Update on the life of the Brandt's! :)

Not sure why this didn't get published...so it's out of date, but you can read it anyway! :)


My Goodness! Checked out my blog tonight and realized my last post was in NOVEMBER! Waaaayyy too long, but I guess that's the way the cookie crumbles! :) I don't feel like going to bed tonight even though I really need to, so blogging is a good excuse to not go to bed right?!? :) I thought I would just fill everyone in on our lives these days. Nothing too exciting, but you don't have to read it if you don't want to! LOL! :)
Sam: For those of you that haven't seen him in a while, you might need to look twice. The man is about half his size! Ok, maybe not half, but 90 lbs less! He really looks AMAZING! No real gimmicks or fad diets. Just some good ol' willpower, calorie counting, and exercise! I told him he needs to stop losing weight because we can't afford to buy him new clothes all the time! :) He is planning on doing a Tough Mudder sometime this summer-crazy fool! :) I know this may be a little TMI, but hey, it's my blog, so tough. :) Back before Sam and I were dating and even when we started dating, I have to admit, the first thing I noticed were his VERY blue eyes and his MUSCLES! Guess I just have a thing for buff arms! :) Those muscles got hidden for a bit, but now they are back, and I really like them. :)

Me: Unfortunately, I cannot say for myself that I have lost 90 lbs...or 20 lbs...or 10 lbs...or...nevermind...you get it. I wish I had an ounce of the determination that Sam has, but I guess I just love food! However, I am doing much better choosing healthier options (most of the time) and hitting the gym at least 5 days a week. Sam and I are doing a boot camp class together at 5:30 am on Mon and Fri and I LOVE it! It's definitely tough, but I feel so good when I get done. I don't sweat easily as a rule, but that class makes me sweat! :) I'm too scared to weigh myself because after the first month of doing the best I could, I lost a grand total of ONE LOUSY STINKIN' POUND!!! GGGRRRRRRR! Sam says the time of day, etc that I weighed myself wasn't the same and that makes a difference, but still! So we just keep plugging away and pretending that the next time I step on the scale it will be 10 lbs lighter...yeah right. I am doing the C25K thing so I am really hoping to run at least one 5k this summer. I also signed up with my crazy husband for something called a "Hard Charge". It's like a 4.5 mile race with obstacles...mud, barbed wire, fire, etc. I can't believe I am actually doing it, but in a crazy sort of way, I am excited just to see if I can do it and prove to myself that I can. Thankfully we are getting a pretty good team, so I just tell the guys if I can't do it, part of their challenge will be to carry me over all the obstacles. Plus, it's just a fun run and not actually a "race" so that takes a lot of the pressure off too.
On the homefront, I really love snow and being snowed in, but I am REALLY ready for spring/summer. If for no other reason than I am SICK of socks and shoes...hurry up flip flop weather! :)

Ellie: Loving school, just finished her 3 or 4th Boxcar Children book, which I am very much enjoying reading with her as well. She has very eclectic taste in her books, so we just get a little of everything when we go to the library! :) HATING school lunch-which I'm not so sure I blame her. Some of that food sounds awful. I know they are trying to make things healthier, but I'm not so sure that making it taste bad is helping matters. She would come home SO crabby until Mommy finally clued in that she wasn't getting enough to eat because she's so picky. Plus she HATES it when they have to put stuff on her tray that she doesn't like. She just can't handle it. So, while it's kind of a pain for me every morning to pack her lunch, I have definitely noticed a change and I think she is feeling better too. Still my little fashionista and still LOVES to perform for whoever will watch her! :)

Darren: In training to be a ninja. He told me this afternoon that he "has some really awesome ninja moves Mom. You better watch me". They were pretty amazing, let me tell ya! He loves school, and is  really well, much to my surprise.  Not that I thought he was stupid, but just that I didn't think he would care and be too spacy. He's still pretty spacey, but has grown intellectually this year by leaps and bounds. It's amazing to witness his progress and hear him be SO proud when he shows me what he knows. Super Kudos to his teachers-they really do an amazing job! He's super pumped for it to get nice out so he can get back to practicing his baseball. Santa brought him a football and a tee that his mean ol' Mom won't let him use in the living room, so he's ready to break that in as well. He is a FIERCE protector of those he loves.
**Ok deviation here for a SUPER CUTE story...
A couple weeks ago, Sam had to go to Texas for a few days. I hate it when he leaves, but we always seem to manage. I made mention to Darren, kind of off handedly, that now that Daddy was gone, he was the man of the house! From that moment on, he was in protector mode. CUTEST. THING. EVER!!! He carried his nerf gun around, fully loaded. I didn't really think too much of it until he told me that if any bad guys came to our house, he was going to shoot that "nerf shooter" at their eye and when the suction thing got stuck in their eye, he would pull it out with their eye, and then they wouldn't be able to see so we could get out and I could call the police while he was doing that. Apparently the constant repetition of me saying "please do not shoot that thing at people's faces-you could really hurt their eyes" really did sink in! :) Anyway, for those several days, he was always packin'. For the most part, it was the nerf gun, but he did switch it up from time to time with a water gun, so I always felt very safe. :) I didn't realize until later how serious he was and how much he had taken my off handed comment to heart. Sam had gotten home, and I was tucking Darren in when I commented about how he should go right to sleep because he looked so tired! Seriously-he just looked absolutely bushed-more tired than I think I have ever seen him. Not crabby tired, just weary tired. He looked at me and said "Yeah, I'm 'dis glad that Daddy is home. I sure am tired of being the man of the house"! At that moment, I realized that all that time, he was in a fierce protector mode. I had smiled and thought it was cute how he was "protecting" me but in his little 5 year old mind, he was DEAD SERIOUS! He was the MAN of the HOUSE and he was going to protect all of us from any bad guys. My heart just kind of swelled with love. My skinny scrawny little 5 year old had worn himself out to exhaustion protecting his momma and his sisters and little brother while his daddy was gone. I also realized how awesome it was for him to recognize that now that his daddy was home, he was off duty and the trust he had that Daddy could handle it and he could just rest made my heart happy too. I'm a lucky girl that's for sure.

Ok, well...I think you are going to have to wait for the rest of the update! :)I'm ready for bed now, and I have to be up bright and early to hit the gym before the yahoos start to get up! We are heading to Iowa City tomorrow for a check up for Kai, so I probably should get SOME sleep so I can be cohearant with his drs! :)
Night All! :)

Today Let Me Appreciate

So if you saw my post on FB last night, you will know it wasn't my brightest day. It was Sam's birthday and I wanted it to be a perfect relaxing night. I was going to have the kids showered, the house cleaned up, supper ready to go, and a cake-frosted and decorated by the kids- for dessert when he walked in the door. Instead, what actually transpired was about as polar opposite of the above scenario as possible. I was just starting supper, no cake at all-let alone one frosted and decorated, the house was a WRECK and the kids were whiny and fighting. Laundry was piled up, everything was a disaster, and so was I. Sorry honey-Happy Birthday to you! :( Sam wasn't the least bit fazed and just went on as normal, but I love birthdays and wanted to make his special, even if it really wasn't that big of a deal to him. He does so much for us and in my head, this was how I was going to show him how much I appreciate all he does and what a great dad he is.
AND to top it all off, Kai was being an absolute BEAST all day yesterday. He was whining, biting or crying pretty much all day. When he wasn't doing one of those things, he was hanging on my legs and fussing. We were ready for lunch and the kids had turned off the tv, but Kai wanted it on apparently. He climbed on the tv stand and tried to turn it back on (which he can totally do...*SIGH*). Darren tried to get him off the stand to bring him in for lunch, but Kai was hanging on the top of the tv and pulled it over, off the stand, onto the floor and crash-our tv is shot. The screen is broken and completely unwatchable. Oh my word.....I wanted to run out of the house screaming. Seriously. I really did. The kids knew they were in so much trouble and all 3 of them just looked at me with HUGE eyes. I didn't freak out-I just told them to go sit down and eat their lunch and tried to take lots of deep breaths in the meantime.
I wanted to bawl. We have been doing really good about trying to stay in our budget, even though it's squeaking. We have been doing good, but it's Christmas! I know my kids don't need a single things and it's about memories, but I LOVE LOVE LOVE Christmas and watching how happy they are when Santa brings them the perfect gift. My commission checks from Initials have been paying for Christmas so far, and that helps us to stay on budget in other places, and everything seemed to be going good, and then BAM! (literally....) this happens. I know that TV is definitely NOT a priority and not even a need, but my mornings seem to go so much smoother when Kai has his juice and his blanky and watches "go go go" in the little chair while I am getting the other kids ready. This morning? Not so smooth :) but we managed and everyone made it to school at their appropriate times. :)
Ok, so now you know how my day went. I am not whining (ok, I was, but not anymore-I'm just telling you now) but seriously...it was a STRESSFUL day. This morning, not so much better-crabby fussy teething monster. Finally decided that we were going to go pick up Arby's for lunch, got D to school, put Kai down for a much needed nap, got Claire situated playing quietly, and sat down to chill for a bit. I was looking thru Facebook and saw this blog post at "Hands Free Mama". I literally cried as I was reading it. I know for sure that this was one of those times when God let me see exactly what I needed to at the exactly the right time.  I shared the link to the blog post and the poem "Today Let Me Appreciate". It's so very true and so often I lose sight of it.

This is the part where the tears really started to flow:
Today let me appreciate the gifts in the mundane, ordinary moments that are graciously given to me. Because even though it’s far from perfect … and sometimes it’s messy and hard … this is my life.
And for this anything-but-small miracle that is my life … I am thankful.

Today Let Me Appreciate

 

 

Maybe you are having a tough day too or maybe not. Maybe we all just need a good reminder to be thankful for all the little things that add up to really big things.

So for now, I am going to go snuggle with my kids, rock with my grouchy baby, keep the motrin coming and be ok with frozen pizza for dinner and be thankful for all the little things. Thanks Lord, I needed that~

November Thankfulness Day 8:

Day 8: Today I am so thankful that my kids do not get out of school every day at 12:20. They did today and they were driving me crazy fighting non stop about completely ridiculous things and changing their clothes 6 million times and running around outside in their swimming suits and Darren was punching people and Ellie was bawling about everything and their fighting woke Kai up from his nap and THEN Claire wet her pants....dear friends. *sigh*
Oh right...we are being THANKFUL, not whining....right.

Day 8: Today I am so Thankful for my wonderful neighbors! Our home is surrounded by wonderful people. They help me run my kids to school if I need them too, they let us sit with them at the top of the bleachers right on the 50 yard line for one of the biggest football games of the season AND share their really warm blanket with us AND buy us popcorn, they invite my kids over when their grandkids visit or send the grandkids to play in our yard since we seem to have a gazillion toys. They (ok I mostly call Sharon but I know the other would too if I called them) willingly send over whatever ingredients I seem to be missing for what I am making which happens way too frequently. They bring us over food after surgery and keep up on Kai and Claire and their medical issues. They turn on their porch lights on Halloween even tho they hardly get any other kids.
I know that there are lots of eyes on my kiddos-watching them play, etc. That might bother some people, but not me. I love it.  I love that my kids can make people happy just by going about their little people business. I love the protection that is there and how they watch out for my kids. I love it when the neighbors call me to tell me that my little daughter just locked her big brother in the trunk of her daddy's car and then left (true story...that really happened-so much for that mom of the year award!) I love waving as we drive past, chats by the mailbox or backyard or street or wherever we happen to be. I love the feeling of belonging here. Thanks neighbors! We love you! :)

PS Reason 6 million why we love our neighbors: When "Santa" finds a really great gift at a really great price, he can store it in Sharon's garage where little eyes don't find it!

November Thankful Days 1-7

So, as usual, I am late with joining the whole Thankful Challenge thing for November, but decided to do all 7 days on here! I think I will do all of my days on here so I have them to look back on thru the year and be thankful all year long!

Day 1: I am so Thankful that I know The One who holds my future and that all of my sins are covered by His blood! Not sure how I would have made it thru this last year without my faith that there is a plan and His plan is always better than mine.

Day 2: I am so Thankful EVERY. SINGLE. DAY. that I get to be married to my very best friend and there is no one I would rather go thru life's struggles and the daily grind with than Sam. He is an amazing father, and is the calm and logic to my crazy. We balance each other and while there are times that it definitely drives me absolutely insane, I rely on his calmness and logical thinking so much. I tend to be an emotional thinker and he is a logical thinker, so it works. Its amazing to me that God, before time began, created us for each other and where I am weak he is strong, and where he struggles, I have strengths. I see it every day and it's just another reminder of the amazing love of our Creator.

Day 3: I am so Thankful for my Ellie Girl. I think of all my kids she is the most like me, and because of that, there are times that we butt heads, but every day she makes me smile. She is my little performer and wants to be a cheerleader like her mom. She loves all things girly and is trying to grow up a little too fast for mommy's heart. She is an AMAZING big sister and the bond between her and Kai is very evident. She is very responsible and helpful (when she wants to be!) and I rely on her a lot to help with the littler kids. She is a smart little cookie and has been reading to her siblings lately. It absolutely MELTS my heart to see them all crowded around her on the couch listening intently while she read them a book or to see her and Kai snuggled in a chair and see her pointing at pictures in his books and him responding. Her and Claire have a new thing that they think is secret where after I put them to bed Claire snuggles over by Ellie and El will read her a book. They think they are so sneaky but what they don't realize is that Mom is the one that put that nightlight there in the first place! :)

Day 4: I am so Thankful for my Dude. He is SO very protective of his siblings and I truly believe he would fight to the death for any one of them. He can push the girls buttons like no other, but the second he hears about someone else messing with them or hurting their feelings, he is ready to battle! He is having to learn to play by himself now that little sis is in preschool too, so that's a work in progress, but he is trying! :) He loves to be Moms helper and is my garbage-taker-outer and laundry-hauler-downer. The kid can eat like you would not believe, and I'm not sure how we are going to keep food in the house when he is a teenager if he eats like this now! He's still skinny as a rail, and I'm not sure where all the food goes-I think he has a hollow leg. He is ALL boy and loves teaching his little brother how to play "ball" and play with tractors.

Day 5: I am so Thankful for my Claire Bear. Oh my...how does one descibe Claire? She makes me smile every.single.day with her thoughts on life. She is ADAMANT that she is NOT little, she is BIG! She is very go with the flow and can play with anyone and everyone. She is amazing at playing by herself when the other kids are at school and LOVE LOVE LOVES her kitchen. She will play with it for hours. She loves to help me cook and things like that and has decided that emptying the silverware drawer is her job. She teaches me patience and how to view life thru the eyes of a 3-ALMOST 4 Mom!-year old. She goes to school 3 days a week and absolutely LOVES it. Loves her teachers, loves the kitchen at school, loves the projects, loves that she is learning to write her name like big kids-just LOVES it! I am thankful that she does and hope she never loses that love for learning.

Day 6: I am so Thankful for my Mr. Man! At the current moment, he is having a very whiny morning, but hey, we all have those at times, even when we are 32! :) Through all of the medical issues this year, I have learned so much about patience and learning to wait on the Lord. Of course, I would so much rather that he DIDN'T have the issues that he has, but I KNOW that I have learned faith like I never would have had he not had the issues he does and for that I am thinkful. I love his happy smile, his obvious adoration of his big brother and sisters, how he gives squeezy hugs and slobbery, smacky kisses. I love how he loves things that roar (dinosaurs, lions, tigers, sheep :)) and making all the animal noises. I love how I know exactly what he wants and how I know his language-it's definitely ones of the perks of motherhood! :) I love morning-after-bath sleepy snuggles and how he smells SO good.  I love how he runs and is in a hurry to get everywhere. He definitely has his brother's facination with all things sports and his newest word is "kick" and he'll kick anything he can find that even remotely resembles a ball. He would live outside and has learned to yell "DADDY" and run to Sam when he gets home from work and squeeze his legs. I love watching him wave out the big window in the living room at random people driving by. I am just so thankful that he makes our family complete! :)

Day 7: I am so Thankful for my home. It is incredibly small for 6 people, that's for sure, and I would LOVE to have something bigger, but this home is ours and we are doing it with no help from anyone. I love how we have made changes to make it ours. I love how Sam and I can dream about the somedays that will hopefully come and our plans for the future.But it's more than that. More than just the physical house, I love our home. My hope is that people can come over and just chill and relax. I hope my home is a welcoming place. I love our location and our neighbors and the fact that they watch out for my kiddos. I love our little garden and the sandbox and the swingset and watching my kids learn to ride their bikes on the street. I am thankful that we have someplace warm in the winter and cool in the summer, a place of haven and retreat from the crazy world around us. And I really love my attached garage in the winter....:)

Dear Marcia~

Dear Marcia~
I know that you will never read this, but it's good therapy for my sad heart so I am doing it anyway. Today was a day that I never expected to come this soon. The day that wasn't supposed to happen for at least 20-30 more years. Today was your funeral. You would have loved it. Your flowers on the casket were absolutely gorgeous and the arrangements all around were numerous. The hall was full and so many people there to honor your life and legacy.
You would have been SO proud of your 3 men. They were sitting in the front row and from my view a few rows behind them, I could see a sight that would bring tears to your eyes-I know it did mine. Rhett and Scott were on either side of Ray, and the sight of all 3 sets of broad shoulders sitting there straight and tall, looking right ahead...they just looked so handsome Marcia, and I know you would have been proud.
Your grandkids all looked so nice-the boys in their suits, the girls all dressed up so nice and their hair all beautiful. You would have really been proud of them today too Marcia.
Ray was trying so hard last night and today, but I could tell he was just so overwhelmed. Nothing like seeing a tough Marine with tears in his eyes to rip out your heart strings.  The love he had for you Marcia was always so evident and yesterday and today were no exception. We know Ray isn't a hugger, and that poor guy got hugged so many times, but hopefully it helped his heart to see others missing you too. I swear everytime I look at him I cry~him without you just doesn't seem right. And Scott??? You should have see Scott...Mr Obstinate-Because-I-Can-Be was hugging! See the effect you have on people? Scott was HUGGING! One for the record books that's for sure! :) Claire was giving out 'huggies' because "God made me a good hugger, right Mommy?" but she wouldn't give Rhett one-he teases her...imagine that, right?
Pretty sure I cried more yesterday and today than I have in the last 6 months. I just can't believe you are really gone. It was just too fast, and my mind just can't fathom that the next time I go to Stout, or we have a family picnic you won't be there by Ray's side, laughing your distinct laugh and telling us that we need more vitamin something or other and that we need to stop doing this and that because it leads to such and such. I felt like I did get to say goodbye on Monday, but I didn't really. I didn't get to talk to you one more time and tell you how much you really meant to me and how much I am really going to miss you. I didn't get to ask you what Ray's favorite foods are or what kind of cookies he likes and how you made them so I can make them for him someday when he's really missing you. We didn't get to finish talking about all your ancestry work that you were doing for our family. We just didn't get to finish Marcia...I wasn't done with you yet!
But on the other hand, knowing you are where you are, I can't wish you back here. After reading Heaven Is For Real, sometimes I think about what Heaven must be like, and the beauty that is there-beauty beyond our wildest imaginations. But you don't have to imagine. You are THERE-you have seen Jesus and talked with Him and are walking on the streets of gold. I think about how beautiful some of the places on Earth are and how Heaven's beauty FAR surpasses anything we have seen here on Earth, and how you are experiencing that beauty and glorifying in His presence at THIS very moment and I can't wish you were back here.
I will miss you Marcia-so very much. I love you and I will "see you later"~

My Little Flower Girl :)

So, I've said it on here before, I LOVE that my girls are "girly". Claire is to an extent, but not like Ellie. Ellie is ALL about all things girly (which, I am coming to learn VERY quickly includes WAAAAYYYY too much drama for this mama, but we're surviving). Hair, lip gloss, sparkles, glitter, shoes, purses, clothes-she loves it all.
Using the aforementioned knowledge, imagine for a moment if you will, the sheer exuberance in my eldest when several months ago, my cousin Dustin and his fiancee Erica asked her to be the flower girl in their wedding. Oh my word...excited doesn't even BEGIN to describe it. She hung a calendar above her side of the girls' bed for the sole purpose of having someplace to write "weding flwr grl" or something along those lines (hey that was months ago-she can totally spell that now-go Ellie! :)). I had a gazillion times of being asked how many times I had to flip the calendar page before it was September, and then once it WAS September, "How many more days NOW Mom?". Like I said....EXCITED!
The big day is almost here. Tonight was the rehearsal and she could literally not even stand still for a second. She was trying so hard to be grown up but before we got started she was just kind of bouncing, twirling, strutting around she was so excited. We had to go get a new outfit for the rehearsal because I swear she grew a foot over the summer and all her fall dresses look like miniskirts. She was DEFINITELY on board with the whole "new outfit" idea, and was so pumped to have a "Mommy and Ellie" date. I have to admit, I love having some one on one time with the kids too. It just seems like things are so crazy the majority of the time and Ellie especially gets depended on a LOT to help with Kai and things like that, so some special one on one time with mom is pretty great.
This morning was the funeral for my Aunt Marcia. It was a wonderful funeral and such a great tribute to a really wonderful aunt. I am going to miss her SO much and I know her family will too-please keep them in your prayers. (This is connected to this flower girl story, I promise). So if you are keeping track, this is how my last several days have been-funeral visitation on Thursday night, funeral friday morning, wedding rehearsal friday night, wedding prep sat am (hair, pictures, all that fun stuff!! :)) wedding saturday afternoon, to Garnavillo Saturday night AFTER the wedding, meeting Sunday morning, Bday party for Mia and Owen Sunday afternoon. Plans for Monday: Rock in my chair ALL MORNING LONG (HA I wish....).
ANYHOO...the point of me telling you all this is to tell you how awesome my MIL is. She heard about my aunt's funeral and switched her work days around so she could have today off and came down and stayed with the 2 boy yahoos while the girl yahoos were in school today. She picked up Claire from school at 11 and headed with the 3 little yahoos to Garnavillo so I didn't have to try and deal with them while at the funeral and wedding. Jean, you are a LIFESAVER and I appreciate so much what you do for my family.
WHICH leads back to the Ellie story....So not only does Ellie get to be the flower girl tomorrow she has 2 whole days of being an only child! She is diggin' this let me tell ya! Sam and I walked up to the school this afternoon and picked her up. We then walked to Kwik Star where she got a BIG box of Dots and didn't have to share them with anybody. She did mention, however, that she missed Kai because she would give him all the colors of Dots that she didn't like and he would eat them. HA! We then walked home and she didn't have to share conversation time with anyone AND got Mommy AND Daddy all to herself. She then snuggled into Daddy's lap (again, NOT having to share space) to watch cartoons for a while. But wait, the joy isn't over yet! We got to ride in Grandpa and Grandma's car to the rehearsal, so she got Grandpa AND Grandma AND Mommy AND Daddy all to herself! AAANNNDDDD Eric was at the rehearsal so she even got ERIC all to herself! Pretty sure she's never going to want her siblings to come home!! :)
If I'm being honest here, (which I am all about on this blog! :)) I have to admit, I am LOVING it too. It's so fun. We painted her toenails, did her hair, she "helped" me pick out my clothes and told me my shoes didn't really match my outfit but she guessed they would do, she picked out a perfume to wear, we put some glitter spray in her hair, she put some all over the rest of herself (she was VERY sparkly tonight!!), and even got to wear lipgloss out of Mommy's makeup bag. Tomorrow we are going to get our hair done, and maybe even lunch out with Daddy. Then I get to see her all dolled up in a absolutely gorgeous dress, a crown in her hair, and little high heels on her feet. Erica and Dustin gave her a "diamond" bracelet, so she will be decked out from top to bottom. She's just growing up way too fast, and sometimes I just don't get the time to enjoy the special qualities that she does have because we are in a constant battle over which clothes to wear or why something isn't fair. So often I find myself expecting so much out of her and I need times like this to remind myself how cool of a kid she really is, and that she is only 6 and that even 6 year olds that try to be so grown up are really only 6 and need some quality Mommy and Daddy time.
So, to my Ellie Girl-I'm so proud of you. I can't wait to spend a whole day doing girly things together and then watching you all fancied up, trying so hard to be be so grown up, but radiating the nervous excitement that all 6 year old flower girls should. My heart can't help but think forward to not too many years when my little girl will again be wearing a beautiful dress, a crown in her hair and a diamond on her left hand instead of on a plastic bracelet on your wrist. I love you so much chica-try not to grow up TOO fast ok? And please...don't spill on your dress tomorrow and try to stand still up there and not fidget too much? :)
And to Dustin and Erica-thank you so much for letting my little girl be a part of your special day. We love you guys and we wish you all the best in your new life together. And Erica....don't spill on your dress tomorrow and try not to fidget too much up there ok? :)

To My Big 5 Year Old on Your Birthday~

To my son who seems to be just growing up way to fast:
Today you are 5 years old. 5...that just seems so...I don't know...old. Even though you haven't been a baby for a long time, you are completely not a toddler any more-you are a boy. That makes my mommy heart just a little sad. But at the same time, I love this stage of your life. You have mastered riding your bike with no training wheels, and love playing "tag football" (flag football) with Daddy. You had your first taste of organized sports this summer playing t-ball and absolutely loved it. I have to admit, when I go to football games, I get excited for the day when I am cheering for YOU and watching you do what you love.
This morning you were so excited when you woke up that you couldn't even eat the chocolate donuts that you picked out for breakfast. You pretended to be annoyed when I put a candle in it and sang Happy Birthday really loud but I knew you weren't. :) Daddy is coming home early from work and you can hardly stand to wait and ask me about 8 thousand times when he is coming home.
Tonight is the big "Magic" birthday party. You wanted Chicken Pot Pie for dinner, but that seems a little crazy in my little kitchen to serve that to 30 people. Guess it's just pizza and chips-both of which make you very happy. You are pretty go with the flow-just like you have been for most of your life. You definitely were an easy baby!
You are definitely not perfect. I put on your preschool form that you are scared of losing at ANYTHING and anything that closely resembles chores. We sometimes call you Captain LazyPants, but guess that is an area of "future strength" that we need to work on. :)
You are such a great brother. You are EXTREMELY protective of your siblings-something that makes my mommy heart really happy! :) You told Ellie this summer that when you walked home from school with her, you would protect her from the boys that were teasing her. I know that you would do just that-and do it with everything in your little skinny being. When people pretend that they are going to steal Kai, you can play along for a little while, but if it goes on a little too long, all of a sudden you get this look in your eyes and a very fierce protectiveness takes over. You try so hard not to cry, but it's all you can do to hold it in while you are doing what you can to protect him. I hope that never changes. I hope that you ALWAYS fight for your siblings and do whatever you can to protect them.
I need to get everything going to get ready for the big party tonight, but watching you this morning my heart just feels so full-full of sadness that you really and truly are no longer a baby, full of joy at the little boy that you are and full of hope for the man that you will become. Keep watching your Daddy, Buddy and keep wanting to be like him and do what he does. He's a wonderful example.
This morning you told me that since you are 5 today, you can ride your scooter really good, pump yourself on the swing and that your racecar jammies are too small. Yesterday they were fine, but today they are too small since you are 5. You make me smile. :)

Happy Birthday to my "dude"-so glad that even though you are a tough, football lovin', scooter ridin', car crashin', all things remotely girly avoider and completely all boy, you still love to give your mommy your "super duper huggies". Don't grow up too fast~