We have a hard time getting all the Hawleys together at one time. My guess is that Nik was at marching band practice (where he spent the entire fall, after spending a huge part of his summer there). But we love to celebrate with whomever we've got, and it's not so bad to be a 17 year old boy surrounded by such beauty!
Nothing says "Happy Birthday" like a smiling monkey cake! Chris loves cupcakes, so I formed a rough monkey shape with them, and then piled on the frosting!
A little about Chris, since I slack off at Christmas and didn't get a letter out:
Chris wants to attend either the Air Force Academy (1st choice) or West Point. He has had a lot of training in military protocol, advancement and duties during his 5 years in the Civil Air Patrol - any moms and dads who haven't checked out this wonderful program should look into it. Great opportunities to develop leadership skills, learn practical skills - like actually flying planes, earning an FCC communications degree and interning at a radio station, etc etc. - and gain maturity. Chris has learned a ton of things, in many different areas, not the least of which are his search and rescue practical skills. He has amazing knowledge of things like survival skills - what plants are edible and which ones are poisonous, shelter making, in some ways like Boy Scouts on steroids.
This is an excerpt from a college application he's writing: As a member of the Hawk Mountain Ranger School cadet staff cadre I regularly lead squadrons of cadets varying in size from 10 to 40 cadets on search and rescue exercises and training sorties in a woodland environment.
Wow - Chris can really *do* that? Yep, he's good, even though he chooses when to turn it on and when to turn it off, he's that good. And that's why I think college will do so much for him. He has the skills and there I think he'll learn how to incorporate that maturity into everyday life.
Chris loves to sing, participating in the highest level of choir at his school. He has participated in plays and musicals there; you should have seen him in "Crazy For You" last Spring. All those years of goofing around with his brother, speaking in a British accent and parading around the neighborhood in a Pith helmet finally paid off, as he was selected for the part of Mr. Fodor - he was wonderful! Currently he's practicing for the musical "All Shook Up". He loves to play lacrosse, pick on his siblings, and teach me about all kinds of hip things that I'd have no idea about if it weren't the kindness of our kids 'cluing me in'.
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