From 18 to 19, More Than a Year. Happy Birthday Sam!

Today I am grateful for our son Sam and all that being his mother brings to my life. 

Happy 19th Birthday Sam! You went from 18 to 19 in this last year, but it was more than just another year. A year ago you had just started second semester of senior year and SnoWeek was coming up. Later in the week, you were crowned King of the SnoWeek court, and a couple weeks later you signed your letter of intent to play college football.  

It was an exciting time and we were planning for graduation and your party. Then the pandemic hit. You walked out of school for spring break and never walked back in as a student. Your much-anticipated graduation became a drive-by parade. 

You were able to head to college in the fall, but contracted COVID and missed a month of football. You gained experience and perspective in the midst of some really unusual, unfortunate, persistent, and sometimes painful times. 

You went to middle school and high school less than two miles from home. Then you went 200 miles away. One of your lessons was on homesickness, but there were many more. You recently made a decision to transfer and will start second semester at a university 20 miles away.

It's been a year. It's really been a year. Yet, you have weathered it with steady resilience and quiet resolve. You have endured some significant pivots at a pivotal time in your life. Your dad and I are so proud of you, and wish you all the best in this next year. 

Much has changed in the last year. Much has stayed the same. You are still that baby boy we welcomed early on that Thursday morning nineteen years ago. And you are a young man making his way in a challenging world. 

This year I thought it would be nice to honor that baby boy and his grandmothers. You never had the opportunity to know your grandfathers, but your grandmothers have been a part of your life all along. Your birthday also falls between their birthdays, one just a couple days ago and the other in a few weeks.

In these pictures, Grandma Gertie is holding you at a few days old, and Grandma Leenie is holding you at a few months old. 

Grateful for you, these two special women, and so much more today. Happy Birthday Sam!