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Dear Kollin,

It's easy to remember how old you are since you were born in the year 2000.  Not that I would have a hard time remembering if you weren't, but I like that on your birthday, your age is always the last digits of the year. 

I always want to remember you as the cute, chubby cheeked toddler walking around the house with your binky hooked to your cloth diaper, kicking the ball around the house, and kicking at the cat.  I also want to remember you as the little boy who sat on mine and Kimberly's laps on the front porch swing learning to say "kuck" when you saw a truck, or when you saw a car, or any moving vehicle, and when you'd say "bap" when it was time to take a bath, or when you'd see a lake, or any body of water. 

 

 

I also want to remember you as the smart little kindergartener who got in trouble for talking excessively to your friends in class.  Or the kid who always exceeds the school's expectations on all your grades and tests.

 

 

But I also never want to forget you now, as the intelligent, kind, and handsome young man that you are.  You have so much talent and so much potential for your future.  In honor of your 13th birthday, here are 13 of my favorite things about you at this point in your life:

1) When we stand up to hug, your arms reach above mine.  I love this because you're growing so much, but it also makes me sad that you have grown so much.  As of this year, you are taller than both of your older sisters.

 

2) You are a proud, proud uncle to McCoy.  You say that you can't wait to have a little boy, but that you want him to be just like McCoy.

 

3) You want everyone around you to be happy, and I think you're selfless in every way.

4) You're such a "thinker" and you are constantly coming up with ideas and websites to make quick money.  I know you're going to go far in life with that attitude.  You love to brainstorm when the family gets together, and you always ask to play games because you enjoy spending quality time with your family. 

5) I can relate to the fact that you are a picky eater.  I was once the exact same way.  I also have faith that one day you will like more foods and appreciate how delicious food can be.

6) You chuckle, shake your head, and look down when we ask you anything about girls.  Kimberly and I hope you know that you're always welcome to talk to us about anything at all.  It's likely that we'll understand, and we may have some good advice for you.

 

7) Your dimples.  This will never change.

 

8) Your sports inclination.  You have always loved going outside and playing sports of any kind.  You played soccer when you were younger, which was really cute.  You then were really interested in wrestling.  You travel an hour to play in your baseball league throughout the entire year.  You can hit some crazy trick shots in basketball.  And you are running like a champ.

 

 

9) You love videos and video editing; so do I.  You usually can be seen with a video camera, and that is what you asked for this year for your birthday.  You will excel in this, and I can't wait.

10) Kaden and Kylie love you.  They look up to you, and talk about you a lot.  "Can Kollin come camping with us?"  "Can we invite Kollin, too?"  Whenever you are around, I don't see much of you or them.  That part I don't like, but I love that you guys get along so well.  And they still call Lenox a leopard bunny -- I think that's what you called him once?

 

11) You always take interest in what is going on around you.  You are a good listener, and you are really patient, like our father.

12) The way that I have to take a moment now to guess if it is you or Dad that answers the phone when I call.

13) You are the little brother I always wanted, and you are perfect.  I wouldn't change one single thing about you.  I am proud of you, of your accomplishments, of your personality, and your kindness and care for your family and friends. 

 

You are now the age that I was when I was blessed with you as my little brother.  Embrace these years, because they are fleeting.  You will look back one day and remember these days as the ones when you really grew, learned, made (and sometimes break) friendships, and really found yourself.

In this day and age, I am nothing but a click away.  You can text me, call me, email me, instagram me, facebook message me, snapchat me...but more than anything, I hope you always know that I'm here for you.

Happy Birthday, Kollin.  Welcome to your teenage years!

I Spy Keane's Present

Keane has asked me in advance for a particular birthday present.  He asked me for a good pair of binoculars.  As I like for him to do, he did his own research and picked out a pair he would like.  He emailed me the link and has since then, at random times, asked if he could have his birthday present early.  He has been hunting, as it is hunting season now, and he would like to use a good pair of binoculars before his birthday comes in November. 

I had the binoculars shipped to my parents and I asked my mom if she would mind bringing the package to my house on Friday before we got home from work, as she has shorter work hours than we do.  This adorable package is what she brought over.  She decorated the box in the most adorable fashion!

 

Keane and Kaden were shooting their bows in the backyard, so I included Kylie in my adventure.  We decided to hide the box in the truck, ask the boys if they wanted to go ride around and look for deer, and while we were riding, I would ask Kylie to look for something in the backseat, and this shiny box is what she would find!

 

Everything was working out well, until Keane tried to clean the truck up a little, making more room for the kids.  As he slid a jacket over that I had tucked around the box, I saw his eyes light up.  So we didn't get but out of the driveway before I asked Kylie to look under her seat.

 

"What?!  Where did this come from?!"  She asked, as she handed it to me. 

 

I realized then that I should have made an effort to whisper something to Kaden about our plan, as he started looking under the seat for more shiny, golden gifts!

 

Keane knew instantly what it had to be, but he had a huge smile on his face the entire time he unwrapped his gift and opened the box to find his brand new binoculars that he got to use on a Sunday morning hunt.

(Kaden wanted to keep the wrapping paper, so it is now taped to his bedroom wall.)

 



Happy early birthday, Keane Dear.

Outdoor Weekend

Last weekend was ideal.  There weren't many things planned, and the things that were, didn't consist of us going anywhere necessarily.  Keane and I were both in happy moods all weekend, which really can amount to a great weekend in itself.  Friday, we did try a new Mexican restaurant in a nearby town because we didn't have anything planned for supper.

This is Keane pretending on the way home from work, pretending that he didn't want to be close to me.  It was the "cutest thing I've ever seen" and I had to get a picture.

 

We got up at 5:30 a.m. on Saturday to go bow hunting.  And this was my view from my tree stand.

 

 

 

However, we didn't prepare for the hunt well enough, and a deer smelled us soon after we got into our stands.  This was evidenced by a snort, or blow, of a deer which sounded like it came from a big deer.  Needless to say, we didn't see any deer or turkey that morning.

 

This was my daily Bible verse I read while in the deer Saturday morning. 

 

 

 

Saturday afternoon, right before a storm blew in, we Keane put up two stands in a different set of woods.  The rain was able to wash our scent away, making it a perfect hunt for the following morning.

 

It was a foggy morning, which was very interesting in the woods.  Outside the woods, there was a dense fog, as you can see from the photo and as you have witnessed before.  Inside the woods, however, the air was clear, and instead of fog, it was a rain.  The moisture would collect on the above leaves, which would drip down below.  It reminded me of the song on Bambi...drip, drip, drop...

 

Drip, drip, drop
Little April September shower
Beating a tune as you fall all around
Drip, drip, drop
 Little April September shower
What can compare with your beautiful sound?

 

We saw a doe and fawn walk in front of me and up the edge of the woods eating acorns.  We didn't have a good shot on them, plus I had already told Keane I wasn't going to shoot a fawn or a momma deer.

 

Then we saw a group of turkeys walking in the field right next to us.  Keane was able to get a couple shots at them but they were a little too far away. 

 

Sunday afternoon, we worked in the woods cutting up and moving a tree that had fallen into a path that Keane's dad uses regularly on his four wheeler.  We also began to cut down two smaller trees, but then Keane's chainsaw stopped working due to a hole in the fuel line, so our job was incomplete.  But we have a lot of nice wood to split and collect the next chance we get!

 

 

 

 

Our weekend consisted of being outdoors, in the woods, and also taking naps, cuddling on the couch, watching Mizzou and Chief's football, and eating delicious food.  We made tailgating food on Saturday: brats, chicken wings, and Rotel dip, and deer steak fajitas on Sunday.

 

~~~~~~~~~~~

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