Being Nine Is Mighty Fine!

January 8, 2017

NINE...REALLY??!

How did we arrive here SO FAST, my Camden?

I am filled with so much joy for the years thus far and each time I look back on photos from the days when you were teeny tiny, my heart skips a mommy beat of nostalgia.

Today while watching you play with your friends during your party, I felt my heart swell with pride for the young man that you are becoming every day. The promise of the way you interact with friends and how you include your brother, so he doesn’t miss out on the fun, brings comfort and affirmation to me as a parent.

While lying in bed tonight, you said to me: “I had so much fun today, Mommy”!

You shared that you love your friends and you feel so blessed by each one. You spoke so kindly of each friend and what they mean to you...SO Sweet My Boy!

As we snuggled tonight, I took inventory of a few of the many changes that have happened over the past nine years:

* Nine years ago tonight, I was pregnant at St. Joseph’s Hospital in Burbank, California, awaiting your arrival; scared out of my mind, as I feared I would not know how to be your mommy…Little did I know, that a little more than 24 hours later, you would be placed into my arms, I would fall instantly in love, and our mommy and son adventures would begin.

* I spent countless hours holding you close. Nursing was constant in the beginning, though there was no place I would have rather been. Your even temperament made it very easy to take you with me everywhere. 

* The hundreds of miles that I walked with you throughout our neighborhood in West Hills during your first few months of life are some of my favorite memories. I would listen to music, watch you sleep, and away we would stroll for hours on end.

I actually kind of lost myself in being your mommy for a while. Though I regret none of our time, I had a difficulty wanting to do anything else other than to be cozy with you in my arms. It took me nearly a year to realize I needed to find "me" again so I could be the best mommy to you! 

* Weeks turned into months…and we moved to Tennessee in June of 2008. Six months old and so much fun! Your smile was constant and I lived for your giggles.

I remember our sweet game that lasted almost five years: 
Big Boy/Little Boy!

I would hold you up in the air as high as I could muster … “BIG BOY”

I would swing you low toward my feet… “LITTLE BOY…”

…You LOVED IT and this was our routine after “tubby time” for years!

I’m praising God for these memories, as I know that phase has passed and we are on to new adventures…

*I can still see your little hands…the indents where your knuckles now reside. I see your chubby cheeked face that began thinning out at age three and just keeps doing so more and more with each year.  I still remember the first time you were able to pucker when you kissed me {as opposed to the wide mouth resting on my cheek kind of kiss from ages 1-3}.

*I vividly recall the day that you switched the use of improper pronouns to correct ones:

“Hold Yous Mama…Hold Yous,” you would exclaim with your little chubby arms outstretched up as high as you could reach.

In a flash, this became: “Hold…. Hold…ME”!

So many of your “firsts” are still fresh in my mind as they day they happened.

*Your first night without your pacifier: aka: “Binks”.

*Your first day of preschool

*The first lost tooth

*Your First Birthday

*The first time you met and held your “Beebee Dash”

*The first time you could hold my hand instead of just a few fingers

*I remember the night before you went to kindergarten…you looked so big in your bed and I sobbed my eyes out knowing that our mommy/son daytime years were over. School was calling and it was time for my big boy to go.

Since you began elementary school, I feel like the years are moving more rapidly.

I have always said to you: “Slow Down,” and you’ve always said: “I Can’t Mama!”

My son, you SHINE! You are a joy to all who know you!

Your love of cars that began at age 2 has only intensified with each passing year. You still spend hours lining up your matchbox cars in rows, like you did when you were just a little toddler; but now you know the year, make, and model of each one! I marvel at how much you know about the automobile industry. It’s really quite impressive. I can’t believe you will be driving your own car in just the blink of an eye from now.

You’ve picked up Hip Hop as a hobby this year. I look forward to watching you on stage this summer. You have lots of swagger and it’s evident that the girls are going to be swooning very very soon, {Jesus, help this mama}!

Basketball is your jam! You LOVE it and have grown in this skill quite a bit since last year. It’s so fun watching you go after what you want…a truly passionate little man!

This is your 4^th year of tae kwan do, and even though you complain about having to leave the house and go to your lessons, you excel when you are in class. This sport has taught you discipline in many ways!

I’m not sure what life would be like right now without our Jesus, Camden! When you were 7, turning 8, I had embarked on my first few months of journeying with HIM. This year, we are growing as a family in our walk together with Christ. It’s amazing how in one year, we’ve allowed Him to come into the center of our home and be our compass. Listening to you pray is pure FAITH and TRUST! You LOVE and Choose Jesus so naturally.

This summer, on June 4^th, each member of our family was baptized in the river behind our church. What a beautiful ceremony surrounded by our loved ones. After an entire day of rain... the clouds parted, the sun peaked out, and a rainbow painted the sky after we’d become new creations… IN HIM!

Our family’s motto: “Speak Life. Choose Joy. Love King Jesus,” has been the perfect way to send you off into your day and also serves us well as a reset when needed.

Before the Lord captured my heart, I used to fear that you were going to head down some of the windy, bumpy, and sometimes-dangerous paths that I once chose.

What a beautiful gift to be able to praise Him with advanced thanksgiving for His provision over your life. He’s a good good Father, and we know without a doubt God works all things together for our good when we choose His ways.

While in my quite time several months ago, He showed me a beautiful vision:

You were standing at the base of a mountain…there was snow on the mountain and you begin to climb upward. Suddenly, a massive snowball came toward you. Rather than running, you collected your strength, stretched out your arms and began to push the snowball upward.

Once at the top, there were people on the other side of the base of the mountain cheering and gathered together. They were like tiny dots because you were at such a high elevation, though I could hear their joyous cries.

There you stood…waiving a huge banner, walking calmly back and forth across the mountaintop. Your banner read: Freedom!

With a banner in one hand, Jesus appeared and grabbed your other. He guided you and Dash down the hill. He was in the middle of the two of you and holding your hands. As you all walked closer to the bottom of the mountain, I was able to see that the people at the base were all children.

Jesus held a loaf of bread, split it between the three of you, and you went to work sharing HIM with each child. Every child ate. No one was hungry.

What an incredible gift from Heaven to be able to access this whenever I need to feel comforted about your future. HE has you…You are HIS!

Glory to God for choosing me to be your Mommy, Camden Jon!

I have had the wonderful privilege of carrying you in my arms, walking tiny baby steps next to you, guiding you at first with my pinky finger, then two fingers, three fingers, and finally my whole hand. 

The honor of watching you grow, being your trusted guide, and your most favorite girl {currently} makes each and every day a new adventure.

Your future is brighter than the sun, my son! 

And as we say almost daily to each other…

“I love you more…

Ok, Ok…. I love you as much as you love me”

Forever and Ever My Teeny Tiny Lookalou!

~Mommy