twelve

Dear Bailey,

You are twelve!  I am late on writing your birthday post because our January got a little crazy!  You have had a great year with so much new and so much change and you have taught me so much about how you will be when you are grown up.  I imagine this year will be even more telling.  

You moved from elementary school to middle school this year.  It was a big change for me as we walked into that big new school together.  I know we both wanted to run but after the first day, it was pretty cool with all of the freedom and the lockers and being able to see different friends all day.  You even went to your first dance and I think my heart melted just a little at how cute you looked.  I watch you walk out from school when I pick you up and round that corner talking and laughing with your friends all the way to the car.  It’s funny to me how different boys look in middle school - some tall and some small but it’s obvious that even the ones you are looking up at like you and they will soon be looking up to you, no matter how tall they are.  

I have watched you become more responsible and I know that I can depend on you to remember everything I forget.  You know the rules and make sure that your sister follows them, even if she’s not happy about it.  You are good to her, even if you pinch her and yell, “KAAAATE!” at the top of your lungs when she annoys you.  You have a phone now and I like you having it just as much as you do because I can text you and call you anytime.  You make sure that I’m right where I said I would be at all times so that keeps me in check!  

We ventured to New York City this year - a place you really wanted to see.  Your eyes were wide when we walked though Times Square and you even got the pleasure of 6 hours of Mets baseball with good seats thanks to a rainout.  The city was fascinating for all of us and it was so cool to show you the city that daddy and I went to when we got married.  So much has changed but it was clear to us as we explained the story of how the towers fell a few days after we stood in them, that our lives are full of so much purpose and that your daddy and I were meant to be your parents.  We have no pictures from our first trip, so we had you take our honeymoon picture in front of the new memorial.  It’s only fitting that you and Kate would be standing with us on that same ground fifteen years later all together.  

You tried a new sport this year - cross country.  You ran with your middle school team and did really well.  It was not something you wanted to do, and maybe you did it for me, but I’m very proud of how great you did.  It was fifteen minutes of the most exciting thing I’ve ever seen.  Never once did you not look for me when you rounded the first turn and crossed the finish line, so I made sure to stand exactly where you told me so I wouldn’t have to hear it after!  I could always spot your little legs in the distance in those shorty shorts.  The best was when your shoe came off because an eighth grader ran over you and you fell.  You rounded the corner holding your shoe with your hand in the air, looking pretty put out.  Daddy and I laughed but then watched you put your shoe on, keep running, and beat your time.  Persevere is what you do.  

You have gotten pretty good with a yo-yo this year.  I’ve spent many afternoons working as you spin and whir that yo-yo in circles around the dining room table.  You can make that thing fly and spin and then come back to you like it’s some kind of puppet.  You searched you-tube for tricks and taught them all to yourself, practicing until you got it.  You’ve always done this.  Whatever you are interested in, you will practice until you perfect.  Sometimes I wish you would put that effort into those school projects like that book report on Prince, but I don’t really blame you. Even though Prince is a legend, a yo-yo is way cooler.  

You figured out the Rubik’s cube this year.  You picked up the 2x2 and worked it until you solved it then moved to the 3x3.  I can’t even figure out how your brain works but it’s something else.  You memorized those patterns and now you can do it in under minute.  You got 4 different puzzles for Christmas and solved them in two days.  I was hoping they would keep you busy a little longer.  Oh, well.  And there’s the marker flipping and the bottle flipping - I’m not sure the obsession on this but I’m not as jarred as I used to be with the bottle hits the ground with a thud. 

In this age of video games and Netflix, you still prefer to be outside.  Sometimes you just go out there for air even when it’s freezing cold.  Oh, and that dog.  He loves you the best.  I may be the one who feeds him, but we all know where his loyalty lies.  He stands at the window until you get home and when I allow his crazy self to ride in the car, he acts a complete fool until you hold him.   

The thing about you, Bailey is that you never give up.  Your stubbornness came from me but your strength comes from the Lord.  You love your family and you are a good friend.  You are sensitive and kind and caring, never forgetting to say thank you or take your dishes to the sink.  And, oh my goodness, are you funny.  As you get older and more mature, your sense of humor does too and I find myself learning more from you everyday.  If adults had half the sense that you do, the world would be a much more tolerable place.  I love seeing the world through your eyes because it looks more clear and much more real.  Bailey, you have drawn people in with your quiet, serious, and loving self.  Our friends love you like you are their own and only you could have made that happen. We love you more than you could ever know.  

Twelve is destined to prove that you can do anything.  And, if you learn that so early, your life will be better and richer.  It will also prove that my love for you has no boundaries.  You are my Joshua 1:9.  I’m proud of you big boy!  

Love, 

Mom

“Have I not commanded you?  Be strong and courageous.  Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you whereever you go.”  Joshua 1:9