Happy Birthday M!

I can’t believe it’s M’s birthday again! Each year it seems to come around faster and faster! He’s becoming a teenager this year and I’m in denial. In fact, I’ve been completely avoiding the topic because I get teary whenever I think about it! I’m not sure how it’s happened, but it has!

Happy Birthday M!

Dear M, 

You’re 13 today!  I don’t know how it happened!  (Funny, I started your 11th birthday letter the exact same way!)  It’s official that you’re a teenager and I’m not dealing well with it!  You, my sweet, brown-eyed boy, are such an amazing kid!  6 years ago when I joined your family, I would never have imagined what a place in my heart you would have!  And really, you’re not a boy anymore, you are definitely a young man!  And a  young man I’m so proud of!  

I can’t believe how much you’ve grown and matured in the last several years.  You’ve gone from watching Curious George and Bubble Guppies to watching Fixer Upper with me!  Now, you love real-life shows now and it’s one of the many things that reminds me that you’re no longer a boy!  You have started participating in sports at school and are still trying to find where you fit and that is totally fine!  You’ll  find your niche, I have no doubts, and you’ll be fantastic at it!  In the meantime, I’ll be there cheering and rooting for you all the way!  

You love to give me a hard-time!  You love to tease me about my Cyclones losing or using “need” and “want” in the wrong way, just because you know I’ll give you a certain “look!”  You’ll do it and then you giggle!  It makes me laugh too!  Most noticeable in the last year is that you’ve finally passed me in height!  This is something you’ve been so proud of and remind me of, almost daily!  

Your taste buds have grown up too!  When I first started cooking for you, it was corn dogs, pizza, tacos, and hot pockets!  You actually asked for seconds of green beans the other night and I thought I was going to either drop over in amazement or my chest would burst with pride!  This means you really are becoming an adult!  

I definitely don’t lay out your clothes each day anymore and while it makes me sad that you don’t need me for that any more, it means you’re becoming more and more independent, which is the goal!  You still do need me, whether you’d admit it or not, but you do and I will always be there to help, no matter how old you are!  It’s been so much fun (and humorous some days) to see how you are processing life now as a young man and not a child!  You definitely still keep us laughing every day and I hope you never lose your zest for life!  It’s one thing that makes you truly you, that sparkle in your eye!  

You are 13 today and while the last 7 years have gone so fast and I know the next 6 (until graduation) are going to go even faster, I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else than right where I am, being your step-mom!  It’s probably the greatest responsibility and blessing of my life!  Thank you for letting me be a part of your life, I love you and I always will!  

Always and Forever, 

Katy