We have a teenager in the house. Isaac turned 13 at the end of October, and I do not feel old enough to be the mother of a teenager.
Teachers were on their last day of strike, so it was a day of freedom for him. We made pancakes in the morning, dad took him out for lunch, then he/we did a little running around- Halloween store, comic book store, Ernie's to browse the baseball section... We took everyone to Old Trapper's for dinner, and they even had the booth decorated with balloons for him. Then Mia babysat while he, Gordon, and I went to an escape room, that we actually managed to escape from.
A few days later he and a few friends went to the trampoline park, then came back to our house for pizza. They jumped on the trampoline, watched Wreck it Ralph (no one was more surprised than I at this choice), then the Blue Jays game. It was low key, just the way I like parties. And kind of fitting with his personality. Isaac doesn't need a lot of fanfare or large parties. He prefers to have a few close friends and just hang out. Far different from his sisters who are creating an itinerary for their birthdays weeks in advance.
Birthday Interview
Favourite colour: red and blue
Favourite animal: a budgie
Favourite colour: red and blue
Favourite animal: a budgie
Favourite movie: I don't have one, maybe K Pop Demon Hunters? I'm kidding, the Good, Bad, and the Ugly.
Favourite book: Diary of a Wimpy Kid
Favourite thing to do for fun: baseball, shooting, dirtbiking
Favourite subject: probably science because it's the most fun and interactive
What do you want to be when you grow up?: Something that makes a lot of money
What are you scared of?: I don't know. I'm not really scared of monsters.
Describe yourself in 3 words: smart, funny, skinny....did you write skinny down? I was kidding. Skibidi or sigma. No, I'm just kidding. Cute. You're not writing that down (oh but I am). Fun.
What was the best thing about being 12?: I really enjoyed grade 7.
What are you most looking forward to about being 13?: Being a teenager, I guess? Although I can't really do anything. I can't drive. I'm not an adult. I'm still just a child.
This last year Isaac was able to play baseball. He started to really enjoy it in grade 6, playing with his friends at recess. Then it kind of turned into this real desire to play in some type of organized league, and he was able to play with GP minor baseball in their spring league. He learned some valuable lessons about teamwork and sportsmanship. He was also awarded MVP for bat catching after the final tournament. He then went on to play fall ball and is hoping to play again this spring. I found I enjoyed watching his games quite a bit, when the mosquitoes weren't eating us alive.
He also enjoys watching most sporting events, and has had a chance to watch minor baseball and hockey games this year.
He has also found his way around the kitchen more and more. He has really enjoyed taking foods the past two years at school, even though handwashing dishes is involved. At home he will make cookies, banana bread, and has made us garlic breadsticks a few times to go with supper. I think he's probably doing dishes better at school than home though.
He has been in charge of his laundry (clothes and bedding) this whole past year, and has quickly realized that if you leave your wet clothes, that you don't want to put in the dryer, in a pile they will not dry. Only took him one morning of blow drying himself off before school to learn that lesson.
Isaac also had the unfortunate experience of being shot in the face with a pellet gun right before the end of the school year. It was a freak accident, where a jammed bullet dislodged and fired into his forehead about an inch above his eyebrow. The trajectory of the pellet actually made its final resting place in his eye socket, between his brown bone and his eyeball. Through a series of miracles (the biggest of which being no permanent damage to anything), we were able to get into a plastic surgeon in Edmonton for surgery within two weeks. Everything went smoothly and you wouldn't be able to tell looking at him that the incident even occurred. He even got to keep the pellet- which was honestly his biggest concern. He still loves shooting things...
He just got braces a week ago and has been adjusting to eating normally. He has such a deep bite that the orthodontist had to put little "studs" on his molars to correct it, which means it's hard for him to completely get his teeth together. He is not a fan, and has told me this is not worth it for straight teeth, but I told him he should just accept it while his parents were paying for it, rather than having to pay for it himself as an adult.
This summer he joined his grandparents on another multi-day backpacking adventure in Egypt Lake. They even encountered a grizzly bear, close enough that they had their bear spray out and ready to use. Despite that, the sore feet, the dehydrated food and oatmeal, and bugs, it's something he thoroughly enjoys doing. He also climbed Fisher Peak with his dad and Grandpa, in September- a very challenging 9-10km hike with over 1300m of elevation gain. He loves adventuring and thrill rides.
Isaac is the oldest grandkid on both sides. He takes this role somewhat seriously, and was found on several occasions giving his younger cousins rides on the paddleboard this summer in Victoria. He was often trying to steal his baby cousin Clara from me. If it's not really little kids, then he prefers to hang with adults. He told me once when he was hanging out with my friends "sometimes I feel like I'm babysitting them".
One of Isaac's best traits is his quick wit. He is always ready with a quip or comedic relief. He is also as sharp as a tack. Very little that he hears go over his head. It makes trying to have a private conversation quite difficult. He also doesn't get squeamish with "body talk" or sensitive topics. Having a mom for a nurse means everything is pretty frank and candid around here, but where Gordon will plug his ears (how he will survive 4 daughters, I know not), Isaac just takes it in stride, almost always non plussed.
He is great at memorizing facts and sometimes embarrasses Gordon and I when he answers Jeopardy questions faster than us. He is a good test taker (as long as it isn't longer answer questions). He and Gordon took a hunting course this year, and he had to take a test. Isaac announced after barely 20-30 minutes of reviewing that he was ready to take the test. You have to pay to take it, so I suggested Isaac study a little more before he takes it, because I wouldn't pay for him to take it twice. He ignored that advice, took the test, and passed with ease. It did not help reinforce the life lesson I was trying to teach him.
Isaac thoroughly enjoys pushing buttons. Doesn't matter if it's his parents, sisters, teachers... he finds that button and he pushes it. I've been told many times that he's "opinionated" in class. If you want an honest opinion on something, he will give it to you. Last year his teacher was vegan, and Isaac was questioning him on the merits and reasons why. His teacher said "Well if you wouldn't eat a dog, why would you eat a cow? They're both animals." Isaac's reply was "Well if you wouldn't eat grass, why would you eat celery? They're both plants." The need to debate is endless with this kid, and he will never admit he's wrong (even if he clearly is).
Despite this, he has been a part of organizing a few sweet things for Gordon and I. Once he lit some candles, told Alexa to play romantic music, and then told the girls to leave Gordon and I alone while we we enjoyed a quiet dinner.
After my birthday dinner, we came home and he and Mia had organized a "movie theater" experience for us where we were given tickets and snacks, had "VIP" labeled seats, and they put on my favourite movie (Lion King).
This year for Halloween he wanted to be Donald Trump, mostly just because he knew it would get on some people's nerves. However, he had quite a few people at different Halloween events request to take pictures with him. And a number of kids came up to him and said things like "My parents don't like you." or "My parents said you're mean." So I think he achieved his goal. He did a fairly good impression of him, which had my eyelids twitching a few times in annoyance. Despite this, he is charismatic enough his teachers say they love him. He also has a strange affinity for the elderly, who seem to gravitate towards him and shower him with love.
He has quite the entrepreneurial spirit. He loves to make money...and loves to spend it. One morning before school, he was up early, gets out a pot, corn syrup, sugar, and water, and starts boiling away. He had looked up how to make "candy glass" and made up little bags to sell at school. Willy Wonka continued the candy selling enterprise for a couple weeks until I told him I needed my cookie sheets back. Not all of his business ventures are serious though. He posted a picture of our neighbour's chairs on Facebook marketplace, advertising them as "chairs Elvis Presley farted in", and listed them for $20000.
Isaac loves history of WWI and WWII and has gathered quite the little medal and memorabilia collection from friends and family. He loves looking up what stuff is and what it means.
He still wants a hug from me every day before bed. Sometimes he'll even throw in a "you're doing a great job", if he knows I've had a hard day (that he didn't contribute to). Part of me ingrains that memory in my brain forever. The other part is thinking what he's going to ask me to buy next must be really expensive. His wheels are always turning! He doesn't mind selfies with his parents, and one of his favourite hobbies is taking tweezers to my grey hairs "to keep me young".
Slowly the realization that he will shortly be ready to spread his wings to fly without me there is dawning on me. Part of me is ready. Part of me is not. Until then, we'll keep enjoying all the laughs, eye rolling, and big hugs this kid brings to our life.
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