Happy Birthday James!

My baby boy turned five today. For some reason I'm having a really hard time dealing with this. Maybe it's the fact that he'll be in Kindergarten next year, and then getting baptized and before you know it, getting married and having kids of his own. All I know is that he's growing up too fast for my comfort.

We had big plans for the day that were subsequently ruined when we woke up to this:

Instead James opened presents, we had a nice waffle breakfast, watched some shows, cut some hair, played in the snow and waited for all the family with four-wheel drive and chains to come over.

It was awesome having my ENTIRE family over: my parents, all six kids, three spouses and seven grandchildren. One of my most favorite things is when I get to be with all my siblings and it rarely happens, so it was a nice surprise. Plus the fact that James gets spoiled rotten by all of them.

Such a momentous birthday calls for some serious reflection and I wanted to get down in writing some of the cool things about James.

His favorite colors are yellow, orange and turquoise.

His favorite food is macaroni and cheese, seriously. He would eat it morning, noon and night if I let him. When I told him he could have anything he wanted for dinner tonight, what do you think he asked for - that's right, mac and cheese.

A few hours old

He loves doing things on his own. He could completely dress himself before he was three. He could buckle himself in his car-seat before he was three. He loves putting puzzles together, even complicated ones. He never needed me to entertain him, in fact there were times when I was sternly told to go back downstairs and let him play. Most of the time he just calls me when he needs me for something of grave importance, like getting one of the ships from his fleet down off the wall.

Not only is he self-reliant, he is also super responsible. I cherish my sleep. I cannot get enough sleep. Most mornings Ben will get up with James and Avery and get them settled with a show or something before he heads off to work. I get up when Briella gets up, usually 30-45 minutes later. This particular morning Ben had to leave super early and I did not even hear the kids get up. I went downstairs and found them both in the living room reading books. I asked James what they wanted for breakfast and he said, “it’s alright mom, I took care of it. I got us both a yogurt, a cheese stick and some graham crackers, oh, and a vitamin.” I stood there for a moment, totally tearing up, wondering when my little boy became so grown-up.

1st Birthday

He loves order and routine. If we do not blow him kisses from the doorway when we say goodnight, or from the window if we are driving away we have to deal with a serious meltdown, I’m talking nuclear meltdown. He is the one who reminds us to say prayer with every meal, regardless of where we are, and to read our scriptures at night.

He has an excellent memory. He will bring up conversations we had years ago. Whenever I can’t find something I go to James first, he almost always will know where it is.

2nd Birthday

He is one of the most considerate kids I have met. He genuinely cares for other people, especially those closest to him. He gets really concerned if they are hurt, sick or sad. He loves taking care of people as well. Whenever Ben has to go out-of-town I tell James that he gets to sleep in my bed and protect us girls. He takes it very seriously. He loves being in charge of Brie. He is so quick to help me as well. Whenever I ask him to do something he, most of the time, does it right away, and happily.

He is extremely affectionate. He loves to cuddle. He had a period of anti-cuddling which broke my heart but, luckily, he grew out of that one quick. He loves when we cuddle him in his bed at night and when he gets to cuddle in our bed in the morning.

3rd Birthday

He has a serious hunger for knowledge. We're working on learning how to read and he loves it. He loves doing school work. I have some workbooks that he will spend hours on. He loves coloring and drawing pictures.

His smile kills me. His whole face lights up when he's excited. And it takes so little to make him happy.

4th Birthday

He loves his sisters. Avery is one of his very best friends. They get along so great, I could not be happier. They do have their moments but when the apologies happen they melt my heart. I am counting on James to protect both of my girls when they get to be teenagers and we're off to a good start, so far.

He is such an absolute joy and the perfect oldest son. I am so thankful for him every day and look forward to the adventures he will lead us on.