Excerpt from the Birthday Boy

Well, my friends, the BIG DAY has come and gone and I'm currently plowing straight into year number two at break neck speeds!  It worked out perfectly that we were flying to Colorado for my auntie's wedding and I could party with all kinds of family on my actual birthday!  I played in the sprinklers, inspected every shred of wrapping paper they gave me and smashed my cake to smithereens!  Mom was a little emotional about the whole ordeal, but she held it together pretty well.

The past few months have been very exciting!  I've mastered 'the crab walk' and although I haven't braved solo-walking yet, I'm working towards it!  What I like even better than walking is.. running!  And climbing (bar stools, dishwashers, the usual..)!  Mom says the apple didn't fall from the tree and looks at my Dad as though he's the one who passed on this monkey gene.  All I know is that there is an enormous amount of exploring to be done.  What an exciting world we live in!

A few of my most recent discoveries include.. motorcycles, cows, corn on the cob, wagon rides and 'surfing' on my birthday tube!  I've got eight teeth now and eat anything and EVERYTHING my Mom puts in front of me.  I especially love blueberries but for some reason I'm not allowed to eat an endless amount of them.  I know that dogs 'woof' and kitties 'meow' and I'm perfecting my lion/dinosaur 'roooaaarr'.  

Dad and Mom got to show me where they grew up and I met my other canine siblings.  I saw three of my grandparents, a whole heap of aunties, uncles and cousins and met six great-grandparents!  Talk about getting passed around and...ugh, KISSED on!  I tolerated it.  We drove all over the state of Colorado and I made new friends at every stop!  We ventured up Pikes Peak, all 14,115 feet of it!  I landed my first official ring-bearing job and flew on five different airplanes (that's an epic journey that my Mom will, no doubt, be elaborating on in her next post..)

I loved traveling!  I also love being home and I'm gearing up for another cake smashing with my Hawaiian 'ohana'!  What I've realized, though, is that parties can be all the time.  Wake up in the morning and the sun is shining; party time!  Being outside, rolling in the grass and drinking out of the hose; that's all party material, my friends!  Look around, be amazed, touch a caterpillar, laugh till your belly hurts!  Dance even though you look ridiculous (my Mom can show you how that's done), wear your spiffy shirt, or no shirt, because life is meant to be enjoyed.. right now!!  

John 10:10 (Jesus said) 'I have come that you may have LIFE and have it ABUNDANTLY!' [Owen's emphasis added..]

Love letter!

Owen Jerald,

This letter is to you but it's about the other man in my life, the one you're named after!  Your Dad also happens to be my best friend and husband!  An incredible man; we are so blessed to call him ours.  You spend the majority of your time with me and I will teach you everything from shoe tying to alphabet reciting and all that is in between.  But your Dad is also passing on invaluable skills every day of his life.  

He will show you how to be a man; each morning as he loads up his truck and hugs us goodbye you learn about hard-work and commitment.  As you watch him run his business and give his best even when no one is watching, you learn integrity.  You see him love me and you are learning how to pursue and cherish a woman.  As you play together; throwing balls, swimming in the ocean and, inevitably, performing various stunts that I won't hear about for many years...you are learning to enjoy life to the fullest!  As he consistently disciples you, you are learning wrong from right and that the world does not revolve around you but you do have MUCH to offer!  Most importantly, son, you hear your Dada talk with God and talk about God and you learn that real men find their strength in One greater than themselves!

Boys need their daddy.  I can climb trees and dig in the dirt with the best of them, but there are certain things that you absolutely need to learn from your Dad.  He will push you in ways that I wouldn't dream of, encourage you in activities I'm not even aware of and he will not let you quit once you start something.  He'll be your sounding board and coach.  He'll dream with you while keeping you firmly grounded in truth.  And you better believe he will be cheering just as loud as me when you're up to bat!  I couldn't have chosen a better role model for you if I had interviewed every guy on planet earth!  Thank goodness Jesus knew exactly which man we needed in our life.

I have learned countless lessons from your Dad in the past few years... I can only imagine all that he will pass on to you in the next lifetime!  He loves us so well and, by believing in us, brings out the best in who we are.  He is strong, creative, passionate and hilarious.  He doesn't have it all figured out and knows that he needs Jesus in every single day; that's what I love most about him!  I also love that he swings from trees on a daily basis and dives off cliffs in his free time :)  Pursue what God has placed in your heart, my son.  Live fully and joyfully!  And, more than anything, I pray that as you follow in your Daddy's footsteps you will learn to walk with your Heavenly Father!
All my love,
Mama

monkey-see, monkey-do!!

Owen is a full blown copy cat; mimicking sounds, actions, hand gestures, bodily functions.... Need I elaborate?  It is incredible, really.  My very own sponge!  It's also terrifying as I realize that training has already begun, whether I was prepared or not.  I see our reflection in every gesture, pointed finger and animated chattering!  Derek's Mom told me it would be this way, 'More is caught than taught!'  And, oh boy, has this little man started catching!
As I mulled over Psalm 78 yesterday morning I realized why this 'monkey-see, monkey-do' business is absolutely crucial.  'We will tell the next generation the praiseworthy deeds of the LORD, his power, and the wonders he has done.... He commanded our ancestors to teach their children, so the next generation would know them, even the children yet to be born, and they in turn would tell their children. Then they would put their trust in God and would not forget his deeds but would keep his commands.' (from verses 4-7)

If my son is absorbing knowledge every second of every day, it is essential that he soak up what is right!  If I'm training him no matter what I do, then it is essential that I am living, speaking and acting in truth.  It doesn't say God suggested we pass on knowledge of Him, rather, it is a command!  This is not to be taken lightly.  We are called to be intentional about teaching the next generation.
In YWAM a speaker told us 'The question is not whether kids will be influenced but rather what and who will do the influencing... '  It's going to happen; we need to get our heads in the game and figure out what exactly we want going into THEIR heads.  My son is a few days away from turning one (talk about mixed emotions that I will save for another post..) but his little mind is constantly working. It's never 'too early' to start.  In fact, there is no better time to influence then RIGHT NOW when he is eagerly looking to his Daddy and I for every single answer about life!
Owen knows how to turn the radio on in the morning.  He knows which button starts the washing machine and which one starts the coffee pot.  I didn't mean to teach him any of that!  He whistles, he knows how to fake laugh and he 'vrooms' a better car noise than I ever could!  He is absorbing at an incredible speed and I have the privilege of being the filter through which things pass before reaching him.  It will not always be that way, making it vital for a firm foundation to be established from the beginning.

This morning I read confirmation in Titus chapter two; instructions for teaching!  Verse seven is speaking of the young men and says 'In everything set them an example by doing what is good.  In your teaching show integrity, seriousness and soundness of speech that cannot be condemned...'  Paul says to show it; again, more is caught than taught.  I can tell Owen to do good, to be a man of integrity but he will watch how his Dad and I live.  Talk about a heavy responsibility.  This, my Dad assures me, is why God lets us have kids... just when we think we've got 'things' pretty well figured out!
The time to teach is now.  This is my wakeup call, to SHOW truth, to LIVE with integrity and to SPEAK truth; 'mini-me' is ever-watching, always listening.  When we are silent, the world WILL fill in the gaps.  In later verses of Psalm 78 it tells of men who turned back on the day of battle, they refused to live by God's law.  These men forgot the wonders of their God and all that He had shown them.  (from verses 9-11)  Battles are inevitable in this life; as much as this mother's heart would like to hear, there's simply no getting around some fights.  So instead of investing my time in worrying about all that my sweet son will face I need to invest in preparing him.  May we remind our sponges of the wonders of our God every single day.  May we teach them to give thanks by our very lifestyle that they might not ever forget and so that, on the day of battle, they will be equipped to stand.