Sutton turned 14 on June 24th!
Photos to come...technical difficulties since I no longer own a camera! They have been taken but lost on a memory card somewhere!
Fourteen...it feels like we have entered a whole new era. Sure, last year was the year you technically turned into a teenager, but throughout the last year is when we have noticed changes in you, almost daily.
You are 5' 7" and around 125 pounds. You are officially taller than your momma! It's so strange to have to look UP to look at my child.
You have an amazing sense of humor. Very dry, like your dad. Actually, like both of us. You always have a quick comeback ready, usually hilarious, sometimes annoying. Teenager sass comes out sometimes. You are amazing though...when you do have a teen moment, you usually eventually see the error of your ways and make it right on your own.
You are developing more of a sense of who you are as a person. You're not completely sure but you're working it out. You have some different views on social issues than your dad and I. You have made your walk with Jesus your own. You have developed interests in a variety of things...space, cars, technology, soccer, science, and I'm sure many more I'm forgetting...and then you do research and explore these things on your own. You know way more than me on a lot of different topics.
You continue to be the BEST big brother. You two fight, don't get me wrong (especially this summer when you're together 24/7), but you are protective and inclusive and seriously just the best friend to Ren. He looks up to you SO MUCH.
You and Dad finally got your 4-wheeler fixed after like a year of it being out of commission. We gave you a bit more freedom and Dad took you out and showed you a way to get to your best friend Brayden's house using only dirt roads. Most evenings, you take off on your 4-wheeler to meet up with him.
This year you have started using your AirPods a lot. Seems very teenager-ish. You listen to music most of the time. You have listened to a couple audiobooks.
You got super attached-at-the-hip with Brayden this year. You got a phone for your last birthday, so that has helped in your social life, though there have been some bumps along the way (texting etiquette and learning to not be annoying and knowing when to stop with texts). You and Brayden have your own language and even weird names you call each other. Your favorite pastime is to FaceTime him on your phone, prop up your phone against your computer screen, and play video games with him online while you talk.
You have always pretty much been the oldest kid out of all my friends' kids, but this year, it seems like you are eons older. You don't play or pretend, you don't watch the kid shows or movies so much, you kinda hang out with the adults a bit these days, though we usually kick you out so we can have adult conversations.
You're pretty open with me, and I think we can talk about most things. Obviously I'm sure there are things I don't know, but I hope our open communication can continue. You know all about periods and the birds and the bees...which just matures you in and of itself.
You started calling me Gin instead of Mom. Our progression went: Momma, Mommy (we stayed there a loooooooong time), Mom (for like two seconds), Bruh (for like one second), and now I've been Gin for like the past year. I think most of your friends think your mom's name is Jen and wonder why you call her by her first name. It all started because Dad started calling me that and as much as Ren wants to be like you, I think you want to be like Dad.
You got all the highest honors at school this year. Since it was your first year of junior high, it was the first year they had honor roll and things like that. You were at the top of your class! It was a bit of a struggle getting used to a different teacher every hour of the day, and also not liking every teacher you had. We had some major issues with a few teachers and even a meeting with the principal! But none of it was about your behavior or grades, more about unfairness and lack of communication within the school...getting used to junior high was something!
You took Wood shop at school this year, your year-long project was a shelf that now resides in Dad's office. You also took Business Essentials and learned some valuable things.
You continue to play soccer. You have played for the same club team (Fusion) the past two years, with your Dad as your coach for this past year. All your teammates are going on to high school soccer in the fall, so we are trying to figure out your path since half the kids in your birth year are going to play at that high school level in th fall. Finding a team with enough young 2010s has proved challenging.
You always insist that all the boys in your class get along, even if not everyone is "friends." Brayden is obviously your BFF, and Eli is a good buddy as well. You have become better friends with Evan this summer, he is a grade above you. Since you did Cross Country in the fall, you made some buddies in high school, and even GIRLS. You have a made a few new friends outside of school through your youth group and through soccer.
You like to say "bus" instead of "yes."
You ask me 50 million times a day if I love you. Making me feel like a bad mom over here. I had to ban you from saying the phrase "Oh, so you don't love me?" whenever I would say ANYTHING to you.
Above all else: flaming hot Cheetos and Lipton citrus green tea. You would live on those things. You also love nachos, pizza rolls, baked potatoes, bacon, microwave popcorn, buffalo chicken anything, blue Powerade, Arnold Palmer. You don't like milk so you eat cereal dry. You prefer hummus with your carrots over Ranch dressing. This summer you have not been eating breakfast much at all, you say you're not hungry when you wake up.
You are definitely more of a savory person than sweet. I took you guys for ice cream at McDonald's today and you chose to get a spicy chicken sandwich and fries instead of ice cream.
You still love animals, especially all our cats. Smokey is your best friend. He loves you and you love him. Recently, me and Dad were out of town on a trip and you were staying with your Funk grandparents. You wanted to go back home after a day or so because you missed Smokey, not your parents. You explained, saying we had each other and were having fun (anniversary trip), while Smokey didn't know what was going on and was probably sad and missing you.
You take a long time to poop, so you're definitely a man now. You also sleep in for freaking ever. This summer, wee have been saying bedtime is between 10 and 11, but I'm not sure how strictly you follow that. Anyway, you are rarely up before 9:30, sometimes not til 11am.
Sutton, your dad and I are so incredibly proud of the person you are, and that we get to be your parents. You are an amazing kid and I can't wait to continue to watch your life unfold.
