8 Years Old!

8 years old!

 7 years old

 6 years old

5 years old

4 years old

3 years old

2 years old

18 months

One year old

11 months

10 months

9 months

 
8 months

7 months

6 months

5 months old

4 months old

3 months old

2 months old

1 month old

2 weeks old

And now...

Dear Victor,

Happy birthday, my fine fellow! We celebrated your 8th birthday with a family dinner and game night with the Lees and McConnells (and a jolly time of competition, strategy, and ice cream sundaes it was!).

You have grown and matured so much in the past year, and I am so thankful for the signs of God's hand at work in your life, giving you increased sensitivity to others, responsibility and leadership at home, and growth in understanding and making connections with God's Word.

You're in 2nd grade this year, and we transitioned to a new homeschool co-op and curriculum for school. You have done very well in Classical Conversations, quickly picking up the memory work (much faster than I have!) and enjoying the science activities and art projects. It is an extra sweet blessing to have good friends at school, and I'm so thankful for God's provision of friends. A very specific answer to prayer.

You start the day reading, sometimes in bed and sometimes on the couch with Dad. I love when I come out and see you reading through The Action Bible next to Daddy doing his own Bible study. It is one of my special prayer requests for you that God will give you a desire and practice of daily spending time with God in His Word.

You are a huge help to me. Whether it's laundry, putting away silverware, helping a brother with school work, getting Calvin up from a nap, or cleaning up the family room, you are a hard worker and extremely capable serving the family. I'm so thankful for your help! Even more, you are growing in discernment. You are able to see when something unwise is happening, and you often will encourage your brothers to stop something that is not good. You work hard to get your schoolwork done before listening to an audiobook in the afternoon. You have shown diligence and industry. I pray the Lord will continue giving you a heart to do all that you do as though working for Him and not people.

You still enjoy children's choir (you moved up a level this year!), and you encouraged Josiah as he began choir as well. I love hearing you sing and help to lead the church in worship. May God send those words deep into your own heart and make them a true reverberation of the worship and faith that resides there.

You love being with friends ... at home and small group, playing tag, soccer, board games, or Wild Kratts; at school, learning or playing in the gym; or at church, hanging out in the hallway or going to class together. You are a definite extrovert, getting super fueled up with time with others! And you are a good help in hospitality, always excited to have people into our home, whether neighbors, family, middle schoolers, or church friends.

We entered a new decade a week ago, and it amazes me to think about how different our lives are now. One of the hugest transitions of this past season was when God gave us you and we started our journey as parents. I am so grateful that He entrusted you to us, and I am immeasurably thankful that He is the One who has all your days written in His book, that He is your perfect Father, that He is working in your life, giving you a taste of His goodness in the Word and in the church, and that He will hold you in His hands through every day that comes.

I am working through Galatians right now, daily hearing the refrain, "I have been crucified with Christ, and it is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life that I now live in the flesh, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me" (Galatians 2:20).

My Victor, you are an exceptional boy, very bright, very focused, very gifted. But it is of greatest importance that you never find your identity in what you can offer to God. Never start leaning on what you hope to contribute to your own righteousness. Our only source of life, forgiveness, and hope is in Jesus. He is the Perfect One, who kept every precept and statute of God's law. He is the Lamb of God, who laid down His life to cover over the stain of our sin. He is the source of our new life, His own Spirit the resource that produces change and real holiness within. May Jesus be your hope and joy all the days of your life. Oh, what a treasure He is!

I love you, sweet son,
Momma

Victor (1.8.20) 8 years old

1.      What is your favorite color? Blue

2.      What is your favorite toy? Wild Kratts discs

3.      What is your favorite fruit? Pear

4.      What is your favorite video to watch? Wild Kratts

5.      What is your favorite thing to eat for lunch? Macaroni and cheese

6.      What is your favorite thing to wear? Nothing particular

7.      What is your favorite game? Sleeping Queens

8.      What is your favorite snack? Pretzels

9.      What is your favorite animal? Peregrine falcon

10.   What is your favorite song? Hark the Harold Angels Sing and Angels We Have Heard on High

11.   What is your favorite verse? Joshua 1:9

12.   What is your favorite book? Boxcar Children

13.   Who is your best friend? The Lees

14.   What is your favorite thing to do outside? Play tag

15.   What is your favorite drink? Root beer

16.   What do you like to sleep with at night? Duck

17.   What is your favorite thing to eat for breakfast? Apple cider donuts

18.   What do you want for dinner on your birthday? Spaghetti and meatballs

19.   What do you want to be when you grow up? Artist

20.   What was one of your favorite things that you did this year? Go camping with small group

21.   What is your favorite place to go? Grammy and Grandad’s house