Happy Birthday Jared!

Dear Jared,

7 years ago today, I woke up early in the morning experiencing strong contractions, 8 days before my scheduled induction date. I called Daddy and all the grandparents and let them know it looked like you were on your way. Contractions were wishy washy throughout the day, but definately strong. By late afternoon, it was clear you had decided June 7th would be your birthday and we welcomed you officially into our family at 7:52pm.

Right from the start, we called you our little old man, because you just seemed to view the world with a wise gaze. As you got older, you blew us away with speaking 4-5 word sentences by 18 months old, by self-teaching yourself the alphabet letters and their sounds at 3 years old, and reading a word (we) all by yourself around age 4. You learned new skills quickly and easily, and spoke like a much older kid. I never got tired of hearing your take on events, because you had always such a funny spin on things. Your imagination blew me away (verbally and artistically).

Now, you are 7 years old, and you continue to amaze and amuse me daily. You are still so bright and eager to learn! You're currently reading the Harry Potter series, having completed the first two books in only 13 days (and passing comprehension tests with 16/20 for the first book, and 19/20 for the second book). You can spend hours building complex Lego creations, and are constantly coming up with new ideas/stories behind each creation and all it's parts. The DETAIL you put into each creation, and the explanation for all the parts and uses, etc boggle my mind! Your little brain works in ways far beyond your years.

You are still my most emotional child, and you are obsessed with everything being fair and equal, and your feelings get very hurt if you feel you're being left out or not getting your fair share. It can be really exhausting some days, but I greatly appreciate your pure heart, and I understand that being the middle child can't always be easy. You might not be the first kid in the family to do something, and you might not be the last, but you do it in your own way and your milestones are just as memorable to me as your siblings'. And just remember, you were my FIRST son, and you're the only one of my children who gets to be a little brother AND a big brother. It's hard work having TWO important roles at once!

I absolutely adore your sense of humor. You've got a sharp-witted personality and very frequently find yourself in the position of being the class clown, or the comic relief. You easily find humor and joy in many situations, and I admire your free spirit. I suspect you'll find yourself in trouble in school in later years, but that humor is part of what makes you, YOU, and I refuse to spend much effort trying to squash it out of you. You'll learn as you go when it's more appropriate to use!

Anything you want in life is yours for the taking, Jared. You've the speaking and negotiating skills to make a great lawyer; you've got the verbal and humor skills to make a great stand-up comedian... You've got the imagination and eagerness to be a wonderful inventor/scientist/writer, etc. Currently, you've said you would like to be a Lego inventor and help create new Lego sets. I think the Lego company would be lucky to have you!!

Keep reaching for the stars, buddy! And never give up your eagerness to learn and try new things. Even though you say you're too big to be "Jare-bear" anymore, you'll always be my little Jare-bear... *grin* I am so proud of the young man you are becoming and look forward to seeing where life takes you.

I love you sooooo much!

Love, Mommy