If you ever need entertainment, just listen to Declan “read” the book “Make Way for Ducklings”. Once you’ve heard all the ducks “querwacking with their little querwackers just as loudly as they can querwack” you’ll never read the book quite the same way. His memory is amazing, and he can sing obscure songs and quote whole books just like his Uncle Philip could. His imagination is lively, his personality is quick to make friends, and his red curls and freckles…
The brown boy was an exceedingly sober baby, and making him smile was really an accomplishment, as he preferred to just stare at you with his big brown eyes. He had a large vocabulary, and at a tender young age, instead of just saying “Bag”, he asked me, “Is that the purple bag you use when you drive very fast in your car for a very long time?” Brandon has left his solemnity behind now, but not his love of…
I think Tirzah looks a bit elvish, with her golden hair and her dusting of freckles, and I love that her ears stick out just a tad, like her uncle’s. She has one of the most giving personalities I’ve met. She is quick to make friends, and if she takes a fancy to you, you might be gifted with stickers or drawings of heart surgery (her father is studying medicine after all) or precious stones she has found. When you…
Weston was the first nephew on both sides, and the day he was born, his Coates and Troyer aunts and uncles spent the day painting a room and anxiously waiting for the phone to ring. Boy, was there ever celebrating in that room when I answered the phone and relayed the news. A few weeks later when his uncle Isaac beat us all to Heaven, his delightful baby cuddliness was exactly what we all needed as we tried to process…
It is only fair I warn you of what is coming next. Before Weston was thought of, I didn’t quite get what all the hype was about. Sure, nieces and nephews were great, but it was just funny when their aunts and uncles got all mushy about how adorable and sweet and perfect they were. I mean, c’mon, it’s not like they’re actually that cute and certainly there are many other babies in the world that compare. And then Weston was…
Philip was born five and a half years after me, and I was completely thrilled at having a little brother, even if he wasn’t named Jehu as we speculated. As a kid, he could quote rhymes and stories and songs like nobody else, possibly as a result of having six doting older siblings to read to him. His great memory hasn’t failed with his old age, and he still can quote verbatim more than pretty much anyone I know. He’s quirky, he’s…
PC to Micah We used to say that we couldn’t have two of our siblings marry siblings, but Micah decided otherwise when he picked Michael’s sister. And now, we aren’t even sorry. Merry is a homemaker to the core, as is evidenced by her careful guidance of her children, her lovely little home, and the abundance of pies seemingly always in her fridge. She can make anything she touches beautiful, and her artistic sewing capabilities are in high demand. Even…
Micah has the kind of personality that you can’t help but love. He is unabashed and charming and spontaneous. His thirst for adventure means he is constantly dashing around the world with his little family, creating awesome memories for his kids. His enthusiasm for life and free spiritedness are contagious. He is an exceedingly helpful person- the kind of big brother every girl needs. Basically, having a Micah is like having a personal mechanic to ease all my auto worries….
Raphael was on a Bible project team, many moons ago, and stayed at our house in Erandique on and off for several months. He would sit in the kitchen and discuss things with us, and my conversation-starved family quickly grew to love him. When we returned to the States, we became even better friends, since he and Micah hung out a lot and since he lived an hour away he spent a lot of nights at our house. So we…
Rosie is my go-to person. She’s the one to whom I can send my self-deprecating texts, my purposely awful snapchats, and my whining about feeling like a drugged cow or whatever, and she’s sure to have the right response. She is honest and straightforward, she’s smart and hilarious, she really ought to run a restaurant and write a book, and her skills with kids make the competition tough for favorite-aunt-award. If you want to feel completely at ease with whatever…
Melissa and I were friends long before she became part of our family, although not so long before she wished to be part of our family. 🙂 I remember pouring out my little eleven-year-old troubles to her, and she kindly listened and gave me advice and love and never made me feel small or too young, despite the fact that I was a mere infant in comparison to her nineteen-year-old self. Later, when we both lived in Honduras, she spent…
I don’t know how he does it. That’s basically what comes to mind when I think of Daniel. Between a full time job, school, raising four children, and serving at church, I’d think his brain cells would be about to explode. But he has put his inborn determination to good use, and is doing really cool things with his life as a result. He’s one of my favorite people to make music with, because with just a glance, we can…