It's Great to Be Eight!

I seriously cannot believe that we've had Mack for 8 whole years!  What an amazing little guy he's turned into!

8 things that are AWESOME about Mack:

1.  He's finally a CUB SCOUT!  We have ALL been counting the days in our house until Mack  could finally wear a Cub Scout shirt and start going to Pack Meetings.  He was so excited to wake up this morning and put on his shirt to go to his first Day Camp. We thought it was so nice that they scheduled it on the very day of his birthday.

 

I have a feeling we're going to become very well acquainted the Scout book in the coming months and years.  It's a good thing we have a Scout Master who lives right here in the house with us, because there is a LOT of stuff to do!

2.  Mack has always had really great friends.  In Mendon, he had Jaycee, Sarah and Reno.

Now he has two awesome friends who live right on our street.  They're now all 8 years old, and they've been completely inseparable since they met each other.  And in the year that we've lived here, I can't remember them ever getting into an argument...not once!

3.  Mack LOVES his sisters!

He and Spell Girl are especially close, but his favorite Lego buddy is June.  And for his birthday, all he wanted from TCD was a hug (which she happily gave him.)

 I LOVE it when they all get along and take care of each other.

4.  His first word was "vroom vroom."  He has been obsessed with wheeled things since he could crawl.  He can name every kind of car on the road, and some that aren't on the road! Even at 8 years old, his favorite thing to spend his money on is still a Hot Wheels car.  

 

5.  He's always been a great helper.  I can count on him to jump up whenever I call...especially if there are tools or wheeled things involved...or his Grandpa.

 

6.  He is becoming quite a good little golfer.  

I know this is mini golf, but I can't find any of the pictures from the real golf course he went on with his dad and his uncles while we were in Utah.  And anyway, look at his stance!  He's a natural!!  He's loving the little Jr set of clubs that we found for him at a garage sale earlier this summer.

7.  Here's the story he loves to hear the most...
Before Mack was born, when the Scout Master and I had only the three girls (and we were very content with just those three girls), I had a very close friend whose baby died of SIDS.  It was shocking for the entire neighborhood, ward, community.  Scotty was 5 months old, and my friend had put him down for his morning nap.  When she went in to check on him a little while later, he was gone.  It was awful.  A few days later, I cleared my schedule to attend Scotty's funeral.  Unfortunately, the Scout Master was traveling that week, so he wasn't able to come with me.  I sat by myself and marveled at how faithful Scotty's family was and how strong their testimonies were, and I cried that Scotty wouldn't get to grow up with his amazing family.  And sometime during their talks, I saw what appeared to be a missionary sitting on the stand.  He was in a suit.  He had dark hair and big brown eyes.  And I knew he wasn't Scotty.   He was my son!  I was shocked and overwhelmed and continued to cry through the rest of the funeral, but now for totally different reasons.  I felt this unbelievable tugging that there was another child out there...that he was a boy...that I had just "seen" him as a missionary...and that somehow this connection with Scotty had prompted this "vision" about our anxiously awaiting family member.  I was very hesitant to tell anyone about what I had seen or felt that morning at the funeral, especially my husband.  But a few weeks later, while we were out on a date, I felt brave enough to let him know that our family wasn't quite finished yet.  I told him what I had "seen" and that there was a little boy waiting to join our family.  And guess what he said..."I already know."  I was overwhelmed and amazed all over again.)  A few months later, we were pregnant.  When we had our first ultrasound, we weren't the slightest bit surprised when the technician announced that it was a boy.  The pregnancy was difficult (well, for me...)  We had many challenges through it, both physical and emotional.  But when he finally got here and he was completely and totally perfect, we were so very grateful for the entire experience.  And how grateful we are to have had him in our family for the last 8 years!  I cannot imagine our lives without him.  What a privilege and an honor it is to be his mom.

8.  Who wouldn't absolutely adore this perfect face???