Nine Years Old: Jake

Our sweet, bright, active, observant, incredibly lovable boy turns nine years old today. Nine years old! How is that possible?

This phase of Jake's childhood is one I'd love to last forever and ever. He's independent and willing to take risks, yet still loves to hug his stuffed "Pancakes" to sleep at night. He makes his own breakfast/snacks and manages his homework folder, while snuggling up next to us on the couch at the end of the day. He devours chapter books on his own, yet still asks to be read picture books at bedtime (favorites include If I Built a House and Enemy Pie).

I feel incredibly grateful for his growth and attempts at new challenges, all while retaining bits of his little boy-ness.

Jake has taken on a new and exciting role at school. He was nominated by his speech teacher to be a "Social Ambassador", which means that he spends two lunch periods a week with the school's special needs children. He looks forward to these lunch periods and remembers what certain kids like to talk about and how they like to play.

Jake noticed that one boy loves to sit under a special tree and watch the leaves fall, which Jake is more than happy to join in on. On Social Ambassador days, Jake makes sure that his lunch is packed with easy to eat/non-peanut foods (one of the kids has an allergy) so that he can eat quickly and maximize his time with the students. We love what a caring role model he has become for these kids.

Jake's love of sports has only intensified over the past year. On a whim, we took him to try-out for a competitive travel baseball team last summer, thinking it would be a fun afternoon of practice with his friends. Well, one afternoon turned into a year of baseball and he's spent the past six months practicing twice a week and becoming a leader on the pitching mound.

Along with sports, Jake continues to love animals. For his 8th birthday, we bought everyone in our family an annual pass to the San Diego Zoo. We've enjoyed our trips together over the past year, taking grandparents along on occasion as well. Jake has learned an incredible amount about animals, and can easily rattle off his 10 favorites, with red panda and maned wolf being at the very top (and he will proudly explain that they are neither pandas nor wolves).

At a recent bird talk at the Safari Park, he was the only kid in the audience screaming "Peregrine Falcon" at the top of his lungs when the zookeeper asked what was the fastest animal in the animal kingdom. Of course, he was right. (For those of you who thought it was a cheetah, the diving speed of a Peregrine falcon is 389 km/hr while the cheetah records "only" 109 km/hr on land.)

Other exciting adventures this year included flying solo with Ryan for a "boys" weekend with Papa and cousins, tubing in Minnesota, dog-sledding in Telluride, and celebrating his birthday with friends at a dog-themed laser tag party.

Jake, you are pure and sweet to your core. We love you, little buddy -- happy 9th birthday!