Wyatt's 11th B-Day

We love this little boy fiercely!  He is strong and funny, yet enigmatic; he is loving and kind, yet aloof.  He is talented and smart, yet incredibly literal.  Our indescribable son turned eleven today and how we survived all the years before his arrival, we have no idea; without a doubt, life is better with him in it.

The Many Talents of Wyatt:

After journeying up the west coast and through the deserts of Nevada and Arizona (seeing the Grand Canyon and Tombstone), his birthday celebration had to be anticlimactic.  However, I hoped to deliver something none of those locales contained: his friends.  I hoped...

One sad reminder that the world was not on our same agenda was trying to schedule visits with friends during the handful of times we have returned to our hometown.  No matter how hard I planned or how early I started, other lives did not bend as easily as ours.  Basketball playoffs were ongoing.  Baseball practices had begun.  Soccer, tennis, golf, recital rehearsals and school functions had continued while we gleefully traveled the country discarding all appointments and "have tos."  This time last year, I remember running from "I have to be at the middle school for a PTA meeting" to "You have to pick up Wyatt from piano and get him to Reinhardt for cello by 5:30."  Believe me, I understand the over scheduled life.  The problem was my ego thought this could be overcome.  In my egocentric way of looking at life this year, I assumed others missed my kids as much as my kids missed them so, of course, they would drop everything to come to Wyatt's birthday party.  Unfortunately for Wyatt, this did not happen.  Life just isn't that easy no matter who misses whom.

Wyatt and Best Friend touching everything in Brookstone

With no one able to make an after school bowling party on his actual birthday, I rearranged the plans and worked with some accommodating parents to meet the needs of all three of our kids.  I drove the family truckster like a woman possessed. (What mother isn't possessed when trying to please her kids?)  I dropped kids, I picked up kids.  I took girls to the American Girl Store and boys to Game Stop.  I bought pizza in food court and sang silly songs to embarrass all.  I got friends back home just in time to make baseball practices and babysitting commitments.  It was a whirlwind Sunday afternoon, but I sincerely thank the parents who understood what those few hours of seeing their close friends meant to our kids and were flexible in letting me cavort all over Alpharetta with their kids.  Just know that I know I owe you.

With the fast paced fun of Sunday behind him, Wyatt was content to sit in the orthodontist's chair on his birthday morning, playing with the controls and making goofy faces in the movable mirror.  Six months until braces!  We spent the rest of the day with family.  Brunch with grandparents, Bobba and Papa, at his favorite breakfast establishment, the Cracker Barrel, which the kids discovered on our travels is a national chain.   Next, it was a game of afternoon bowling followed by a romp through the arcade at Stars and Strikes in Cumming, Georgia.  Finally, we met up with Aunt Mandy, Uncle Shannon and cousins, Hannah, David and Spencer for Wyatt's all time favorite meal: Buffalo Wings at Taco Mac followed by self-serve frozen yogurt.

Did I say he was enigmatic? There's no mystery here.  He sounds like 100% 11 year old boy to me.  Happy Birthday, Wyatt!