Happy Birthday, Sweet Pea and Little Man!

Holy cannoli, they're THIRTEEN!! I can't believe our little twinkies are teenagers already. They love to fight like cats and dogs, but as you can clearly tell from this picture, they aren't the worst of enemies. They actually play really well together, and often convince each other to get involved in schemes and elaborate plans.

Sweet Pea continues to be her sassy, spunky self. "That girl will go far in life!" is what I hear the most from people, and we certainly hope her strong will and definite opinions will pay off. She is determined, and an extremely hard worker, whether it's in school, in the neighborhood, or with cirque.

Cirque continues to be her biggest passion, and boy, does she dedicate herself to it. She'll in the studio for classes 7.5 hours a week this year, but on top of that, she volunteers for extra performances, and is eager to practice on her own if she feels she needs a little improvement. Recently she was selected for a major performance with an adult cirque company, so we're in awe and eager to see what it'll look like.

She's the only Morrison (sadly) who has qualified for National Junior Honor Society. She is self-motivated at school in a way our other kids aren't (... yet ...) and prides herself on getting straight As. The NJHS induction will be in a few months, and we'll be bursting with pride. 

Her favorite food is Chick Fil A (especially the Chick Fil A sauce, which she hoards at home and puts on anything). Like any self-respecting middle school girl, she's obsessed with skincare (not makeup) and anything Lululemon. Her favorite color is still yellow, and she currently wants to be a professional Cirque performer when she grows up -- which she's about to achieve at the tender age of 13!

Little Man is our talker, the one who wants to share every funny joke he hears, or have me read a funny page from his latest book. He's getting to be quite the prolific reader, and thankfully is starting to move beyond the graphic novels he's preferred for years. MJ has recently introduced him to the Sharpe's series of books written by Bernard Cornwall, which were MJ's favorites around this age, and Little Man is slowly taking to them. 

Staying organized and focusing on school continues to be a struggle, as Little Man lacks what therapists call "executive functioning skills." But I have a plan for this coming school year, and he certainly has plenty of support from multiple professionals. I keep telling him: he's so smart, it wouldn't be hard for him to get excellent grades if he could just stay organized!

He says he's done with baseball, and wants to go back to tennis. So this fall, he'll start practicing with the junior team at our racquet club. He enjoys coming to hit balls with me and MJ, and he's definitely getting better -- lots of wild shots still, but he can often keep a rally going for a bit, and his shots are noticeably improving. He took a few weeks of tennis camp this summer and enjoyed it, but it wasn't very intense training, so I'm looking forward to him having regular instruction with kids his age.

His favorite foods are cheeseburgers, mac n cheese, and gyoza (Asian dumplings). He has recently discovered he likes mushrooms, which is a revelation! His favorite color is still dark purple, and his favorite activities are playing Minecraft or Zelda on the Nintendo. He's still a cuddler, although less frequently now, and I cherish those little moments when he crawls into bed with me in the morning, or leans up against me at Mass. He still has a bit of "little boy" in him.

We can't wait to see what their 14th year will bring! Happy birthday, Sweet Pea and Little Man!