Chris celebrated his birthday quietly in November... well, sort of quietly:/
We had planned to do a family trip to the museum, until a toothache hit Chris the Monday before Thanksgiving :( Last February, he had a really deep cavity filled and I really thought that this pain meant that the tooth was finally infected and ready to go. I brought him into the dental clinic we use that day and they said it had to pulled by an oral surgeon. Chris was laying on the floor in pain (after a dose of pain medicine) as the surgeon told me over the phone he couldn't be seen until January!!
The "mommy" in me went to "momma bear" mode and I started calling around to get something done a little more quickly... like before Thanksgiving. Wisdom and advice from friends led me to a great pediatric dentist who took a LOT more time with us, took better x-rays and sent us to some great people.
Thankfully the "tooth issue" was resolved for a while at the university dental clinic:)
He had another "flare up" this February and was in severe pain for almost a week! Way too long! When we got to our dentist they immediately got a better x-ray that confirmed everyone's minds. Chris needed a root canal. So we're currently in the process of the procedure and he is doing awesome!
But now onto CHRIS.... what a great year he had!!
There was a big difference for us early in the spring... it started with me just being intentional about spending time with him... getting to know him more, sitting to read with him one-on-one and just us learning to "get" each other. Through this process I really began to see that Chris and I are probably a little more similar than sometimes I'd like to think. When we need to tidy our rooms but we'll spend hours in our room looking through old books, finding (and messing) with forgotten treasures... basically everything except cleaning:) And we're also really good at looking like we're busy when we're really procrastinating on something we really don't want to do... like a math lesson or a work-related email that needs attention:/
Another super part of his year was him stepping out in his growing faith. The first part was being willing to say all the books of the Bible at the end-of-year RA meeting. It wasn't just knowing the books because some of the other boys had worked hard to memorize them as well.... he was willing to do it in front of everyone.
Soon after, during a church invitation he walked forward to make a profession of faith. On June 1st, Chris was baptized by his Grandaddy at our church;) It was a big day... but just another step of this little guy growing up.
When school started in September, Christopher was eager to volunteer for a leadership role in our home school 4-H Club. While he's definitely still growing into the role that he wanted to do, he stepped up!!
Finally, soccer!! The age group Chris was in put him as one of the "older" kids... in fact, he was probably the oldest kid on our team. But he rose to the occasion! He was a tough team player! And he was able to go to the "all star team" (a first for our family)!
It was at the all star game that he learned some perseverance and pushed through to the end. Our team was one of the youngest and those little guys played their heart out in the first game. Honestly, I didn't think Chris really played his best.... it was a team effort but he had some pretty big errors:( The kids had a LONG wait until their 2nd game... long, like 4 hours!
That final game was tough and the kids knew they had already "lost" the tournament.
It went into overtime,
Then a tied shoot out that Chris sat to watch because he wasn't in the first round of goal-makers.
Then "sudden death"... 3 or 4 more players were chosen. The 1st to make a goal, won the game.
They chose Chris to go...
And he made it! And they celebrated!
It's been an awesome year, Chris!! We are soo proud of you! All the challenges and ways you've pushed yourself. We've had some beautiful moments when I just get a peek into who God is molding you to be. And then other moments when I remind myself that you're still just a boy... learning, growing, and trying to figure it all out, too!
His favorites:
Color : Orange
When you ask him what he wants to be when he "grows up" he'll respond " a Marine soldier"!
We had planned to do a family trip to the museum, until a toothache hit Chris the Monday before Thanksgiving :( Last February, he had a really deep cavity filled and I really thought that this pain meant that the tooth was finally infected and ready to go. I brought him into the dental clinic we use that day and they said it had to pulled by an oral surgeon. Chris was laying on the floor in pain (after a dose of pain medicine) as the surgeon told me over the phone he couldn't be seen until January!!The "mommy" in me went to "momma bear" mode and I started calling around to get something done a little more quickly... like before Thanksgiving. Wisdom and advice from friends led me to a great pediatric dentist who took a LOT more time with us, took better x-rays and sent us to some great people.
Thankfully the "tooth issue" was resolved for a while at the university dental clinic:)
He had another "flare up" this February and was in severe pain for almost a week! Way too long! When we got to our dentist they immediately got a better x-ray that confirmed everyone's minds. Chris needed a root canal. So we're currently in the process of the procedure and he is doing awesome!
But now onto CHRIS.... what a great year he had!!
There was a big difference for us early in the spring... it started with me just being intentional about spending time with him... getting to know him more, sitting to read with him one-on-one and just us learning to "get" each other. Through this process I really began to see that Chris and I are probably a little more similar than sometimes I'd like to think. When we need to tidy our rooms but we'll spend hours in our room looking through old books, finding (and messing) with forgotten treasures... basically everything except cleaning:) And we're also really good at looking like we're busy when we're really procrastinating on something we really don't want to do... like a math lesson or a work-related email that needs attention:/
Another super part of his year was him stepping out in his growing faith. The first part was being willing to say all the books of the Bible at the end-of-year RA meeting. It wasn't just knowing the books because some of the other boys had worked hard to memorize them as well.... he was willing to do it in front of everyone.
Soon after, during a church invitation he walked forward to make a profession of faith. On June 1st, Chris was baptized by his Grandaddy at our church;) It was a big day... but just another step of this little guy growing up.
When school started in September, Christopher was eager to volunteer for a leadership role in our home school 4-H Club. While he's definitely still growing into the role that he wanted to do, he stepped up!!
Finally, soccer!! The age group Chris was in put him as one of the "older" kids... in fact, he was probably the oldest kid on our team. But he rose to the occasion! He was a tough team player! And he was able to go to the "all star team" (a first for our family)!
It was at the all star game that he learned some perseverance and pushed through to the end. Our team was one of the youngest and those little guys played their heart out in the first game. Honestly, I didn't think Chris really played his best.... it was a team effort but he had some pretty big errors:( The kids had a LONG wait until their 2nd game... long, like 4 hours!
That final game was tough and the kids knew they had already "lost" the tournament.
It went into overtime,
Then a tied shoot out that Chris sat to watch because he wasn't in the first round of goal-makers.
Then "sudden death"... 3 or 4 more players were chosen. The 1st to make a goal, won the game.
They chose Chris to go...
And he made it! And they celebrated!
 |
| Chris ran around fir a second and then ran towards the coach... he's literally "in the air" here. |
It's been an awesome year, Chris!! We are soo proud of you! All the challenges and ways you've pushed yourself. We've had some beautiful moments when I just get a peek into who God is molding you to be. And then other moments when I remind myself that you're still just a boy... learning, growing, and trying to figure it all out, too!
His favorites:
Color : Orange
Food: Pepperoni Pizza
Treat: Chocolate Break-Up
Subject: Art
Animal: Siberian Tiger
Subject: Art
Animal: Siberian Tiger
Do inside: LEGOs
Outside Activity: Explore in the woods & water
Toys: LEGOs
Restaurant: O'Charleys
Book: Star Wars comic books
Movie: Star Wars
TV Show: Wild Kratts, Ben 10 (when allowed)
Interests: Marine life
Goals for his 9th year: Build a LEGO townOutside Activity: Explore in the woods & water
Toys: LEGOs
Restaurant: O'Charleys
Book: Star Wars comic books
Movie: Star Wars
TV Show: Wild Kratts, Ben 10 (when allowed)
Interests: Marine life
When you ask him what he wants to be when he "grows up" he'll respond " a Marine soldier"!
