Eight is Great!

(Check out Nixan's amazing six-pack! Guess that's what you get when you're an eight year old ball of energy with a very particular palate! Skinny kiddo!)

Nixan turned eight this month! What a special birthday. He has been looking forward to this birthday for many reasons. One is getting his own set of (real!) scriptures with his name on them. Another, the pocket knife. A coming-of-age gift that Nixan has long anticipated (like, for two years, ever since Carson got his when he turned eight). He is also very excited about getting baptized! (Later this month)

Here's my eight year old on his birthday:

With his new scriptures that just had to be blue with silver-edged pages (on this he was quite adamant...he knows what he likes and he's not afraid to tell you so!):

Of course, no birthday is complete without Legos! (Have we purchased all the Harry Potter sets now? Feels like it.)

No cake for Nixan, but his current favorite treat: Rhodes Cinnamon Rolls (heck yes, I got off easy!!)

Working on a mammoth jaw-breaker he received for his birthday:

8 Things We Love about Nixan:

1. He is a Singer and loves pop music. He introduces me to new songs....and gets them stuck in my head! Every morning he's singing something, and often times it's that "Everyday I'm shufflin'" song....so appropriate during the hustle and bustle that is our mornings.

2. He is a great speller and works hard to get all his spelling words down each week, including the challenge words. He loves bringing home those 100+% tests!

3. He is seriously the best soccer player! Currently he plays on a u12 team....he can school some 6th graders, which definitely makes him proud! Really he's great at all athletics...definitely a God-given talent.

4. Nixan is a morning person. He is nearly always the first one out of bed. Always the first one dressed. First one finished with breakfast, first to brush his teeth....etc. This will serve him well in adulthood, right!

5. He is soooo sweet with Sage. She found a soft spot in his heart and it shows! I always appreciate his willingness to help take care of baby Sage.

6. Nixan doesn't procrastinate. If he has a job to do, 9 times out of 10 he gets it done immediately! Homework gets done. I don't have to pester him to do his jobs.

He is very task-oriented!

7. The only person we know with a serious appetite for plain food. By plain I mean no sauces or condiments or combinations of food. Stir-fry over rice? No way. Rice? Yes. Chicken and veggies on the side? Fine. But DON'T you dare put them together. Gross.

8. Nixan is so well-behaved. His teachers always rave about how well he follows the rules and obeys. I think I've heard "a delight to have in the classroom" from every teacher he's had. Wow! Not that he is mischievous at home...but he is a boy...with lots of energy. So I'm always happy to hear that he's controlling himself when he needs to!

We LOVE you Nix!