Will Lately

My baby is definitely growing up. He's just turning into this wonderful little man. His friends all adore him, he's so full of confidence and he's just the most intelligent curious thing. I answer questions all day like these recent ones: "How are TVs made?", "Why can you see those sun rays coming through the clouds and not other sun rays?" and "How does a muffler work?". Most of his questions are very high level thinking and impossible to answer without looking up the answers. He started reading Harry Potter a few months back and is just eating it up. He's still completely obsessed with legos and can sit there for hours doing them if he's not crafting from items out of the recycling bin. He got in trouble one time this year for sticking his middle finger up but he had zero idea what that meant and another (turd) kid told him to do it. He's the ultimate rule follower and although he really doesn't like to speak to adults he doesn't know he definitely has come out of his shell a bit more around peers his age. He has to be lugged around several times a week to drop off at golf or dance and yes he does complain from time to time but in general he's a trooper. Love my little nuggie so much. 

Drew's Birthday Recap

Drew had a great day celebrating his brithday with his 4 closest friends. They enjoyed a day at PopStroke which is Tiger Woods beautiful mini golf facility. There are two 18 hole courses and then a restaurant and some bars. Derek said the greens were beautiful and Drew had a great time!

Then we ventured to the DMV a couple of days later to get his permit!  He'll spend the next year driving with us and taking the online course before he gets a license at 16. It's SO weird sitting in a car with him driving! 

Drew // 15 Years Old

How is my little tiny baby already a 15 year old? You are getting your permit next week and it's just all so surreal. Time is moving way too fast but I try to soak it all in and cherish how amazing of a human you are. Do you have the teenage boy stubbornness sometimes? Absolutely. You also can't pick up your trash for the life of me but your decision making skills, ability to communicate with adults, brains, confidence and wit will take your far in life. We've had to barely keep up with your school stuff as you handle that all on your own and you do it well! You received straight A's for your first semester of high school with a ton of very hard and advanced classes and we are so proud. I also just love being with you and our chats in general. Your quick wit and humor is so fast but sometimes we debate which you're good at as well. You are just a great person all around and we love you so very much. Also being on V2 as a freshman golfer with straight A's in a lot of hard classes is pretty damn cool bud. Happy Birthday Drewdle.

And now for the annual interview....

For the stats:
Height: 71.5 inches (94%)
Weight: 143 pounds (77%)
Shoe size: 12
Clothes: Adult small

And for the annual interview:
Favorite color: Blue
Best friend: Weston, Carter & Alex
Favorite food genre: Italian
Favorite restaurant: The Cheesecake Factory
What do you want to be when you grow up: Cardiothoracic Surgeon or Naval Cardio Physician
What makes you happy: Getting straight A's
Where was your favorite place you went this year: David Booth Memorial in Lawrence
Favorite show: Seinfeld
Favorite movie: Mission Impossible The Final Reckoning Part 2
Favorite sport to play: Golf
Favorite sport to watch: Football
Favorite toy or item to play with: Xbox
Favorite subject in school: Biology
What is a goal for yourself this year: To get an eagle or a hole in one
If you could be an animal what would it be: A water bear
What are you scared of: Feet

BELIZE

This year we celebrated our 20th anniversary and after seriously considering a trip to Norway we pivoted to a warmer destination. We have visited so many islands around the Caribbean as well as other tourist hot spots and realized we had never been to Belize. It was a WONDERFUL trip where I read an entire book, we did hours of relaxing, hours of fun adventures, ate everything, tried all the fruity drinks and enjoyed every moment of just us. 

Here is my summary of the country:

Pros: Probably the nicest people we've ever been around. Everyone was genuinely kind and not in a cheesy trying-to-get-a-tip way. Like in a real way. Also the views from the small hopper plane (I got to sign next to the captain on the way back!) were amazing. Such a cool experience to be in those types of planes flying over gorgeous oceans. The waters are BLUE and they have the second largest barrier reef in the world only behind Australia's Great Barrier Reef. The food was PHENOMENAL. We had the most delicious quesadillas, lobster, tacos, fajitas, omelets, chicken, etc, etc! The biggest pro, however, HAD to be the swimming with manatees. We were told there was only a 50% chance of seeing one and when we arrived to the spot there she was. The resident manatee and we only had 4 adults in the water so it was almost a private showing. That combined with the sea turtles and all of the other water creatures made for amazing snorkeling. Also swimming with sharks was pretty damn cool too. Lastly, the cave tubing was pretty darn cool. You can't do that in many countries and was quite the unique experience. 

Cons: The biggest con was not being able to swim off the beach. There is about 20-40 feet of heavy seaweed that surrounds the islands and you don't swim in it due to stench and irritation. Also the mainland in general. We had to go through Belize City for our cave tubing and zip lining and it's pretty rough with an extreme poverty level. Also the islands don't have stop signs, rather speed bumps. This was really rough on my old back for a week.