Happy birthday Sparky

Dear Sparky,

Today you turned nine years old. Wow.  You're getting kind of old.  Seriously.  Because I remember being nine, and I knew that I was pretty big stuff at that age.  I knew almost everything there was to know about everything.  And I knew that I was RIGHT.



It really isn't easy to be nine.  You are stuck right there in the in-between of Little Kid and Teenager, and everyone expects something different from you.

You are expected to be reasonable and responsible like a Big Kid, yet you are mostly only given the privileges of a Little Kid.

I know that it can be confusing and overwhelming.  I know that sometimes it's all just a little bit too much.  But please know that I'm learning too.  I might remember what it feels like to be nine, but I certainly have no experience being a Mommy to a nine-year-old.

So let's figure this out together.  Let's learn how to train you up into a man.  Because you're already a pretty great guy, and your Daddy and I are so excited have a part in helping you become who you are someday going to be.  We like you a lot.  In fact, we're pretty crazy about you.  We are so glad that God chose to give us you when we decided to start our family.

I love you forever,

Mommy

(All of the photos are from our family outing to celebrate Sparky's birthday today at Blora lake and waterslide.)

The rest of the pictures from our day are in the Flickr set here.

Lastly, I leave you with this gif image that's making me laugh -- the little guys loved the "little kid carwash" next to the waterslide, and so I shot this sequence of them climbing through the tunnel at the end:

  
(Created using CreateAGif.net)