As much as I try, I cannot think of a more creative way to start this birthday post than my usual exclamation and lament over the swift passage of time. Lucas is 11, and I can’t believe it! Where did my baby go? Slow down already!!
Phew, now that we have that out of the way, let me tell you a little bit about who Lucas is! Spoiler alert, he’s a pretty great kid.
I asked Lucas just moments ago to report on his favorites. In years past he would confidently proclaim his favorites without any hesitation. This year I got a whole lot of, “Hmmmm, that’s a hard one….” and “it’s really close between…” I guess that means he’s expanding his horizons!
Favorite (few):
Colors: orange and turquoise
Animals: cats and pelicans
Books: The Warden and the Wolf King by Andrew Peterson, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J.K. Rowling, The Secret Keepers by Trenton Lee Stewart, The Lord of the Rings Trilogy by J.R.R Tolkien
Movies: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 and The Hobbit: Battle of the Five Armies
Songs: The Adults are Talking by the Strokes and 70’s Cop Bribe (Eyes for Me) by The C33s
Foods: chicken quesadillas, barbacoa, and steak fajitas
Sports: soccer and gaga ball (if that counts)
I asked if he had any strong dislikes.
“What do you exactly mean?” he asked me.
“You know,” I said, “things that make you growl on the inside.”
“Oh yeah,” he said, “Definitely that show Alena watches called Nella the Princess Knight. Also chocolate. But that’s all I can think of!”
“Are you sure that’s all?” I asked.
“Well, also when you make me organize my desk.”
He sometimes growls on the outside too. It’s often something to do with Alena trying to change a well-planned out story they are playing with too many of her own suggestions, or when she tries to parent him, or when I suggest that perhaps he would enjoy playing in his room more if he could find the floor! He is, overall, a very agreeable and happy kid however, and we love that about him!
Lucas is a fun big brother. He and Alena have spent many happy (and admittedly a few unhappy) hours this summer playing together! Lucas is very imaginative and cooks up all sorts of perilous adventures for their toys and stuffed animals. I’d like to take this opportunity to let my neighbors know that all the shrieking, screaming, gasping and charging around the house is in good fun, so don’t be alarmed!


Lucas is very sweet and loving towards Alena and in their calmer moments, he enjoys reading to her and teaching her things, especially about birds and animals.


It makes my heart happy to observe sweet moments of love between them and I’m so thankful for their bond!


Lucas still loves animals and nature, and he especially loves birds. Last year blue herons were his favorite, but after we took a trip to Florida this past winter, pelicans have edged them out by a hair. He still loves feeding birds from his hand at Kensington Metro park and says his greatest wish at the moment is to see a green-winged teal. There were some sightings at lakes in our area last spring so we’re hoping he might catch a glimpse at some point!


Of course no animal is quite as special to Lucas as our pet cat Bowie. He loves her and takes great care of her! The amount of affection that Bowie permits is steadily growing much to Lucas’s delight.

Lucas continues to enjoy soccer and had a great year on his team with coach Dad! It’s been fun to watch his skills develop and see some confidence starting to shine through. His favorite positions to play are forward and midfield. He’s left-footed so he’s a nice little weapon to have on that side of the field. A highlight for him this year was scoring the winning goal at his fall tournament last season!


Lucas also loves watching soccer, particularly going to see his favorite team Detroit City FC. He’s also fascinated with international soccer and watched a lot of the men’s and women’s European Championships and World Cup qualifying matches this year!

I never thought I’d say this, but in the past year Lucas has fallen in love with swimming! For years he didn’t much like the water and had some fears to overcome, but last summer we found a dynamic teacher who was the perfect fit for him, and now he spends hours every week in the pool! It’s been awesome to see him learn a new skill and be able to enjoy such a fun summer activity!


Lucas still enjoys writing and creating books and slide shows. During the school year he and his closest buddy from school wrote and illustrated a three book series featuring our cat Bowie and his friend’s dog Skye as superheroes (the fourth book is currently in progress). They then used their stuffed animals to turn their books into movies. They were very intense and thus are all rated R. Lucas has recently made his own bird book on google slides, created a Hogwarts yearbook featuring his favorite heroes and villains from the Harry Potter series, made a guide detailing his stuffed animals’ traits and personalities, and created a family tree. I don’t know where he gets all these ideas but he’s full of them and thus is rarely bored!

We are proud of Lucas and profoundly grateful that God gave him to us! I do sometimes wish I could slow down the passage of time or relive some of the sweet moments of the past (I sure miss those chubby baby cheeks!), but I’m also excited to see what the next weeks, months, and years will bring. I know big changes are ahead as he gets older, but we will always belong to each other, and nothing can change that.
Happy Birthday Lucas! We love you!



