Happy birthday!

Has it really been that long? 12 whole years??

How you have changed, my sweet boy. But in some ways you are just the same as you have always been.

You are much taller, but that was expected.
"That baby has one of the longest femurs I've seen in a sonogram" said my OB/GYN at his second sonogram.

You love to run and go to running club at 7 am every Wednesday morning, but you always liked to stretch your legs.
"Stop pushing on my rib cage!" I said one morning in church when you getting too big for my tummy.

 

You are funny and thoughtful, but you've been talking since before you could walk.
"Is it normal for a 1 year old to talk in complete sentences?" I asked the pediatrician.

You are a good friend to others, but you have always valued friendship.
"Clay is my best buddy, Mommy," you told me after church when you were 3.
"Make room for Little Clay. He needs to be belted in, " you announced after Clay moved and we didn't see him any more. You just created an imaginary friend until you could see him again.

As I watch you stand at the edge of  the teen years, I wonder if you will be as afraid of that jump as you are of heights. I wonder if you will remember all that you have been taught about the important things when you have to make the choices yourself. I wonder if you will become an entirely different being, or if you will retain what makes you so special.

I am encouraged by the fact that The One who made you protects you and will guide your steps if you will listen. I am encouraged by the knowledge that you have the Holy Spirit to show you the right choices and convict you when you've made the wrong ones. That knowlege makes facing the coming years exciting instead of terrifying. Ok, it's a little terrifying, too.

Thoughtful, determined, cautious, focused, caring, intelligent, witty. You are my first born and you have not only survived, but thrived! I am proud of you in every way.

Happy Birthday!