center of attention, but is always drawing people to her with her calm and pleasant and consistent personality.  She does like to be first and we are working on humbling ourselves and allowing someone else to see/do/experience things before she does.  She loves eating meat, watching television, using sweet smelling body lotions, chocolate, animals, soccer, and interacting with elderly people.  Laurel has a short temper that only comes out occasionally, but when it does she is quick to react.  She is doing very well with working to control her temper and finding ways she can deal with her emotions.  She does not like cleaning her room, chicken pot pie, being interrupted from a show she is watching, lasagna, and waking up early.  Laurel will say the most kind words to her siblings out of the blue and has made it a goal in her classroom at school to give someone a compliment every day.  We are so proud of this young lady and thankful every day that God has blessed us with her.  We love you mightily, Laurel Annie!!

1. What is your favorite color?  Pink
2. What is your favorite sport? Soccer
3. What is your favorite fruit?  Watermelon
4. What is your favorite movie? Avengers End Game
5. What is your favorite thing to eat for lunch? Meatballs
6. What is your favorite subject in school? Math
7. What is your favorite game? Papa’s Milkshakeria
8. What is your favorite snack? Goldfish crackers
9. What is your favorite animal? Flamingo
10. What is your favorite song?  Behold Our God
11. What is your favorite book? Little Women
12. Who is your best friend? Maddie
13. What is your favorite cereal? Cocoa Pebbles
14. What is your favorite thing to do outside? Play on the rope swing
15. What is your favorite drink? Chocolate milk
16. What is your favorite holiday? Christmas
17. What is your favorite restaurant? Red Robin
18. What is your favorite thing to eat for breakfast? Sausage and bacon and eggs
19. What do you want for dinner on your birthday? Hamburgers
20. What do you want to be when you grow up? A physical therapist