A double digit birthday - Cooper

 

Doubt Digits – ten years old already

 

Well shit mate, here we are. Me struggling to get through the very thought of writing this, you asleep soundly in you room oblivious to the big emotions I’m feeling as I watch you grow up, as you verge on the edge of a double digit birthday.

Your room smells like boy now and it is no longer that sweet baby boy smell.  You’ve asked me once or twice recently if I can buy you deodorant, I’ve been reluctant, more in denial than anything, but honestly it’s probably time now. This double digit birthday is a big one for you, for one you’ve asked repeatedly since your 6^th birthday to be able to play fortnite with your friends, my response has always been “when you turn ten” and now you’re here and I’m wishing I’d said thirteen. Secondly after last year you get to have all your mates around, nerf war fighting and having fun.

 

Now lets talk about your last 12 months, 2020 was tough for many, but boy oh boy was it tough on you.  The first week of lock down saw you face down on the trampoline angry and upset beyond words that you couldn’t be with your friends. Then there was 6 weeks of zero technology at the farm, no sport, no sleepovers, no fun….. until there was. School went back face to face, sport recommenced, I started to feel comfortable letting you hang out with your friends – and then we moved. We tried to sell the move to you by giving you the biggest room all to yourself, the freedom of being able to walk around / ride around the neighbourhood and down to the shops without my watchful eyes over you, the yard space, membership to the pool….. but none of that mattered. You hated adjusting to having a room to yourself, you suddenly became afraid of shadows and the dark because of the sound and darkness of the country at night. You hated that play dates had to be planned, that I would not just let you go to someone’s house after school any more or between trainings and you weren’t impressed with the bus ride into and home from school a couple of times a week.  Then there was Pax, your very best mate from the age of 3, a mate you spent 6, sometimes 7 days a week with year-round moving to Cairns. I could see how much that hurt you, for a while you felt a little lost, getting in trouble at school, issues with other kids, really unleashing all your frustrations for things out of your control onto me. It was hard for me to help you through last year with so much change, but with a new year came a new you and you started to thrive again, you’ve still got some of that lingering attitude but I’m assured that that’s just how it’s going to be for the next few years, and reading back on this I hope you can now understand why your Dad and I made the decisions that we did. We did them for you, to shape you into the man we want you to become, someone resilient, fair, kind, and strong with good leadership qualities and an understanding of what a supportive family unit looks like.

 

No surprised that another year means another sport, this year trying your hand at hockey and as always it seemed to come fairly naturally to you. I’m pretty proud of the fact you are willing to try to have a go at almost anything and you always do so with focus and determination.  Your cricket season last year was no different either, deciding that you weren’t a pace bowl but a leg spinner you convinced the coach to let you work on that and you got better and better each game. You ended up taking out the coaches award for persevering and practicing your spin with real dedication and commitment.

 Academically you still do really well at school, with the biggest complaint from teachers being that a) you are too talkative and b) you help others too much and don’t enable them to figure it out themselves.

 I’m not quite ready for 10 and what happens after it, all the books I read tell me I have to keep insisting on hugging you and spending time supporting your interests, hearing you (no matter how brain numbing I find the discussion about Minecraft to be), challenging you to be independent and to take calculated risks and setting clear boundaries and sticking to them. All of that seems easy enough when you read it, lets hope it is just that, that parenting you remains as fuss free (for the most part) over the next year as it has up until this point.

 

 I love you kid. I know I’m tough on you but god I love you. I love the person you are becoming and the place you have in this family. Keep being you Coop and you will achieve whatever it is that you have your sights on. Happy 10th birthday I am so very proud of you. 

10 –

• Height: too tall .... i'll have to remember to measure you and add it later
• Weight:33 kilo
• Loves: your mates, sport, gaming and reading.
• Best Mates: Liam, Lewis, Sam, Pax and Issac R
• Hates: Your sister intruding on your space, screen time limits, homework that’s prescribed by mum, heights and capsicum.
• Favourite food: pizza – hands down.
• Biggest highlight of the year – returning to face to face schooling, first place in the 2021 100m back stroke, coming in runners up as best and fairest for the 2020 footy season, climbing Mt  Kosciuszko and holidaying for a week with Liam at Forster last winter holidays.