Our Four-Year-Old

Thursday, February 28, 2013

Sweet Jacky-boy, you’re four!!  You’ve been so excited about turning four-telling everyone that you talk to that you’re having a football party and turning four.  I hope the year lives up to your excitement about it!imageYou’ve got the four fingers down, and your silly faces, too!imageimageimageThere are so many things I love about you and so many of your mannerisms and sayings that I could just eat up.  One of my most favorite-you are such a cuddle bug!  You ask us to cuddle with you or sit with you all the time, and you always grant our requests, too.  When I drop you off at school, you always give me a hug at your door and then a kiss and a kiss on the cheek-in that order.  I adore this.imageYou are such a curious little one.  You ask why about pretty much everything, want to know how things work (and usually try to figure it out yourself), and are in to doing ‘experiments’.  This means you ask me to blend a bunch of things up with you so you can see how they blend.  You and your brother love it, and get the biggest smiles (and shouts of excitement!) when we press the blend button.imageYou’ve consistently been getting really great reports from Mrs. Rachel at school.  She says you happily participate, have a great memory/recall, and that you’re a great helper.  There was a period when you got on red a few days in a row for not keeping your hands to yourself, but Mrs. Rachel emailed me (you were SO UPSET about that!) and we talked about it, and you’ve been on green and getting treasure box ever since!imageYou are silly.  Silly, silly, silly!!  You make faces, sing silly songs, do silly things to make Sam laugh (sometimes getting your self into trouble!), and are just overall a very happy boy.  Daddy and I are so thankful!imageimageYou love your brother dearly and are mostly so good to him.  You’ll read him books, get things for him, tell me what (you think) he needs, and you’re protective of him.  I love that you guys are already best friends and I pray that this always continues.  BUT, you are also rough with him!  We know you just want to wrestle with him and play, but we have to tell you pretty much hourly to be gentle or to keep your hands to yourself.  One day he’ll be big enough, and daddy and I kinda think he’s going to really get you!!  imageJacky-boy, we love you dearly.  More than words can say.  One of my many prayers for you is that when the time comes, a long, LONG time from now, that God would bless you and your wife with children so you’ll be able to feel and understand the way daddy and I love you.  (By the way, you told us that you never wanted to leave us and that when you got married, you guys would live in our house still.  I asked if you thought your wife would like that, and you said that yes, she would! :)  You bring so much joy to our family each day, and you’re our most favorite four-year-old!  It’s going to be an amazing year, I just know it!
We love you, sweet boy!
Daddy and Mommy

The FOOTBALL party!

Wednesday, February 27, 2013

I can’t remember when it was, but once we decided on a football party for Jack’s fourth birthday, he was ALL ABOUT IT!  He would tell anyone and everyone that he was having a football party when he turned four-and that the girls were going to dress up as the cheerleaders!  Of course this momma was thrilled with his excitement, booked our neighborhood park, and started planning all the fun football games. 

Sam had fun, promise! imageWell, it was a rainy weekend, so the party was moved to our house, and it was more of a playdate instead of a football game.  The children didn’t care one bit and seemed to all enjoy playing with each other.  We’re so thankful to our family and friends for celebrating our favorite four-year-old with us!imageOur traditional birthday banner was hung for the birthday boy,imageand Jack’s birthday banner greeted everyone.  Welcome, friends!imageThe team colors…imageimageimageimageimageimageimageimageThe pre-game meal…imageimageimageimageimageimageimageimageClearly I took pictures of everything before our friends arrived.  From here, I dropped the ball and didn’t get pictures of all our guests!  We’re so thankful for everyone that came to celebrate!  Here are some of the teammates I did catch…imageimageMy eater…eating!imageThe piñata.  After we decided on a football party, Jack’s only request was to have a football piñata.  He’s easy to please, and he LOVED it!!  And man, that thing was tough!  It lasted through a couple rounds of the kids, Mark making a few helper holes, and the bigger kids having a few big time go's at it!imageimageimageimageimageimageimageimageimageimageimageimageimageimageThe birthday song!  He told me before the party that the birthday song was going to be his favorite part. Yep, he loved it!  You can’t tell from this picture, imagebut look at this one!imageAnd these!imageimageimageOoooh, I love him!imageOops, finger down Sam!!  Ignore that and look how excited Jack is to blow out his four candles!  It’s totally the little things!imageimageMy t-tiny.  Forever and always! (Mark, how did I miss getting pictures of you and your boy?!?!?!)imageimageThank you to all our family and friends for making this four-year-old feel so well celebrated and so loved!  And for bearing with us on the last minute location change! :) Go Team Jack!