Connor turned 15 in early May, and boy did it sneak up on us. This man-child continues to grow and change so much that I feel like I hardly recognize him some days. Sniff sniff
As was the continuing theme for 2021, Connor's birthday flew completely under the radar. Between his commitments for school, summer baseball, and upcoming finals/AP exams, this boy was too busy to celebrate properly. Luckily we were able to squeeze in a quick birthday dinner one weekend with the family and one of his buddies at Connor's favorite spot, Texas Roadhouse. I snapped a quick photo of Kevin and Jeff toasting the occasion, and Connor and Sam stole their beers for the same type of toast photo. I had to promise Sam's mom that we weren't letting the boys drink beer, HA!
Despite how busy and rushed Connor's birthday was, we still managed a few gifts and of course, his favorite homemade chocolate cake. It's a true labor of love and has always been Connor's favorite cake since we tried it back in Dubai. Connor appears to have some competition now Jeff and Kaitlynn are enjoying it more and more, though.
On Connor's actual birthday, I woke up super early to make a full breakfast for him - egg and bacon breakfast tacos with his all time favorite awesome rolls. He was a happy boy!
At age 15, Connor is 6'1" in height with seemingly more growth to come. His birthday was right around the time that he matched his older brother Collin in height, and he is now gunning for Kevin who is 6'2". As a freshman at Katy High School, Connor was having a stellar year with a super tough schedule while also juggling both basketball and baseball commitments for the freshman/sophomore teams. Two of his high school classes were actually college Advanced Placement courses, and in fact, the morning after his birthday was his very first official AP test to determine if he would gain college credit for the course. (He found out later in the summer that he had earned the highest score possible for BOTH tests! Awesome!)
While most kids celebrate their 15th birthday with a scheduled trip to the Department of Public Safety office for their driver's permit, Connor was showing very little interest in that. He seemed a bit intimidated by the whole process of learning to drive as well as actually driving, and I sure wasn't in any hurry to push it.
Later on his birthday, Connor had a late baseball game and ended up having a pretty rough outing which made for a bad ending to his special day. It's tough to see your kids go through their struggles and learn how to accept defeat gracefully. We're working on these life lessons in our household these days, primarily when it comes to mental toughness. It's a lesson we all still need in countless areas!
No matter the ups and downs, there's nothing a little homemade chocolate cake can't cure. I'll likely need to remember that in the years to come. Happy 15th birthday to my big boy!
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