Jonathan is THIRTEEN!!!!

Well, I'm officially the mother of a teenager! It seems like only yesterday Jonathan was born on Monday October 2, 1995 at 12:18 in Charlotte, NC. He weighed 6lbs 9 oz and was 20 1/2 inches long.

Here are 13 things about Jonathan for his 13th birthday...

1. He made Mike and I the parents we are today. When he was 3 days old, he was admitted back into the hospital in Pediatric Intensive Care. He was jaundiced, lethargic, dehydrated, and sleepy. He had a seizure while we were at a lactaion consultant's office. He actually had a stroke and brain damage in the right rear part of his brain. This has not affected his development.

2. When he was 2 1/2 , on the day Madi was to be baptized, he had a grand mal seizure and we rushed him to the hospital. His blood sugar was 21. We spent a lot of the next few YEARS "making" him eat which was not easy. He had many tests and it was determined that he had glycogen storage disease type 9. Everynight for about 2 years we woke him up in the middle of the night and gave him a "shake" (usually ovaltine and milk or soymilk) so that he wouldn't go long periods without calories. He outgrew this.

3. He has amblyopia and stabismus. This means his eyes are not lined up and he only uses one eye at a time. He had eye surgery at 10 months old, and might need it again.

4. In spite of 1,2,and 3, he is really a strong, healthy, happy, smart kid!

5. He LOVED garbage and garbage trucks (and recycling) as a young child. He has a collection of garbage trucks. In the grocery store he'd call it being a garbage man when he'd ride on the back of the cart (like they ride on the back of the truck). We were constantly checking out garbage and recycling videos from the library in those days. Even today, he usually runs out (or at least to the window) to watch when the garbage truck comes.

6. He loves Christian music and got our whole family hooked on listening to Z88. He loves God and the Catholic Church.

7. He loves playmobile and collects it. He collects different Monopoly games too.

8. He is a huge Harry Potter fan!!

9. He loves going to the airport, but doesn't care very much for flying.

10. He is a good and fairly adventurous eater inspite of the fact that we had to make him eat and therefore often made him whatever we knew he would eat.

11. He's been involved in Theatre for more than half his life. He likes everything about it whether he is onstage, backstage, or "doing the lights".

12. He loves just about everything and genuinely gets excited about so much...Meme and Grampa Carlie coming over, Disney, webkins, bowling, golf, kick ball, apple pie, mashed potatoes, a glass of milk, when good things happen to his siblings, how things are made, money, stock, and much much more. He likes taking care of little kids and has as much fun with his 9 year old friends as he does with his 14 year old friends. Because he has always been homeschooled, I don't think he even thinks about ages.

13. He is an amazing son, an awesome big brother and a great friend. We love you Jonathan!!!