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Happy 13th Birthday This kid turned 13 earlier this month. I don't know exactly where the time went, we blinked & here we are. He was out unexpected blessing. He arrived just when we needed a beautiful distraction from the trials that are life. The loss of Mr S' Dad was a trying time for us, unable to go for one final visit.. yet we had our loveable Jayde, who sports this grandfather's name.

The day he was born my grandmother's funeral was taking place 4 states away.  The distraction of a new life was not lost on any of us.

Days before this kid turned 10 my own father died. A trying time,  & yet the distraction of a child, this child, hitting double digits was a pretty big deal in our home. Hid distress that maybe he wouldn't get the family pocket knife, Poppy's tradition, was a big big deal to him.

This is the child who gave us many scares while we awaited his arrival. 24 hours of no movement sent this Mamma into panic overload. Spotting at another point in our pregnancy drove us right back to our knees. His name means God has heard, & there's a pretty big reason we chose that name.

When he has his moments, & he thinks all is lost. When he's overwhelmed & frustrated thinking everyone hates him. We remind him. We remind him of why he has his names, how we prayed for him before we ever held him, & of the beautiful amazing loving distraction he was during some of the most painful moments in our adult lives. He smiles, & sometimes, when he needs a pick-me-up, he asks us for the story of when he was born. Which was an ordeal all it's own in which Mr S had to step up & play Dr because the nurse underestimated this young Mamma's knowledge that Baby was indeed here. NOW. We bought sparklers to mark this monumental moment. The fact that he was officially this odd thing the world calls a teenager. He reminded us that it's a made-up word thanks to The Reader's Digest article way back in the 1950's. I panicked because the black & white polka dot candles I hid away to match the StarWars candles were suddenly missing, & he just begged us to sing so he could eat the cake. I don't make cake very often, much less cake with real icing on it. It was a huge deal.

It was allergy safe, & it passed the ranks of being good enough for those who don't have allergies. I wouldn't know, it wasn't quite safe enough for me, but watching his face light up at the idea of a chocolate cake was sweet enough for me. His presents filtered in over the course of a week. Flooding in our state prevented them arriving any sooner, but who can complain when your home is safe & dry? This one may take him a while to put together at the pace he's taken with it, I'm the single man cheering squad desperate to see what it will look like when it's done. I'm equally curious to see it's capability, or is that his ability with it?

13, it's a pretty big number for a pretty special kid, & we're so glad he's ours.


Posted by Kendra at Saturday, June 25, 2016
Labels: birthday, Jayden

