Our Incredible Nathaniel

How does a mama llama go about describing an incredible son? It hasn't been too hard for me, because we've already raised five awesome older brothers and two incredible sisters. But this Nathaniel is one amazing guy. And since today's his birthday, he's the one in the spotlight.

Nathaniel has an amazing ability to cheer me up. He never lets himself get down much, either. His sense of humor is infectious. One time I came upstairs to find seven phones on the bed, with yellow pieces of paper on top of them that said, "Let's play which cell phone is yours and which one is mine." He had gathered all of our nonworking phones and decided to make a game out of that fact that we had gone through so many phones. That's only one experience; I could name dozens, but let's go on...

He has been blessed with almost countless talents: language, dancing, music (composing and playing and singing), speech, thinking and reasoning, and a sense of adventure. It's so fun to watch him break dance! And I hope someday I can get a recording of the magnificent songs he has written (hint hint).

He has a great love and loyalty to his family, and that goes for everyone from the oldest to the tiny newest. He shares this birthday month with his nephew Christian, and in his Facebook picture he's holding Christian in his lap. He's fiercely protective of his sisters, and makes sure he approves of the guys who are interested in them.

Nathaniel also has a strong sense of integrity. He will stand for principles without shrinking back, and he is articulate and convincing when he makes his points. He is respectful without giving an inch for something that is not right and true. Recently he was featured on KSL, ABC, Fox News, and CNN (as well as probably a bunch of other sites) as a spokesman for Standing for Decency, a group that asked Gold's Gym to show only appropriate movies. He took a lot of flack for that, but he stood his ground.

Nathaniel is powerfully self-motivated. He sold products on eBay and earned his way to China, so he could stay there with his brother Steve and learn the language while seeing the country. He did this at the age of 15, at the same time as he was earning his Eagle rank in Scouts.

In many ways I think Nathaniel is almost as wise as Solomon! Let me give you an example: years ago, he and his sisters were the only ones not invited to a guy's birthday party. Nathaniel and his sisters each put in some money, and Nathaniel walked up to the guy later and said, "Hey, I heard it was your birthday last week. Happy birthday." And he gave him a birthday card with $20 inside. A pretty great way to make his point without becoming a victim!

I could go on for pages and pages, but there's no way I could even begin to express how much I love this boy! He is such a joy to all of us. We are so grateful and blessed to have him in our lives, as a part of our family, and as a dear friend. Happy Birthday, my beloved Nathaniel!