my boy turned 5

5 years old!

my boy turned 5 at the beginning of the month.  where has the time gone?  when he was a baby - and he was my first -  i used to sit and watch him all day.  my husband would come home from work and ask how my day was/ what did i do?  my answer: "i sat and stared at our son."  watching him was the best reality tv show there was.  and it still is.

his personality is interesting.  i love seeing how he is growing, changing and finding himself.  his journey is starting out in this big world and he has a long road ahead.  i pray that his father and i are teaching him the right tools, giving him enough strength and offering the love he needs to grow into a good man.  

this boy has traits and characteristics from both my husband and i. i am a little biased, but i think he is quite handsome. :)  he is smart. he is sweet. he is sensitive. he loves his mama and is a good big brother to his little sister.  don't get me wrong, they fight and bicker like the best of them, but that is part of the game when you have siblings.  that is WHY you have siblings, right?  to learn how to deal with people.  he is learning to deal - every day.  

doing his homework. he loves to do homework.  fingers crossed that doesn't change. 

nico and his cousin playing their video games. notice he cannot tear his eyes away from the screen even to have a quick photo taken.

in our house, birthdays are special.  they are special because of who and what we are celebrating.  my goal as a mother is to make sure my kiddos know i love them and am here to support them.  i use their birthdays as a way to show them how grateful we are for the day that they were born.

my husband believes it's important to show each other how special they are every day of the year - not just one day.  my husband and i also feel strongly that it is easy for children  to get a warped sense of what a birthday party is all about.  too often these days it is about the presents and material possessions.   like when i was growing up, we have an every-other-year rule in our home.  we do not host a huge party each time one of us celebrates a birthday.   last year was my son's turn to have a party and he invited a handful of his friends over for an afternoon of fun and games.  this  year he did not have huge, over-the-top celebration.  

we took cupcakes to school for his classmates and made little goodie bags with some treats for them.  he got to wear a birthday crown at school and be the line-leader (hey, that's a big deal at preschool.)

uncle brian enjoying some homemade pizza  - YUMMY!

we also invited our immediate family over for a fun night of homemade pizza making and wii video games.  my son was in heaven.  he was surrounded by those who love him and he got to play his favorite video game.  what more could a 5 year old want -right?  this also gave the rest of our family a chance to have an evening together.  that is always a good thing.

make a wish!

nico, i wish you a very happy birthday.  i hope you enjoyed your day and know that everyone who was here to celebrate with us loves you very much.  i am proud of you and what an amazing young man you are turning into.  

happy birthday, son.  i love you!! xoxo