Walther Familia ~ A STORM IS COMING: September 2012

Sunday, September 30, 2012

18 years ago today

our beautiful Kendal was born!

We love you Ken!

Kendal's birthday letter

September 30, 2012

Happy 18^th Birthday Kendal!!!!!

So, this morning Mom and I were congratulating each other on the momentous achievement of being the parents of three ADULT children! Sometimes we wondered if we were ever going to make it to this moment without first running out of parental gas! Well, we made it and we could not be happier to be in a position where all of our children entered into adulthood without problems, issues, arrests or illegitimate children, (oops, maybe not this one). Oh, well, nobody’s perfect.

Anyway, Mom and I wanted to comment on your journey to this pivotal moment in your life and how proud we are of the young woman that you’ve become, (minus the bad looks and attitude that you regularly display to us). From adorable bald baby and toddler, to a wall kicking, dead playing, Mexican dancing little girl, you have always made us laugh out loud and, at times, had us questioning our sanity for having more than two children!...Not really. J….and Bingo was his name O!!!!

From there we began our club softball odyssey where we learned what going broke on a singular sporting activity was about. While we sacrificed our money, our weekends and our summer vacations to the softball Gods, we found that we got paid back much more than we spent in terms of your growth as an incredible young girl and adolescent. You learned about being part of a team; overcoming adversity; silencing the naysayers; practicing followership and leadership; adding to your already sizable bank of self-esteem; and, spending more time with your Mom and Dad than any other girl those ages would ever have wanted to. Although softball was an absolute pain in the ass at times, it was a springboard to you becoming the confidant, mature, and dedicated young woman that you are today. For us, the thousands of dollars that we spent from the time you were nine until present day, (high school ball included), was an investment that will continue to pay returns for the rest of our lives and yours.

You, Kendal, are a wonderfully unique young woman. While we realize that many parents delude themselves by believing that about their otherwise dullard children, you truly are a diamond in the rough. You blend uncommon attributes together to create a personality and style all your own. Humor, sarcasm, intelligence, self-esteem, beauty, strength of character, moral courage, maturity, exacting standards, and a devotion to family and self that is second to none make up the Kendal Grace Walther that we have all come to love and admire. However, since we are not deluded parents ourselves, your uniqueness can also sometimes be referred to as just plain weird. From your own words and language to the sheer volume of ridiculous hand shake routines, to the untold number of strange facial expressions, to the insanity that is your dating life, your “uniqueness” often borders on the absurd! We kid, we kid. J

What a great 18 years it has been for us watching you become who you are today: A sister; a leader; a friend; a granddaughter; an athlete; a trend setter; our daughter. We love you. Happy Birthday!

Love,

Mom and Dad

Kendal is 18!

Cassie had to work at Noon and Coco at One...

So we had a birthday breakfast at 10 am.

Nana got her a gift card to ULTA and some cash money!

Lily's card!

Ryker and Coulter's Card.

Ne'ne's card

Mom and Dad's letter

Read it out loud!

The fans

Reading...

Still reading

Connor and Cassie (and Lisa!) got Kendal a new Buckle wardrobe!

Happy Birthday and make a wish

Yea! :)

Happy 18th Birthday.

Zack called right in the middle of the party to wish her

happy birthday.

Love you miss you Zack!

After the party Kendal and Caitlin Evans went to

a Diamondback baseball game.

Happy pre-18th birthday!

Addie got Kendal a jacket that

she has been wanting for a loong time!

Mom and Dad got her a new look

Our blondie.

Friday, September 21, 2012

EIB

So PROUD of Zack!!!

He earned his EXPERT INFANTRY BADGE!

The Expert Infantryman Badge, or EIB, is a military badge of the United States Army.The EIB is presented for completion of a course of testing designed to demonstrate proficiency in infantry skills.
The EIB was first created in October 1943. Currently, it is awarded to U.S. Army personnel who hold infantry or special forces military occupational specialties. To be awarded the EIB, the soldier must complete a number of prerequisites and pass a battery of graded tests on basic infantry skills; usually the testing phase is the culmination of weeks of training. The EIB test is administered on average once every couple of years with pass rates usually near 10 percent, depending on the unit conducting testing.