ELEVEN!

Happy Birthday Theo! I remember this day eleven years ago like it was yesterday. From the moment they placed you in my arms I knew that God had placed a tender heart within this little man. As the younger brother to two sisters and the older brother to two younger brothers, you hold your position well. The girls look up to you and admire your strengths, and the little guys lean on you for help.

Someday you may ask me what you were like when you were ten. I would say you were compassionate and caring. I would say when I needed help with something, you were there. I would say that you loved school, did very well in school, had a gift for writing and it was the year you learned to play the trumpet. I would remind you that it was your first year in football. Number 52 to be exact and do you remember those blocks and the first time you recovered a fumble?

I would remind you of our family camping trip and the wild summer thunder storm we endured. But it is all the fishing you did in those three days that I won't forget. I would remind you of playing baseball, swimming at the pool, and all the snow days and that "Clue" was one of your new favorite board games.

I will remind you that I witnessed you pray each night on the bottom step of the ladder to your bunk and the many entries you have made in your journal. And someday if you ever ask me about when you were ten, I will say, "it was wonderful!"

Happy 11th Birthday Theo!