Happy Birthday Jack!

Today our sweet Jack turns 11!

As with all of our boys, it has been quite a year!  Enjoying the last few months in the home we had known for three and a half years, moving to a new home, making a cross-country trip, and settling in to a new life and new routine.  Through it all, Jack has stayed cheerful and enthusiastic and so courageous in jumping into sports teams with a whole new crowd of kids!  He is a delight!

 His love for sports continues.  He has played basketball, baseball and flag football for the last few years, and now that we are closer to the bigger city, he is going to try ice hockey this winter for the first time!

 He loves spending time with his grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins and especially loves our trips to Phoenix.  (Here, Papa is teaching him how to play double solitaire last spring.)

 Baseball has remained his main love and he has grown so much as a player.  Last spring was his last season playing with our former home town...and it was bittersweet.  He had such an amazing season and has grown so much as an athlete who loves the game - he is a great pitcher and he continues to be the guy known for his awesome sportsmanship.  The move has been hardest for Jack, since he had to leave his teammates and buddies behind - like this guy...the one who has been his catcher for two years!  But we make sure Jack gets lots of time to stay connected to the best of his friends.

 Jack helped lead his team in the All-Star tournament, and the day he pitched was the first time our little town had won an All-Star game in something like 32 years!  They didn't end up winning any games after that, which crushed Jack....simply because he wanted to win for his beloved Coach Butch.

A big part of our summer was not just baseball, but our trip to Ohio/Pennsylvania.  Jack is the kid who remembers the most from our time living in Dayton, so he was eager to reconnect with his early childhood memories.  Like visiting a stream that we frequented when we lived there...

...and touring the Air Force Museum.... 

 ...and making a trip to the Boonshoft Museum of Discovery, a place we went quite a bit during the coldest winter days of Ohio.  Since he is REALLY into sloths right now, he was so happy to find a real sloth at the museum!

 Jack loves spending time outdoors with all of us, and is willing to hike any distance, capture wildlife to investigate and enjoy God's beauty wherever we go.

A hallmark of Jack has been the long hair he lets grow for baseball season.  He is known for those flowing golden locks, has been nicknamed "Syndergaard" by a few of his teammates, and has handled good-natured teasing from his coaches for his long hair.  Once baseball season is over, he gets it cut and starts again!  

 Jack is a loving and protective big brother...and a loving younger brother to Sarah and Jake.  He has a sweet nature, is quick to ask forgiveness when he has wronged someone, makes friends wherever he goes and is not afraid to go against the flow of what might be popular.

 He is doing great in his homeschool fifth grade year and has worked so hard to overcome some learning challenges.  We are so proud of him!

 He is taking a Digital Photography class as a technology elective this year and is enjoying it.  He had to make his own camera obscura as one of the first assignments, and he is learning new ways to use his camera each week.  I love seeing the pictures he captures from his unique perspective!

 Jack is funny and energetic and puts his whole heart into everything he does!  (Well, maybe not into cleaning his bathroom or doing chores, but just about everything else!  :-) )

 He had a great flag football season this fall and was able to play quarterback quite a bit, which he loves.  He's a good encourager of his teammates and works well with others.  He just started his basketball season and will begin hockey after Christmas.  He is so happy when he is playing sports.

And not just playing sports....but now collecting baseball/football/basketball cards.  It has become one of his major hobbies.  He was over the moon to get to spend some time in a card shop while we were in Phoenix!  He has quite a collection going!

Jack brings so much joy to our family.  His love for life and learning and for people, his courageous heart and longing to fight for what is right make him stand out on many levels.  He loves the Lord and seeks to glorify Him with his athletic abilities and with his outgoing nature.  We are so very thankful for our son, and pray the Lord will continue to shape and mold him into a young man after God's own heart!