"Silas, would you please read some books to your sister?"....."Silas, would you please watch Samuel while I'm out of the room to make sure he doesn't feed his food to the dog?"......"Silas, would you please turn on the Wii for Josiah?"......"Silas, would you please take out the trash?" ....."Silas, would you please go in the garage and get an extra oxygen tank for the outing?"....."Silas, would you please fix your brother a snack?"....."Silas, would you please balance the checkbook and do the taxes?"....

Okay, so maybe I've never asked you that last question, Silas, but after shooting this cute photo of you and Savanna today, I was reminded of how much I expect, ask and require of you each day to keep our lives running smoothly (or at least, running!). You are an incredibly responsible 8 year old and live up to such high expectations on a daily basis. But you also make me laugh so much (like today when I told you something very ordinary, and with very sweet sarcasm you replied, "how touching." ) I love the things you draw and the machines you "build" on your engineering computer game. I love your voice, your compassion, and your insatiable appetite for anything Star Wars and a stack of saltine crackers. I love how you love your brothers and sister, all of which have had "celebrity status" most of their lives because of their unique entrances into our family.

But you are incredibly unique, and uniquely able to put up with my impatient outbursts, constant requests for help and constant nagging about the messes your hourly craft projects incur! I love you, son, and am proud to be your mother. I know God has great plans for your life, and I just wanted to say publicly that no one is more excited about seeing them unfold than me!

Your loving mom