Jessica’s 14th Birthday

Turning fourteen may not seem like a big deal, but it is in Alaska. Alaska allows you to get your driver’s permit at fourteen as well as many other things so it is one of the first big age milestones here. We gave Jessica an early birthday present of a new pistol and picked up a smaller gift to give her at her birthday party. Our trailer is way to small for parties so her birthday party was held at a friend’s house. Tacos was the dinner of choice so we cooked and prepped everything and took the food over along with the cake that Hannah made her.

Its hard to believe our youngest is 14! Where did the time go?! Hannah was looking at pictures of her from birth to present, wow, it went so fast. So proud of the young woman she is becoming! Teen years are hard but so far it hasn’t gotten too crazy. Getting her drivers permit is the next thing on the list so she is studying hard. Makes me feel old, lol!

Her birthdays are simpler than her siblings generally as she keeps the friends list fairly small and would rather have fun with friends than have gifts or party so we usually get a fancier meal for her as it still costs less than feeding a bunch of kids. Her past birthdays have usually been on a river bar or camping somewhere, this one was different for this one since it was inside at someone’s house. The only downfall about being in Alaska is that friends and family cannot easily attend birthdays and other things. We figured Christmastime would be a great time for all of us to get together instead as her brother and sister will most likely be on a break then so they don’t have to rush back for school or work.  

Jessica has made many good friends in Alaska so it was going to be a fun time for all of them. She also wanted to take the Gator out while she was there so we had to go to Wasilla first to pick up the car trailer and Gator. The Gator was blocked by the lawnmower and other stuff from the trip up the Alaska Highway so I figured it would take a while to get it off the trailer. It needed to be ran for a while anyway and we really wanted to take it on a ride so I didn’t argue.

It has been a huge answer to prayer for Jessica to have Christian kids her age to hang out with, be around, and grow with. She has started coming out of her shell and actually talking, sharing, and laughing with the other girls. We are very thankful and excited to see the woman she is becoming.

The party and dinner itself went really well, everyone had fun and there was plenty of leftover food and cake. Jessica was shy as always and tried to avoid the birthday song and blowing out of the candles to no avail. I know, we live dangerously with blowing out candles just as if it were pre-2020 but we all lived anyway. She got some nice presents and the kids went outside and had fun afterwards before taking the Gator for a spin. Most trails are wide enough for the Gator and there were only a few tight places Jessica had to go through, but she had already done enough driving in tight spots in the woods that they weren’t a problem at all.

The trails and roads have cleared of snow and ice, just mud in some spots now. Makes riding to her friends houses easier and way more fun. Jessica has had her first birthday in Alaska with many more to come. We had a of fun and are excited to see what God has in store for her future.