Hallie is FIFTEEN.

 My most precious Hallie Belle,

FIFTEEN.

Oh my darling girl…how in the WORLD are you fifteen?!?

Every year I sit down to write this letter and somehow find myself saying the exact same thing. Time is moving entirely too fast. But this year feels especially crazy because you aren’t just my little girl anymore. You are becoming this absolutely incredible young woman right in front of me.

And Hal, I am completely captivated by you.

You are fierce and strong and independent. You are confident beyond measure. You are hilarious and fun and somehow ALWAYS dancing. You are driven and disciplined and apparently completely incapable of having a small goal. 😂 You love people. You lead naturally. You walk into a room and people are drawn to you. And underneath all of that confidence and strength is the same tender, beautiful heart that I have been writing about since you were tiny.

I have prayed since you were ONE that you would become a woman who was “amazingly strong, courageous, and dignified, yet incredibly gentle and kind.”

And sweet girl…LOOK AT YOU.

This year feels like the beginning of something new.

Last year your back was forcing you to slow down. And slowing down is NOT exactly Hallie Pentz’s specialty. Gymnastics has been such an enormous part of your life and having your body put limits on something that your mind was absolutely determined to do was HARD.

But you’re back.

Back in the gym. Back doing something that has shaped so much of who you are. And I hope you realize that the greatest thing gymnastics has given you isn’t a skill or a score or a medal. It’s taught you how to fall.

And then get back up.

Over and over and over again.

That ability is going to serve you for the rest of your life.

But apparently gymnastics isn’t quite enough anymore because this year you have decided you’d like to TRY EVERYTHING. 😂

You’re swimming for the high school team. You’re planning on playing flag football. You’re looking forward to track and, because simply running and jumping isn’t interesting enough, you’ve got your sights set on POLE VAULTING.

And then this summer you completed your very first triathlon.

A TRIATHLON.

At fourteen.

And instead of crossing the finish line and thinking, “Well, that was a cool thing I did,” you apparently decided that now you’d like to complete an IRONMAN before you graduate from high school.

Of course you do.

Honestly, that might be the most Hallie thing I’ve ever heard.

I absolutely LOVE the way your brain works. You see something difficult and instead of wondering if you could do it, you start figuring out how you’re going to do it.

You have always been that way.

At ONE I wrote that you were “incredibly determined and focused.”

At fourteen I wrote about how fiercely independent and strong you were.

And at fifteen, those aren’t little personality traits anymore. They are becoming defining parts of the woman you are growing into.

You don’t shy away from hard things.

You RUN toward them.

And that isn’t only true athletically.

You’re taking FOUR classes at Klahowya now, stepping more and more into high school life. You’ve joined the Executive Board as Treasurer. You’re taking on leadership and responsibility and finding your place in a much bigger world.

And now…DRIVERS ED.

Excuse me while I have a small emotional breakdown. 😂

There was a time when I wrote in these letters about someday walking you into preschool. Then it was someday middle school. Then someday high school.

And now I’m supposed to sit calmly in the passenger seat while YOU DRIVE THE CAR?!?

No thank you.

But also…I can’t wait.

Because watching you become independent is simultaneously one of the hardest and most beautiful parts of being your mom.

And Hal, I love watching you lead.

You don’t need to demand attention. People are naturally drawn to you. You are vibrant and confident and ridiculously fun, but you also have this incredible ability to bring people WITH you.

You are an includer.

I’ve written that about you for years because it is one of the things I admire most about you. You make people feel like they belong. You notice people. You celebrate them. You make room.

And I love that some of the places where you’re finding the greatest joy right now are at youth group and with people who are helping you grow in your faith.

You LOVE youth group.

And apparently summer camp brought out every competitive ounce of Hallie Pentz because you won the HIGH DIVE competition AND were named Tribal Wars MVP!!!

I mean…obviously. 😂

I can picture you so perfectly. Competing like your life depended on it, laughing ridiculously loud, dancing whenever music came on, gathering people around you and having the absolute time of your life.

And somewhere in all of this, you’re still talking about becoming a surgeon.

That dream hasn’t gone away.

And every year that you get older, I can see it a little more clearly.

I can see your intelligence and discipline carrying you through years of school. I can see your confidence walking into incredibly difficult situations. I can see your hands doing complicated things that require precision and courage.

But most of all, I can see your HEART.

Because someday, if Dr. Hallie Pentz walks into a room where someone is scared, she won’t just see the diagnosis or the procedure.

She’ll see the person.

That’s who you are.

And Hal, after everything our family has walked through this year, that dream hits my heart a little differently than it used to.

You’ve seen medicine from another perspective now. You’ve seen that behind every appointment and procedure and scary word is an actual person—and a family—trying to be brave.

I don’t know if surgery will ultimately be what God calls you to do.

But I know that wherever He puts you, people will be better because you are there.

Because people have ALWAYS been drawn to your light.

And as you turn fifteen, there is something I want you to remember.

The world is going to keep getting louder.

There will always be someone telling you what you should look like, what you should accomplish, how you should act, who you should impress, or what supposedly makes you valuable.

But I have been praying the same words over you since you were a tiny baby:

“I pray against any outer influence that says that she is not good enough, or that she is lacking in any way.”

Hallie Belle, you lack NOTHING.

You do not need a gymnastics score or a swim time or a pole vault height or an Ironman finish line to prove your worth.

You don’t need a title.

You don’t need perfect grades.

You don’t need anyone’s approval.

Your confidence does not have to come from being the best at everything you try.

It comes from knowing WHOSE you are.

You are a cherished daughter of the King.

You were created intentionally and beautifully by the Creator of the Universe.

So keep dreaming ridiculous dreams.

Keep being fiercely confident.

Keep doing hard things.

Keep dancing every single time the music comes on.

Keep including the person standing on the outside.

Keep loving youth group.

Keep laughing.

Keep leading.

Keep trying new sports.

Keep planning the Ironman.

Keep dreaming about becoming a surgeon.

And most importantly, keep chasing after Jesus.

Because Hallie, every year when I read the prayer I wrote for you when you were a baby, I am blown away.

I prayed for a future woman I couldn’t yet see.

And now…

I see her.

So today, just as I have every year of your precious life, I pray this prayer over you…

Jesus, thank you so much for this gift of life that you have blessed us with. What an amazing honor it is to be her mom. I pray that your grace would pour out over Hallie’s life and that your Holy Spirit would invade every part of who she is. I pray that she would know and truly understand that she is amazingly beautiful. She is the picture of perfection created in YOUR image. You created her as an artist creates a masterpiece and looked upon her and said, “It is good!”

Jesus, I pray that Hallie would grow to exude confidence and grace. That she would be amazingly strong, courageous, and dignified, yet incredibly gentle and kind. I pray against any outer influence that says that she is not good enough, or that she is lacking in any way. Lord, I pray that all of her worth would be found in you.

God, I pray that Hallie would dream big and love deeply. And be loved deeply in return.

And Jesus, please guard her heart. Set her apart for you and your will. I pray that your love would envelop her and consume her and she would find herself in you. Lord, protect her heart, her mind, and her body. I pray that your protection would follow her all the days of her life.

I am so excited for the days ahead and to watch my baby girl grow into a woman that is chasing after your heart. Before I know it, I will hear her name announced as she walks across the stage to receive a diploma. And see her Daddy walk her down that aisle—glowing with your love as a beautiful bride. Or watch her hold her baby in her arms for the first time and gaze into his or her eyes, as I know it is at that moment that she may finally get a glimpse into how much I love her.

Jesus, thank you for this precious gift! Please give me wisdom to be her mom…to love her every single day of her life, to encourage her always and to be her biggest fan. I pray that you would be apparent in all of my words and all of my actions. Lord, help me to strive to demonstrate your love for Hallie in a tangible way in hopes that it will give her the smallest peek into who you are.

Just as her name means “Praise God,” all I can do is praise you for this precious life. May Hallie grow into the amazing woman that you have called her to be!

Amen.

My precious Hallie Belle,

Fifteen years ago, I held this tiny baby girl in my arms and wondered who she would become.

I could never have dreamed up YOU.

The gymnast.

The swimmer.

The future pole vaulter.

The triathlete who thinks an Ironman sounds like a reasonable high school goal. 😂

The leader.

The future surgeon.

The dancer.

The includer.

The girl who loves Jesus.

My strong, confident, fierce, hilarious, breathtakingly beautiful daughter.

I know these next few years are going to fly. Drivers licenses and high school and giant decisions about your future are coming way faster than my mama heart would prefer.

So I’m going to soak up fifteen.

The music.

The dancing.

The gym.

The swim meets.

The ridiculous goals.

The laughter.

The driving lessons…Lord help us. 😂

The late night conversations.

The ordinary moments when all my kids are still under my roof.

All of it.

Because getting to be your mom has been one of the greatest gifts of my entire life.

Happy 15th Birthday, my exquisite girl.

Never shrink yourself. Never stop dreaming. Never stop making room for people.

You are more precious than the finest gems, and I am so incredibly proud of you.

I love you to the moon.

Mom