Dear Davis & Whitaker, You’re Eight!

Posted in Davis, Twins, Whitaker by

Dear Boys,

You both are technically 8 and a half right now, but no one is counting, right?? You two are at a very fun age. You are starting to be more like big kids, where we can talk about life and go on fun adventures, but you’re also still my little boys.

This year you are in second grade at St. Rose, are both playing a lot of sports (soccer is both your favorite), and are still best friends. You still very much are a package deal – doing all the same activities, sharing friendships, and generally wanting to be together 24/7. Your best friends are Carter, your cousin, and Max. You both love nothing more than to have them over to play and the moment they leave, you immediately call them to play games online together.

You are both insanely smart, scoring in the 99th and 98th percentile for math and reading. School is a bit too easy for you right now, so we are taking you one a week to a math enrichment tutor. You’d think this might be something you disliked going to, but it’s the exact opposite. You both LOVE going to do extra math and are very proud of what she teaches you. This week is was multiplication.

Davis, you are still my snuggler often asking me to scratch your head, tickle your arms, or draw letters on your back. You are a perfectionist through and through and can get quite upset when you don’t do something to your standards. We see this a lot when you’re doing origami, a lego set, or drawing. Unfortunately you’ve surpassed my abilities in all of those, so I’m not much help!

This fall you had your first reconciliation and you of course were the FIRST person in line to see the priest and reported that you told him not one sin, but seven. Haha! You always push yourself to do your best, and hold yourself to a very high standard. Along with this, you HATE losing. It’s not that you necessarily love winning, it’s that you cannot stand losing. lol! This will serve you very well in life, sports, and work, but I also hope you give yourself grace too.

While you may not be as big as your brother, you excel in your sports thanks to your aggressiveness, focus, and hard work. You play defense for your GTFC soccer team and are not afraid to pressure boys who are two years older than you. This summer you won swimmer of the year in your age group for all the extra time you spent practicing and improving in the pool. You were so proud!

Whitaker, you are my wild man with the biggest heart. Your ADHD sometimes (ok a lot of times) makes you loud, rambunctious, and impossible to contain, but you are also the boy who says “I love you mom. You’re the best mom in the whole world!” every night at bedtime. While our house might be quieter and cleaner, it certainly would not be filled with as much fun or love without you.

You are very tall and very strong for your age. The past two years you won the Cross Country Championships meet! It was so exciting watching and cheering for you. You are becoming more athletic and coordinated as you get older. I think you’ll wind up being a great athlete once you settle into your body and develop your focus a bit.

You are a very social kid who loves being with your friends. You like to make people laugh and can be very silly. You are the jokester in our family for sure. I often have to tell Davis to STOP laughing at you because it just riles you up even more. But let’s be honest, it’s nearly impossible for him to not be entertained by you. You guys even made up your own language “BIB & Mai!” lol

You both are wonderful little boys who are doing very well in school. Our house is very full of crazy boy energy thanks to you two and your little brother, but we wouldn’t change a thing. We have fun watching all your crazy antics and thankfully we don’t live in an open floor plan house, so there are pockets of quiet to be found! lol

I love you both so much and am so thankful God made me a twin mom, and even moreso a twin BOY mom! Keep having fun, loving each other and your family, and being your best selves.

Love,

Mom

Dear Alden, You’re 5!

Posted in Alden by

Dear Aldi Boy,

This week you turned five years old! You were SO into your birthday this year, asking Alexa to count the days for months ahead of time. You were so proud to tell everyone it was your birthday too.

Since you were so pumped, we of course had to go all out celebrating you. We had a big birthday party at the new bowling alley, then you woke up on your birthday to about 100 balloons your Dad blew up in the house, presents, donuts, and Lucky Charms. You took goodie bags to school for your preschool friends (with FIVE things in them because you are FIVE). Then we capped the day off with your annual homemade Hot Chocolate cake.

I just love you so much at this age buddy. You are generally very easy going, sweet, happy to go with the flow. You get dragged to all your siblings activities, but always manage to find ways to have fun. Like this fall when you went to your brother’s soccer tournament out of town. You made a friend at the field, gathered sticks, and found a hill to roll down repeatedly. You make any situation better!

You make friends easily and will often have a group of kids following you around at the park or playground. It’s adults you could do without! Pretty much the only adults you don’t mind acknowledging are me and your Dad. Sorry grandparents! Haha.

You love your siblings, all things sports, the color “rainbow,” eggs, Bluey, and reading the same bedtime book every night for months on end. You are a “do it myself!” boy who takes pride in keeping up with your older brothers. You often show me how strong you are by lifting me up.

A few months ago you ditched your own room to move in with Davis and Whitaker. You adore your older brothers and Lila. And except for the occasional ganging up on you from the twins, they adore you too. I often find you guys playing sports in the backyard, competing on Roblox, or just being silly (and loud!) all around the house.

You are the best baby of our family (even though you do NOT want to be called a baby). Your easy going nature, fun personality, and independent nature fits in perfectly. Thank you for making my life easy! lol

We love you so much Alden and can’t wait to see what your fifth year of life brings.

Love you buddy!

Mommy

Dear Lila, You’re 12!

Posted in Lila by

Dear Lila,

Welp, I missed a year. I guess that just shows how full of sports, travel, family time, and fun our lives have been. So this post will be a look back on you as a 10 and 11 year old, considering you just turned 12.

The past two years have been transformative ones for you. First, you switched schools from St. Rose (20 kids in your grade) to public school at Perrysburg (500+ kids in your grade). While you took this on with excitement and bravery, it wasn’t without it’s bumps. You had to navigate new friendships, say goodbye to old ones, and figure out your new place among your peers. It took about a year for this transition to happen fully, but now you’ve found a great group of friends and are thriving at school and socially.

I’ve also seen a transformation for your confidence. You are pretty introverted and at times could be very quiet. I will admit I didn’t always understand this being that I am a very outgoing person naturally. But your Dad assured me that he was similar at your age and to just let you work through it on your own. While you keep your circle small, you have really blossomed socially. Now as a 12 year old, you are comfortable being yourself with teachers, coaches and peers. I really have a strong sense of yourself.

Physically you have grown to be 5’10”, wear a size 11.5 shoe, and yet somehow are still coordinated and athletic. While you still play allll the sports – travel softball, club volleyball, two basketball teams – you have made softball pitching your #1. You work very hard at honing your pitching craft, often practicing 5 times a week even out of season. Watching you develop your passion for softball has been so fun for me. I love watching you in all your sports, but there’s something so special seeing you out on the mound!

I love spending time with you – driving you to and from all your activities, taking you and your friends to a haunted house, and even satisfying your Canes, Starbucks, and Chipotle cravings. The truth is you are such a great kid that I don’t mind spoiling you.

Keep working hard, being true to yourself, and loving those around you. You are going to do incredible things and I’m so happy to be a small part of it!

Love always,

Mom

Dear Alden, you’re three!

Posted in Alden, Kids by

My little Aldi, you are three! Despite earning “big boy” status, you still insist you are “baby Aldi.” Your birthday this year included your annual hot chocolate cake made by mommy and driving around with your family to look at Christmas lights. I love this tradition and plan to keep it going even when you’re all grown up!

While last year’s birthday post mentioned you weren’t talking much yet, this year your speech has exploded and we pretty much can’t keep you quiet! You talk in a sweet, soft voice and I often have to put my ear right up to your mouth to hear you.

You are very easy-going and chill. In fact, this week was only the second time ever that you threw a tantrum while we were out (at gymnastics) and that was only due to daylight savings. You are just a happy guy who can find fun in any situation.

You are still obsessed with your siblings and love to get in the mix with whatever they are doing. Your favorite lately has been playing Mario Party or Mario Kart with them, and honestly, you do very well! When they have a friend over I often find you chasing them, pretending to be a “bad guy,” while saying “Ha Ha Ha!” in a scary (funny) voice. If we are at a party, I usually find you sweaty and red-faced from running around with the older kids.

You finally got your chance this year to play sports after watching on the sidelines. You tried basketball, soccer, and soon t-ball. While you can be a bit timid around the other older kids playing, you ask repeatedly after when you get to play again. You also have learned to swim independently at not even 3 1/2, making you our youngest. I have a feeling you will end up being our best athlete, which is saying a lot considering how athletic your siblings are.

It cracks me up what a spoiled, baby of the family you are sometimes. I call you Little Prince because the motto “what baby wants, baby gets” rings true around here. Lately, you’ve adopted this name yourself and have been asking me to “make eggs and feed me like a little prince.” This entails me hand-feeding you eggs in bed while you watch your iPad. I am such an enabler, but I can’t help it because you’re my last baby and so sweet. You know that if you want something your siblings or Dad, or I will get it for you because we all adore you.

Some of your favorite things include anything Mario, anything the color orange (your fav), your BFF Charlotte (who you say is pretty), gymnastics at the Y, all the eggs you can eat, and being with your family. Even though you are quiet and chill, you make your preferences known! These days you will only wear orange shirts (or Mario) and eat off orange plates. :)

Our family wasn’t complete until you joined, Alden. You are the perfect caboose to our group and we all love you so much. Next year you start preschool and while I am excited to watch you take that next step towards growing up, I will miss our days at home together. We have had so much fun going to art class, gymnastics, the coffee shop etc. I cherish the three+ years we’ve had together 24/7. Being with you has been one of the greatest joys of my life!

We love you so much our Aldi baldi, bitty boy, Aldeezy, little prince.

Mommy