Happy 5th Birthday Blake!

Hard to believe, but my little baby Blake is 5!! My sweet little angel who stubbornly came into the world 8 days later than anticipated, but nonetheless, set my world on fire. I sit here looking at him and wondering where on Earth did 5 years go? He is such a little boy...no signs of my chubby cheeked "little linebacker" anymore. He's now our "little skinny guy." Seriously...I swear we feed him, but he is just skinny! I think back about all the milestones achieved in the first year of life and how everything was so well documented. Now life comes at us so quickly that I barely have time to blink and the next thing I know we are buying bigger clothes or it's time to head to the Stride Rite store for a new pair of shoes.

He is getting excited about Kindergarten, but at the same time would choose to stay home and hang out with Mom and Dad everyday if he could. He's such a good little friend. He has already made friends at his new preschool and is eager to find even more new friends.

Here are some things about Blake's last year that I will always remember:

1. Him learning to swim without floaties. I've never seen him so proud of himself and he is honestly doing a great job at it. He is confident and willing to try everything. He has even gone off a diving board. I don't think I have ever even done that! Given that I didn't learn to swim until I was 18 or 19, I am so incredibly proud of him. I hope this is a sport/pasttime that he continues to pursue.

2. His first organized sport - soccer. He would get so excited when the ball came his way, yet he wanted to be as far from it as humanly possible. I loved sitting there watching him with my bud Megan by my side to share in the humor of him playing in a mud puddle rather than chase a ball around.

3. Christmas with Mammaw and Pappaw...it was so fun to see how excited he was about Christmas this year. And when we played the video of Santa's message from the North Pole - whoa - I've never seen eyes so big! I'm so glad that my parents got to be with the boys while they are little and the magic of Christmas is at it's best.

4. Kindergarten orientation at Rush Creek - even though we aren't going there now :( it was still so fun to see him discover what would have been his school. He was pretty pumped up about the bus ride and meeting "Rocky the Raccoon!"

5. All of our fun playdates with Aleksandra, Chloe and his neighborhood buds. It has been so fun to see he and his buddies grow up and turn into such adorable little boys and girls. There will always be an echo of squeals of laughter and pure happiness that rings in my head.

6. His idolization of friends Riley and Sarah. I have never seen him so smitten with 2 people. They are such good kids and were such an awesome babysitting duo. The boys absolutely loved having a boy babysitter and Sarah just melted their hearts. Blake would ask for them to come over and play pretty much every night.

7. Blake telling Aunt Jill that "Mommy let's me say bad words at home!" Had to be there to fully grasp the humor, but I think Jill, Kurt and I will share that laugh forever.

8. Finally getting the hang of writing his name. I have been so proud of him achieving this milestone. We were starting to wonder if he ever would, but he has finally gotten the hang of it and now I smile every time I see that wonderful signature on all of the school work he brings home.

9. California - we had so much at Disneyland. I was so surprised that he was terrified of Mickey and Minnie, but at least we learned that he has a slight issue with costumed characters. I also get a kick out of him "falling" in the ocean. I am quite certain he will never dip a toe in the ocean again without reminding us of the time he fell in. Which in reality was him getting swept off his feet by a little undercurrent, but boy was he mad!

10. Field Trips and Special Events - Renaissance Festival, Minnesota State Fair, Curious George Live, the Circus and Disney on Ice...he loves this stuff. It is so fun to sit back and watch his imagination go crazy. His love for costumes (specifically pirates and knights) is so funny. He loves to put on a costume whenever we have company!

11. His sweet little voice and listening to his genuine laugh at something funny. He is starting to understand jokes and when people are pulling his leg. It's pretty cute to see his sense of humor develop.

12. His precious face. He is our boy that likes to crawl into bed with us in "middle of night" and loves to share our pillows. I do love falling asleep looking into his angelic little face and knowing that all that matters in his little world is that his Mommy and Daddy are right there with him and that his brother is there to play with from time to time. :)

Blake Grady Jarrett, I love you more than the sun, moon and stars and every day since you came into our world has been the best days of our lives. We love you Blakey Bear! Happy 5th Birthday!