Dear Carson,
Tomorrow you turn 9 years old and, as always, you have been counting down the days. I love how much you anticipate your birthday. It's hard to believe that you are nine, and heading into fourth grade next year. The years do really pass much to quickly.
This year has been hard for you. For the whole world, really. But you have struggled a lot with all of the limitations that have come from Covid. It has been so hard to watch you struggle with sadness and the hard stuff that comes from life being kind of put on hold for an entire year. We have tried to keep things as normal as possible for you-- but we couldn't fix all the hard stuff, even though we wanted to.
You loved homeschooling this year. Your favorite subject is history (yay!) and I have so enjoyed watching your interest in that subject grow. I have loved sharing my love of history with you this year. I hope your interest grows in the coming years and that we will always have that in common. You have a list of places you want to travel, usually related to things we have studied and it is one of my biggest wishes in the world that I will be able to show you some of those places one day.
You like to spend most of your day outside. Playing in "jungle school" in our side yard, playing with Josh, making darts and spears and arrows out of wood. You get dirty and don't care at all. You also are SO creative-- in the games you play, in the stories you create, and in the crafts you make. Your interests are wide and varied and each one so uniquely fits you. You are very rarely bored because you always have a million things you want to do.
You also love spending time with your daddy. You love helping him work, at home or at his job, and you are a good helper! You are a hard worker and I know this pleases your dad so much. You love baseball and practice hard to be the best you can be. Sometimes I hear you yell out words of encouragement from first base-- to batters from the other team-- and that is just so like you with your big heart.
I have loved having you home with me full-time for the last year. Despite the challenges of Covid and quarantining and all that, I have loved it. This year of "extra" time with you and Carver has felt like such a gift. I loved every day of it-- the hard ones and the easy ones. I am so thankful for each moment. You are a constant source of encouragement and sweetness to me-- telling me you love me a dozen times a day; hugging and kissing me all throughout the day-- you are a bright spot in my world.
I will miss you when you go back to school next year, but you are going to do just great. I know this for sure. You thrive in really every situation.
This year the word I am praying for you is confidence. I want you to be confident in yourself. To know your worth. And to not get caught up on things you might see as shortcomings. Because you are spectacular, just the way you are.
Happy Birthday Carson! I love you more than I can say. Sometimes my heart hurts because it is so full. You're the best and I am the lucky one, to get to be your mom.
I love you to the moon and back.
Love,
Mama
