Cole is TWELVE!

Dear Cole - It's crazy to think that you are already 12 years old! My sweet little baby boy is nearly a teenager. 

Time sure slips by quickly. Those days of you as a newborn seem like a lifetime ago, yet in some ways like it was just yesterday. You were so tiny, barely filling your car seat on our way home from the hospital. And now we are celebrating your 12th birthday!

This year your birthday fell on a Tuesday. We had a low key celebration after school starting with a gift for our number one WWE fan. Months ago, you had somehow misplaced your WWE game for your old Xbox 360. You had been begging for a replacement and with your birthday coming up, I knew exactly what you wanted. The look on your face when you opened your gift was priceless!

For your birthday dinner, you requested your favorite - Red Robin. Red Robin has been your favorite food joint for as long as I can recall. You always order the same - a turkey burger with fries and cranberry juice.

For dessert you had requested homemade brownies. I had found a new gluten-free/dairy-free recipe just for the occasion. And wow! They were sure delicious. The brown sugar was the secret ingredient making them extra tasty!

Your birthday party would be the following weekend. It was a small gathering with a few family members. We started the morning with a gift to match the theme - another wrestling Xbox game and a matching T-shirt.

Soon the guests arrived and there were more gifts to open.

Instead of our usual piñata, you thought a candy hunt (like an Easter Egg hunt) would be a better option. You and your siblings searched the house high and low snatching up each piece of candy as quickly as it was spotted.

You are our goofball and love playing silly games, so of course, some fun games were in store for your party. We started out with a rousing game of Hot Potato. There were lots of laughs as the hot potato was tossed from one guest to another.

After the craziness of Hot Potato, you and Rose tried your hands at 'Toss the Ring on the Reindeer'. Owen graciously agreed to be the Reindeer as you and Rose took turns throwing ring after ring to see who could get the most rings hooked onto the antlers.

Next up on the agenda was dinner. Since we had just had Red Robin, we tried out Washington Square where you ordered none other than a burger and fries. You sure are a man of routine. You know what you like and have no desire to branch too far from your favorites.

Your cake this year was made by Sweet Infusions Bakehouse - an in-home bakery in Lino Lakes. It was decorated as a wrestling ring and turned out perfect for my little WWE fanatic. But you don't even like cake, so you passed on dessert while the rest of us dug in. You spent the remainder of the day playing before bidding a fond farewell to your birthday guests.

Cole, you are such a caring young man. You often put the needs of your siblings in front of your own, offering them your Xbox to play, iPad to watch a show or even your very own stash of candy to cheer them up. You are our little peace keeper and love making people happy.

You are a WWE super fan! You know all the WWE characters and all the wrestling moves. You love playing WWE on the Xbox. It's your all-time favorite Xbox game. But boy, do you hate to lose. So you've figured out that if you play "2 players" you can control every move in the game, ensuring that the player of your choosing wins every time.

You have come up with some pretty wild ideas, but bull wrestling may just take the prize. You often use your trampoline as a wrestling ring and even have a wrestling dummy to practice your moves on. One day out of the blue, you asked for a bull costume to wrestle with. You had seen a wrestling match on Youtube where one of the wrestlers wore a bull costume and you wanted to give it a try. Even better, you wanted me to wear the costume. The things you come up with! Thankfully Rose was eager to wear the bull costume in the ring, and you happily pinned her with your favorite WWE moves.

You have become quite a fan of swimming. While you have always been rather cautious around water, over the last year you have started to love the pool, hopping in to splash around or play catch in the water nearly every summer day.

You have always been fond of speed and love cruising around the neighborhood in your go-cart. Your favorite destination is the gas station up the the street where you can stop in for a sugar fill of your favorite candy or drink.

Nearly every weekend, you ask, "What about a sleepover?" You love sleepovers at Nana Judy's house where the house is quiet and you can do the activities you enjoy without having to appease the very strong opinions of your siblings. It's your favorite little getaway destination.

Every night after a busy school day, you ask for a "party with Pa". It's not so much a party, but you and Pa hanging out in the master bedroom while you stream your favorite YouTube channels. It's the perfect way to unwind after a long day.

You are quite the comedian. You love making people laugh by cracking jokes or doing silly things. It's like music to your ears when your audience breaks out in laughter. Your favorite audience member is definitely your sister Aria. You will do anything to get her giggling and those giggles often turn into loud squeals of delight as she watches on to see what your next silly antic will be.

A very happy 12th birthday to you, Cole. You are our one-of-a-kind, fun-loving, always on the move boy. You love putting a smile on our faces and filling our home with laugher. We love you to the moon and back!