No longer a tween

I have a teenager.  A teenager.  Teen. Ager.

This sweet, sweet boy who made us parents turned 13 today.  We celebrated his lucky 13 this evening at a surprise birthday party for DeeDaw at her favorite restaurant.  She turns 88 on Wednesday.  It was a great time with a lot of our family.

Cameron,

I can’t believe you are thirteen.  We have had our struggles and we have had our good times.  I feel the next few years are going to be the same.  It is hard being the oldest in our family, especially when you would prefer to be alone.  You take it in stride most days and are happy to share a room with Cy.  I think he bugs you the least (right now).  You love to play basketball and had a great time on the school team this year.  You are FANTASTIC at math, and have earned yourself placement in the DUKE Talent in Progress Search.  You took the ACT in February and scored in the top 5% for your age category.  This has earned you invitations to several colleges for summer studies,  including Duke University, Southern Methodist University, and Austin College to name a few.  You have decided that a month away from home at this time is not your priority and applied to an engineering day camp at UTA this summer.  We are waiting to hear if you have been accepted.  Thank you for being you and for making me a mom.  We love you so much and look forward to what THIRTEEN will bring!!

A