Happy Birthday Madi!

 

Madi is 8! It is so hard to believe that the little munchkin of a 4 year old that came to us is now 8 years old. Madi, you have grown so much. You are the smartest in your class. You are one of the strongest people I have ever met. You are brave and creative and you love Jesus. 

Over the last year, you have really taken to wrestling. When you first started, we put you in a speed tournament and you got beat 13-2 by a Russian boy. It was one of your only losses all year. Then, 2 weeks later, you came back and pinned a strong African American boy and then came over to me and said, "I think I can beat the Russian." You THEN went out and beat him in overtime! I was losing my mind. 

Another time this year we went to a tournament in Greensboro. I thought it would be a good idea then tried to talk you out of going once I realised we would have to wake up very early and be there all day. You weren't having it. You wanted to go! You wanted to see if you could win! You beat the first boy and then came over to me and said, "if I beat the next guy, do I get the medal?" I knew at that point the kid didn't stand a chance. You pinned him and won first place. The shirt in this picture was what you picked out after you won. The guy selling them tried to get you to pick a shirt that said, "don't let the ponytail fool you." Instead, you wanted the giant men wrestling on the multicolour shirt. 

Don't be fooled. You still give me a run for my money. I love you so much though, and sometimes I don't show it as well as I want to. You are special. God's hand is on you in a powerful way. I can't wait to see what God does with you. You are seriously such a special girl. I can't believe God chose me to be your mom. 

Happy 8th Birthday Madi. You are loved beyond belief. 

Sincerely, Mom.

Happy Birthday Sam! (14)

 Sam,

You wouldn't believe how much you have grown this year. You are so tall and handsome. This year you have enjoyed another great year at WCA. You made straight A's and are so well loved there. You have grown a lot in swimming this year too. You still have coach Rob and he has continued to be an amazing mentor for you. At school, I think your class was pretty immature because the teachers came to me and told me they thought you fit in better with the 8th graders. So, next year, you are skipping 8th grade. I hope it is the right decision, but I pretty much let you decide if that was what you wanted. You seem very academically motivated. 

You are well liked everywhere you go. You still keep in touch with Alec from elementary school and you seem to have some good swim friends, although you never have them over to the house. You and Mattox still seem to be best friends and while it's great you love each other, sometimes I wonder if you both are content just being home, hanging out with the other. 

You are a funny teenager. You walk around with your phone giggling at memes and oblivious to stuff going on around you. You give intense hugs at all the wrong times. You are slow moving and sometimes that drives me crazy. But you are sooooo lovely. You are capable of deep conversation. You are mature and understand things at a high level. You are able to navigate social situations well. You communicate so much without saying a word. I have really learned a lot from you in this area. You are sarcastic and you like to make fun of all my sayings. Deep down, I think you love them. 

You are so hard on Eli but nicer to Madi. You are my go to person if I need dinner made. You are an anchor in our family, Sam and one of the best humans I know. I am so proud of you and I love you so much. I hope we were able to make your birthday as special as you are. Here's to many more! 

Mom

So Behind.

We just celebrated Sam's 14th Birthday and I am now seeing how far behind I am in my birthday posts. Over the last 2 years, everyone has grown so much. Eli is no longer 8..he is 9 and has switched schools. He finished the years with his brothers in private school because he wasn't thriving in his current Spanish school. That was a hard decision, but it was the right one. Once he switched schools, I saw him confidence grow and he became very engaged in learning. He walked into that school and immediately showed off his leadership skills, earning the leadership award for his class. Over the last year, Eli has also found a huge group of friends in the neighborhood he plays with. Dylan, Cole, Lucas, Collin and Jersey (Dylan's sister). There have been 2 recent additions as well...Brooks and Emery. When Eli isn't on the ball field, playing tons of baseball, he is outside playing with his friends. The last 2 years have been difficult on Eli because of our adoption of Madi. I am proud of the growth I have seen in him and look forward to seeing him grow into a man of good character.

Madi is now 7. She is rocking it out in school. She is a leader in her class and everyone loves her. This year, she played basketball and gymnastics. She quit gymnastics in time to start wrestling season, and really enjoyed wrestling. Now, she goes to a club practice 2xs a week and is doing great and improving so much. This winter we found out that Madi had sleep apnea, so she got her tonsils and adenoids out. That surgery was tough but now, she sleeps well with the help of some sleep meds. At school,  her best friends are Laney and Ella but she really gets along well with her classmates. The neighborhood hasn't been as nice to Madi as it has Eli. The girls next door and across the street have turned out to be mean girls and luckily, God has protected Madi from them. She has some other neighbours she plays with often. Jonah, Micah, and Andrew are her daily playmates and we have her many friends from school over often. 

As a family, we went to Florida this past Thanksgiving and that was fun. We didn't go skiing and we aren't going to the beach because we purchased Mattox a car. Things are changing quickly in this house as everyone grows up. It's not shocking that I haven't found time to get on here and write....