Ode to my Eldest Son on his Birthday

Installing new sink fixtures

If you were to peek into our home on a regular basis, you would find this young man fixing anything and everything.... no job to small or difficult that he wouldn't give it a try.  Here he is in the bathroom cupboard installing a brand new sink fixture.  It seems like just yesterday he was in my kitchen cupboards playing with the flour bucket.  Just yesterday he was throwing tantrums upon exiting his sandbox or refusing to pick up his crayons from under the table.  When did he stop sitting on our laps for story time?  We still squish him on the couch between us but not for very long and certainly not to hear a picture story.  Was it only a few years ago we could hardly get him to stay in bed and now to roust him in the mornings.....

My first born....17 years ago today...I gave up during his birth and wanted to die.... it was painful, long and trauma filled...to make a long story short: severe shoulder dystocia, fetal monitor inserted underneath scalp, broken collar bone and vacuum extraction heralded this baby boy into the world.  BUT as soon as I held him in my arms nothing else mattered and the world melted away. 

Experimenting in George Fox University Laboratory

 He continues to enjoy taking things apart... except now at the molecular level and enjoys solving problems with Algebraic equations.  Did I mention joy?  Yes, pure joy when discovering something new and working out math problems I must of did eons ago but can't remember anything to help him now. 

Planning, goal setting, adding up high school credits

 Thank-you my dear son for putting up with your Mama's efforts to stay on top of everything which means you have seen first hand the trials of procrastination..... thus the messes.....


 Speaking of messes, son you have made your fair share but have created and done some amazing things with it all!  And we, as parents and grown-ups, have made even more messes.  Thank-you for handling all the difficulties in your life with joy, thoughtfulness, and godliness.  God is preparing you in advance for the work He has in store for you.  

Painting the walls in our Alaskan house

 Embrace the mess:  God did it for you in Christ Jesus!

Trying to hide from the camera

 You're not one to toot your own horn, so we'll toot it for you!  You're an inspiration to all of us in perseverance as we have watched you learn to walk, run, read, write, and compute numbers.  You study the Word, and learn new things with such exuberance, you draw us in.  You lead gently and quietly and we notice.  We love you so much... not for what you have done or will do, not for what you have been or will be, but for who you are....TODAY, our dear son, Happy 17th Birthday!