Celebrating Declan

Declan turned 12 in August on the same day that Grandma and Grandpa arrived in Wausau for a visit. Declan is a huge steak lover so we headed off to one of his favorite restaurants "Texas Roadhouse" to celebrate his big day.



Ethan may have celebrated a little too hard!

(don't worry, that's not Miller Lite that EB's drinking, but locally brewed Point Root Beer - one of Ethan's true loves in life)

Declan is an all-american boy who loves nothing more than a great big steak on his plate. He had a big smile on his face the entire time he worked on his New York Strip Steak of which he ate every bite. Don't be fooled by this kids size - he eats enough to feed five people with. A 16oz steak is merely a snack for this boy.

In addition to going out for Steak, Declan received some rather nice gits. A new iHome pad for his iPod, some cool new skull candy earphones for his iPod, the Discovery Channels Sharkweek DVD set (he is fascinated by this series and has gotten Ethan hooked on it too), some candy, and .... because he is an all-american boy - he wanted a new gun. He has a couple of actual guns, and an airsoft gun already, but he had his eye on a awesome new airsoft rifle that we ordered online.

He was ordained a Deacon at church the following Sunday and last week I was able to sit and watch Steve, Caleb and Declan pass the sacrament together. It was so special! I couldn't help but reminded of how it only seemed like a moment ago that we moved to Wausau (Declan was 3) and on our first Sunday in church, Declan was sat there winking at Holly and Heidi Beck (who were in College and High School at the time). He's such a player still!

Unfortunately, time flies. We realized that when Ethan turns 12 Caleb won't be able to pass the sacrament with his brothers and Dad because he'll be half way through his mission. Some days, I wish time would slow down just a little and I could have more time to cherish with these special kids.

In the meantime, Declan will keep us laughing, crying, loving, possibly threatening to kill him occasionally, but most of all cherishing the special young man he has become.