He's a teenager now!

I cannot believe my oldest child is a teenager. But he is. I still think he was just like the photo below yesterday...

This last shot was from a few years ago in Virginia but I love it.

Dear Will,

It is hard for me to believe you are growing up so quickly. I have mixed feelings about it. Part of me loves the friendship we have built and how we joke around, talk about the latest music and fads and relate to one another. But another part of me misses reading to you at night and building train tracks and playmobil with you. We have always been very close and I hope just because you are growing up does not mean that will change.

I could not be more proud of who you are becoming. My friends constantly tell me how polite and respectful you are. Just today I received an e-mail from a Mom at VBS (where you were a volunteer this year). She told me what a good role model you were and how all of the parents wanted my secrets to raising such a great kid. You have such compassion and often you are the only one who asks me or Dad how our day was.

You are also great at communicating your feelings. Sometimes men (and your brother) have difficulty knowing what they are feeling and explaining it to others. But you are great at telling us exactly how you feel. That will make you a great husband and father someday.

Slowly you are leaving the toys of your childhood behind in favor of music, your new portable DVD player and texting your friends. You are really a teenager now. Just don't leave your family behind. We are always here for you and we all love you very much.

Love, Mom

Will had a small party with some friends this past weekend. We took them to an arcade/pizza place for an afternoon of fun. The he had two friends sleep over.

I wore my hair in a ponytail because Will told me I looked 20 or 30 that way.

I might just wear a ponytail every day!

A few family shots before the party.

We got a sitter for Kate and Harry so it was just Will and his friends.

I was not allowed to take too many photos.

You know how embarrassing us Moms can be with our cameras!

We had a little celebration for him at home tonight too. I will post that later. Oh~and he got his hair CUT! It looks so good. Photos to come!!!