Give Me a "J"...

Dang!!  I'm on a roll here with new posts!!  Here's what been happening with our Jakey-poo:

#10:  Jake entered his last year of pre-teen-dom.  He turned 12 at the beginning of June it was officially dubbed "the worst birthday ever".  He had received his gifts prior to his big day - a new baseball glove, as his old one had worn a HOLE in it, and a new suit for church.  He wasn't entirely thrilled about the suit, but he looked awfully handsome.  On his actual birthday, he had no presents to open and all his friends flaked out on him and he had to go to the waterpark with his SISTER!!  Oh, the dread....

Handsome, huh??

 #9:  Jake's baseball career was in full swing through most of the summer.  He played with the newly formed Timpanogos Timberwolves and also on two other teams throughout the season.  As a part of his city league season, he was selected to play on an All-Star team.  The team ended up winning the entire state championship and advanced to play in California in July.  Jake, Kim and I traveled with the team and had an excellent time.  The boys learned what it was like to play against other teams that lived, ate, and breathed baseball.  He had a great season!

Orem All-Stars

Timpanogos Timberwolves

 #8:  Football came once baseball ended.  Once again, he was playing for the Timpanogos Timberwolves.  His football playing days came to a screeching halt in late October when he broke his wrist....just 2 weeks prior to us having better health insurance!!  Ugh.  At any rate, he didn't want to stop playing, so he mostly sat on the sidelines and waited to be called out to kick the ball.  Those became his only shining moments for the rest of the season.  His team took 2nd place in a Regional Tournament.

Jake's the one with the giant cast/covering on his arm!!

 #7:  He joined the YM/YW in our ward and went on TREK.  They spent the better part of a week walking with a handcart just as our pioneer ancestors did.  I can't say he had a good time - in fact, I think it was one of the hardest things he's ever done.  But, I was so happy to hear that MY kids weren't the whiners and that they actually had gotten along really well.  They helped each other out everyday and had many spiritual moments.  It made me so proud to hear from other adults that they were some of the easiest kids on the trip.

One of my favorite Pioneer Cowboys...

#6:  He became an "official" Jr. High student.  He was nervous about 7th grade - even though Abby was in the same school.  But, after a few weeks learning the ropes of lockers and teachers and finding his way to the classrooms, he started to love it.  A few of the kids from baseball were in his classes, so that made things alot easier.

7th grade, here he comes!!

 #5:  Jake, against his will, joined the band.  He played percussion, which became difficult when he broke his wrist.  He got stuck playing the maracas, bells, and hardly ever got to play anything related to a drum.  He didn't love it, but stuck it out through the school year.

Drumming (or spacing off??) at his spring concert.

 #4:  This boy has always been a cowboy at heart.  It stems all the way back to when he wouldn't wear any shoes, other than cowboy boots.  He's had a few years off, but this last summer he tried that hat on a few times again.  First at TREK and then at the Rockin' R Ranch.  He rode horse almost everyday and is still one of my favorite cowboys.

Ride 'em, Cowboy!!

 #3:  He finished the 7th grade!  Unscathed!  He got excellent grades all year long and decided that girls weren't so bad afterall....

#2:  He turned 13...an official teenager.  And, he's sportin' the attitude to go with it.  May we all live through it....

Birthdays and chocolate cake go hand in hand around here!!

 #1:  First Shave.  Ever.  I made him do it - I couldn't take another day looking at that little "mexi-stache" he had goin' on.  Yuck.  I had to wrestle the camera away from him and tackle him to the floor in order to get a photo.  Apparently, he did not want his first shave to be documented.  Too bad, son.  Too bad.

 Jake is well known around here as "the tormentor".  He incessently teases his sisters, to the point of tears.  He can be helpful, when he wants to, but most importantly keeps us entertained through funny comments, smart remarks, and on occasion, dancing.  We love you, Jakey-poo!