Ethan Turned Sixteen!

Ethan got his drivers license the day he turned sixteen.  I love that he got all the paperwork done and scheduled the appointment himself.  He was determined!  It also meant that he didn't care about anything else that day, as long as he got his license.  

We celebrated him with a Cold Stone ice cream cake that he picked up from work and opened presents and then he was off to lacrosse practice.  

Ethan got a Nike gift card from Dad and Kathy and a gift card to McDonald's.   My boys are obsessed with both! He also got his own tool box and Randy's parents hooked him up with a few extra tools so he can keep his mechanic shed well stocked.

Ethan has had back neck and back pain with tingling and numbness in his hands and legs.  After weeks of physical therapy and lots of doctor appointments he finally got the all clear to get back to playing lacrosse.  This wasn't easy since he'd missed almost two months of practices, but he got back to playing on the JV team and became their face-off guy.  It was fun to watch him play and the JV team was really good so the future of Skyline lacrosse looks bright for these boys.

Some things about Ethan that are worth mentioning - this boy loves working on engines!  He's got a mini dirt bike that he shares with his two of his friends and it breaks down all the time because they ride it too hard.  Ethan is always the one who can fix it, replace parts, and diagnose the problem.  It's really impressive.  His friends just stand around and watch while Ethan does his thing.

Ethan also bought a go-cart with his friends.  Somehow Ethan convinced Randy to drive two hours away to some farm with a couple of old grandpas who were selling the go-cart they built for their grandkids.  Ethan brought it home and was so frustrated when it wouldn't start because the engine flooded when they loaded it into the truck.  But don't worry, Ethan got it running and since I was out helping him push it along, I got to drive it around in the dark and it was so fun!!  Unfortunately it rarely runs but when it does, it's a good time.

Ethan cleaned out our shed so he can store the dirt bike and go-cart in it.  They strung up Christmas lights so they can work at night and it's pretty much a great teenager hang out. 

Ethan is a hard worker and is now a manager at Cold Stone.  He loves having money and loves serving ice cream and making cakes to earn that money.  I'm excited to see what he decides to do for his career but I have a feeling engineering would be a good direction for him to start.  We love this boy in spite of his terrible haircut :) He loves to have fun, has a really cute girlfriend who doesn't mind hanging out in our chaos, and he manages to get decent grades with as little effort on his part as possible.  He'd probably have straight A's if he tried.  We wish he would try because he's smart!