7 april

sixteen. that is all.

nine now

The Baby Boy~

The baby boy that I hoped so much for.

The baby boy that I admitted to Brian I wouldn't know how to properly care for (after having two baby girls).

The baby boy that would sit on his Daddy's lap for hours.

The baby boy that almost ate a toad.

The baby boy that took three tries to potty train.

The Little Boy~

The little boy who was scared of his Bob The Builder costume (even though Bob was his hero).

The little boy who walked around our home 'playing' leaf blower and weed eater all day (with full sound effects...how did that child not get a headache?).

The little boy who put his pop gun in the microwave only days after his Daddy left for Afghanistan (Brian called, and I cried, "You have to come back home. I cannot raise this little boy without you!").

The little boy who asked for his Soldier-Daddy back three times a day, every single day, for 545 days.

The little boy who played soccer like an absolute maniac when he was five years old.

The little boy who fell in head-over-heels-love with his baby brother, Wesley.

The Big Boy~

The big boy who learned Math on his fingers AND toes.

The big boy who literally dreamed of his own Red Ryder BB Gun.

The big boy who was on the Champion Baseball Team his very first season of baseball.

The big boy who studies (hard) Army Regulation Manuals and the backs of Baseball Cards.

The big boy who loves his Cincinnati Reds.

The big boy whose hero is no longer Bob The Builder. But his DAD.

...

Is Nine Now.

And he is not a baby boy. Or a little boy. Or even a big boy.

He is just a boy.

And I will blink again, and he'll be a young man.

Be still my heart.

Happy Birthday, Connor. I love you.

the blessing of tyler

You were a surprise blessing, it's true!

Even bigger than the surprise of your coming, was the blessings that you brought upon us, long after you were born. Looking back, I see God's hand in it all.

When you were just six weeks old, your Daddy left for Afghanistan. I would have had my hands full with just your big brother and sisters...but God saw that even though my hands would be more full, my heart would be as well (though broken...Daddy being gone). You were able to fill an empty place in my soul, that I'm not sure would have been able to be filled by anything else that year. What a blessing!

As you've grown older, the friendship that has formed between you and Connor is like nothing I have ever seen. The two of you speak your own language. You complete each other. You are Best Buds, and Partners in Crime. To think that Connor would not have that, or that I would not have seen such brotherly love with my own eyes, between my own sons... What a blessing!

A life lesson like no other. The daily opportunity to practice patience and selflessness. You are firm. You stand your ground. But you need me in ways that none of your siblings have yet to need me. A volume of books on parenting would not have been able to teach me what you have been able to teach me. What a blessing!

Joy! Your sense of humor...your laugh...your impersonations...your questions...your silliness...your love of Hank...your singing...they could make the most unhappy of people smile! What a blessing!

Happy, Happy 6th Birthday Blessing #4,

Tyler Joseph.

We love you very, very much

You are handsome, and smart, and full of (good) life!

Love,

Daddy, Mommy, Kylie, Korinne,

Connor, Wessy, Ben, and Baby Judah

ten things we love about korinne (who's ten)

Thing Number One We Love about You, Korinne :: You are Such a Girly Girl...pink, skipping, fairies, paper flowers, purple, your Punky Brewster style, hula hoops, mermaids, sunshine, beads, roller skates, tutus, dress up gowns, princesses, jump ropes, rainbows...

Thing Number Two We LOVE about You, Korinne :: You LOVE to Read (OK, so it's mostly Mommy that LOVES this part of You:), but you can get completely lost in a Book. And You want to be Laura Ingalls Wilder from Little House on the Prairie when you grow up (but you were afraid to wear the clothes that hung on the line to dry, "There might be bugs on them!")

Thing Number Three We LOVE about You, Korinne :: You are So Sweet, and Romantic...You can repeat, verbatim, the lines from Anne of Green Gables (is it Book 3?) where Anne and Gilbert finally kiss, Your Favorite Little House Book is where Laura and Almanzo get Married, Your Favorite Star Wars is where Anakin and Padme fall in Love, You get Super Excited when the Library has one of the Love Comes Softly DVDs in...

Thing Number Four We Love about You, Korinne :: You are Super Witty (OK, so this is not Kylie's Favorite part about You :), "I don't know what to do...I've been following Kylie all my life, and I just found out she's a NERD!" )

Thing Number Five We LOVE about You, Korinne :: your Daddy is Your Heroe and You are your Mother's Daughter (you get Elbowed with Knees, I get cold just thinking of the WindShield Factor *sigh* Mommy's so sorry Rin :)

Thing Number Six We LOVE about You, Korinne :: You want Twenty Children, even though you have FIVE Little Brothers

Thing Number Seven We LOVE about You, Korinne :: You do things like plan Family Fun Weekends, and FairyTale Puppet Shows, and Crafts to do with your Brothers, and Special Things to do for Anyone who will let you

Thing Number Eight We LOVE about You, Korinne :: Your Beautiful Smile...and Your Laugh, it's so Genuine and Big and Full

Thing Number Nine We LOVE about You, Korinne :: Your Imagination. You will Play anything, all the time. You go All Over this World, and you take your Little Brothers with you. The Nile River, where you have found Baby Moses (Judah), the Jungle, where you are finding injured Jungle Animals (Ben and Wesley), the WWII Battlefield where your Big Brothers (TJ and Connor) are fighting, and have left you to care for the Little Brothers still at home (Ben and Wesley), the Dugout at Plum Creek, on a Fishing boat in the Ocean, the ClassRoom where you are the Teacher, the Doctor's Office where you are the Mommy bringing in your Sick Children, the Grocery Store, the Library...

AND

Thing Number Ten We LOVE about You, Korinne :: That God gave You to Us. You are Ours, and You make our Life Happier, and Cozier, and Softer, and Prettier, and Smiley-er

thirteen

We never knew Thirteen Years could go so fast. Everyone kept telling us...and, we believed them...but we still never knew Thirteen Years could go so fast.

There are many things we would do differently. Many. But, they are the same things that have made you who you are. *And* You. Are. Wonderful.

You are Loving and Lovable. You shower all Six of your Siblings with Help and Kindness. You Care for Your Babies in a way we have never seen a 12 year old Care for a Baby. You still Embrace Us whenever you can.

You are Teachable. You didn't miss a beat when we brought you Home. You are Wise way Beyond your Thirteen Years. You Question Everything...God, Nature, English, Fractions, Good Literature. And you Seek Out the Answers.

You are Responsible. You Work too hard, even when it's not expected of you. We hear Francesca coming from the Kitchen, and we Know you are Busy. We have to push you to your Room to listen to your IPod, or Paint your Toes, or Play your Guitar, or Devour another Book, or Make another one of Your Lists.

You are a Talented Ballerina. It's a Joy to watch you. We wondered...was it Soccer...was it Cheerleading...was it Softball...was it VolleyBall. We never Dreamed it was Twirling. But we Love it. Because you Love it. Because you are Passionate about it. Because it makes you Happy.

You Love Jesus. You are Following Hard after Him, and Quick to Change Direction when you Stray from The Path. We will never forget when you Invited a Freshman from ASU to Church. Or that You slip Notes in Your Loved Ones Bags as they Leave, sharing with them, how they too, can have a Relationship with Jesus, and spend an Eternity with Him in Heaven.

You are Beautiful. Inside and Out. Because of all of these Things. You are Our Princess. And We will Try our Best to Continue to show you The Way. Because NOTHING is more Important to Us. NOTHING.

three

Happy Birthday Dear Wesley, Happy Birthday To You!

We have been Blessed to spend Three years with our Fifth Baby, Our Third Rowdy Boy

We have spent Three years calling you by a Hero's Name

Three years of a Few, Big Challenges

But Three years of More Laughter than the entire 9 years before

You've had Three years of Jesus, the Best of Your Daddy, Days filled Playing and Reading with your Sisters and Brothers, and being Right Next to your Momma Every Minute (there is no Class Worthy of Your Time:)

You Sing, Sing, Sing, shape Play-Doh like nobody's business, play Air Guitar like a true Worship Leader, and LOVE every.single.second. of Sandlot (and do not Move from your spot until it's "OhOh").

We have Celebrated Your Special Day with Donuts, Trains, Light Sabers, Horses, Pizza, Baby Dancin' Polkas, and Oreo Goodness. You are Happy. It makes Us Happy.

We LOVE you Wesley Ray Ray Bailey, you have filled a Place in our Hearts that no one else could. May God continue to Bless you every single day, and may you Grow into a Strong, Healthy, Jesus-Loving Little Man.