In our house, when a kid hits double digits they earn a trip with Daddy to somewhere special, fun, and top secret. When Firstborn turned ten she flew to Texas to ride roller-coasters and eat cowboy grub. Two years later, Center Sister spent her birthday trip mermaiding in Oahu. Most recently, it was [not-so]Little Man’s turn…
Because Little Man’s such a raging baseball fanatic, Husband planned his special trip around a Dodger’s game (his favorite team); but since we’ve been to Los Angeles so many times he opted instead to stay and explore San Diego, zipping north just for game day in their rented hot rod.
He was over the moon. This was the highlight, for sure. He saw all his favorite players, spent all of his souvenir money, enjoyed all the traditional ballpark treats, and even brought his mitt in hopes of catching a foul ball.
The last time Husband was in San Diego Firstborn was just six weeks old, but it was Little Man’s first visit– so they explored Sea World, the zoo, and the naval base, and we compared photos to our family archives.
It was a perfect birthday trip for our Big Boy. I’m grateful that Husband is an affirming, steadfast father to our children, happily carving out time to make these special memories. Our girls reminisced about their own ten-year-old trips as we received text & photo updates throughout the long weekend and the full debrief after the guys returned home. I swear Little Man came home taller than when he left just a few days prior (he’s juuuuust about to pass me in height). In fact, each of our kids returned from their respective trips standing taller, visibly matured and feeling special, having made memories they’ll treasure their whole lives. Now that our last one is past I think we’ll plan to continue the tradition with our future grandkids.
Long before Little Man joined our family, when the girls were just babies, our pastor shared from the pulpit how he had a similar special trip with each of his kids as a kind of coming-of-age ceremony/celebration. It made an impression on many, including our good friends with kids just a touch older than ours. Because they started it first, and we blatantly copied, we’ve called it the Lowry Ten ever since.
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