...And He Turns 4...

Today (although I lied to you and told you this Saturday at your birthday party it was your "real" birthday, because darling, I was just so darn tired of hearing "am I four NOW?", that I chose to pick Saturday to answer "Yes, yes you are...."), you turn 4.

Four-years-old.

I remember being a mom of just one and you being a toddler, meeting other moms with kids around the age of 4 and thinking how grown-up they looked - how much bigger they were than you at that time and how far in the future it seemed before you'd be mastering the swing set or a game of tag without assistance like those children.

You can play tag now, but frankly dear, you still haven't mastered the swing. It's ok though, we'll work on that one.

You know what you want, and when you want it. You can tell me the longest stories about absolutely nothing, because finally... you have enough words in your little head to do so. And they are wonderful, imaginative stories with Bad Guys and Dinosaurs, Pirates and Star Wars, Dragonflies and Spongebob, Robots and Frogs... and I hope they never go away.

Your Lego skills challenge your Father's and those sharks you keep drawing? Well. They look exactly like sharks and I am so impressed.

My first born, you are no longer a baby.

This year, you picked your party all by yourself, steadfast in your determination to have a "Bowling Party". I just don't know where you get your stubbornness.... So, without any prior experience to bowling, I did as you requested. I also brought you to the store, and let you pick out a cake. Yes, you picked the most expensive one, but it was a hit.

Mommy and Daddy joke that your first memory is from the beach, a few weeks before your 3rd birthday. You and Daddy were playing with a medium-sized blue crab in the sand by the shoreline and that crab had had enough! Daddy thought he'd take on the challenge, but suddenly the crab struck and "bit Dada on his right foot" (your words...).

I laugh so hard to think that you tell no other stories about anything prior to that day at the beach, and surely you'll remember it forever. Hopefully the lesson about "not messing with things that have claws" and the lesson of "getting away from Daddy when he is messing with things that can hurt him" will stick.

Mommy was so very worried about people showing up to your party with it being so close to the 4th of July, but the turnout was amazing! We had, at one count, about 15 kids! And they were all there for you! (ok, Mommy likes to be honest, so some of those kids came because there was cake and pizza and bowling....) (... they ALSO like you...)

But either way, they sang Happy Birthday to you, and in true Conner fashion, your tiny little cheeks flushed bright crimson and you hid your head beneath the table for a brief moment. You came back up with a little help...

It took you one breath to blow out all 4 candles - all by yourself.

You are such a big boy now.

And I know you told me last night "I don't wanna take dis shirt off till I have anodder birfday potty", but baby... mommy is going to have to wash that shirt for you and it'll still be another year.

Sigh... another year... you really are growing up.

Mommy loves you and as cliche as it is to say this - you'll always be my baby.

1 week old

almost 3 months old

1st Christmas - 6 months old

shortly after his 1st Birthday

21 months

2 years old

EEK! He's 3!

And now... you are 4.

The Prettiest Girl

Conner came up with the idea for a bowling pary for his 4th birthday. It is most certainly noteworthy to point out that Conner has never been bowling.

It's also interesting to mention that Conner managed to pick out a $50 cake at Publix (which took every fiber of my kegel muscles not to wet the floor the second she told me the price...) and equally as noteworthy to point out that his (gigantic) cake is Spiderman (climbing a foot-high building with several bad guys below....). He's watched one of the movies once, maybe, and seen about 15 cummulative minutes of the cartoon.

But one thing I know for certain Conner wanted with all his tiny little might - L. and S. to come to his party.

In roll-call fashion, we addressed the invitations, albeit much later than I should have (we had that whole "oh crap, Conner needs to go to Children's" thing that kinda got in the way...). I would say a name and Conner would say "yes" or "no". It was a little a-la Mean Girls, but to be frank, he did pick the kids he normally hangs out with and I think he just shook his head or gave me a blank look for the names of the kids he honestly didn't know.

Two people stood out amongst the rest - one being the most adorable, blonde haired, always in pink little girl named L. in his class. In Conner's mind, they are soul mates. Or, at least, he'd share his snack without so much as a whimper.

And the second was his Bestie - S., a well-built, energetic boy from an amazing family of 3 boys, who's mom is the room mom and equally as amazing.

I was so incredibly nervous about calling each mom on Wednesday afternoon, leaving no less than 8 voicemails and not actually speaking to a single person. I filled out each invitation that night and had them at the Big Post Office by pick-up time, knowing that every child would most likely receive the invite on Saturday. I was so nervous that no one would come.

The first e-mail came in this morning, thank God. I caught myself gasp when the first words read "I am so sorry but..."

Then, I kept reading to learn that the apology was for "just now getting back to me" (pish, posh... I'm the Bad Mom that just sent out the invites! Who's surprised?), and that L. - the light of Conner's preschool life - would in FACT be attending.

I practically skipped to the kitchen to make Conner's breakfast just so I could wake him up, feed him and tell him the good news.

I called two people who might not care (they do, swear), because I was over the moon with excitement for my little man.

His birthday wishes are all coming true! (I am such a cornball today)

At this point, that cake could be a pink Barbie Princess with no icing.

We could end up with no pins and bowling balls that are too heavy to pick up.

I could accidentally forget to wrap and bring his Power Rangers shirt (I have no clue why he wanted a Power Rangers shirt, either... sigh).

His brother could wail the whole time and hog all the grown-ups attention.

And none of that will matter - The Prettiest Girl is coming to his birthday party.