Alex is 16

Alex's birthday seemed to keep on going for several days.  These pictures were taken after church on Sunday.  I had offered to make or buy him a cake.  He finally decided he wanted me to buy the Sara Lee frozen cheesecakes.  The disadvantage, of course, was that they had to thaw for a day.  He wanted one for himself and a couple for everyone else to share.  That was fine because they were quite small.  So, Sunday was the day for birthday cheesecake.  We sat around, ate cheesecake and talked and laughed.  It was an enjoyable afternoon.  I love days like that.

Alex with his cheesecake

Trying to hide behind his tie from the camera

Jesikah

Tessa

Alex messing with Jarem

Trying to make him smile, I think

Jesikah made Alex a very clever card

And attached a Snicker's bar.  On the otherside was a heartfelt note to him.

These two often don't get along, so it was great to have a tender moment between them, however brief it may have been.

I remember the day Alex was born.  What proud parents Eric and I were!  We were both emotional that we had been trusted to care for this precious little baby boy.  He was such a good baby.  He was always happy and hardly ever cried.  He always slept all night unless he was sick, which was SUCH a blessing with Eric and I both still students and both working to make ends meet.  We are very proud of Alex and all he has become in his 16 years of life.  We are so glad he is part of our family and we love him very much.  Here are 16 things we love about Alex:

1) He is smart.
2) He keeps us his grades and maintains straight A's most all the time without any encouragement on our end.
3) He has a strong testimony of the gospel.
4) He lives what he believes no matter where he is.
5) He is not afraid to share his beliefs with others or stand up for his standards.
6) He has clean language-he doesn't cuss.
7) He is a great soccer player.
8) He has a talent for the piano.
9) He plays the piano in Priesthood meeting every week even though it makes him nervous, and he has really improved.
10) He enjoys singing and he is good at it.  He has worked to learn both tenor (before his voice change) and bass parts now.
11) He has a strong determination to do what is right and is always trying to improve himself.
12) He is a good example to his friends and younger siblings.
13) He can be a fun brother.  Sometimes he will spend hours making up stories and acting them out with Legos to entertain Tessa and Jarem.
14) He is good at drama.  He made the part of Uncle Billy in the school play, "It's a Wonderful Life", and his drama teacher cannot say enough good about him.
15) He has a good plan for his future and he's already making preparations for his mission and college.
16) He has a good sense of humor.

We are so blessed to have Alex in our family.