We have a 5 year old!

On Friday, August 19, 2011, we officially had a FIVE year old join our family!  Months back Elijah had asked if his birthday was on a "Daddy-work-day".  When we realized it was, he asked me to "please send Daddy a message to see if he can stay home that day so my party can start right away in the morning".  That is what we did.

We started the day off at McKay Park, down by the river.  It has a great muddy beach which makes for hours of fun.  Marty hadn't been there before, so it was a great way to start off the day.  We enjoyed a little picnic lunch there as well.

We came home to give Gavin a chance to nap and then went over to the Juniper outdoor pool and recreation area.  I didn't take any pictures there, but it was a ton of fun.  Elijah went down the water slide by himself and both the boys enjoyed playing in the activity area.

Elijah picked out his most favorite dinner of "noodles with sprinkle cheese".  We checked the mail and he got a card from Bob & Carol, some of our most favorite people back in Fort Collins.  They included $5!!!!  Perfect timing as he and Marty were about to go down to the neighborhood park for "Munch & Movie" night.... which of course involves all sorts of vendors and games.  We followed our typical "Dave Ramsey" style budget and he put $0.50 in his savings jar, $0.50 in his giving jar and got to take $4 along.

Elijah with his card & FIVE dollars.

The $4 lollipop he found to spend the $$$ just burning a hole in his pocket.

The guys stayed out until 10pm watching the movie "Gnomeo & Juliet".  It was a full day indeed and a great way for Elijah to start his 6th year of life.

FIVE YEAR STATS & OTHER INTERESTING NOTES:
* weight: 41.5 pounds (roughly 60th percentile)
+ height: 45.6 inches (roughly 90th-95th percentile)
* Health is great!  He hasn't had any asthma issues since moving to Oregon and his allergies have been much better here too.  We'll see what happens with a move back to Colorado and when we have a dog again.....
+ When he grows up, he wants to either be a police officer or maybe a spy. 
* He can read "easy reader" type books when he is in the right mood.  He much prefers to read books that he basically has memorized.
+ He really enjoys working on basic math.  He often will say things like "Mommy, did you know that 2+2+1=5?"  When he is bored we work on counting by 2's or 5's.... because he thinks that is fun.
* He loves all things Star Wars. 
+ He is great with Legos and can build even new Lego sets without wanting/needing help from us.  (Marty is currently playing with one and commented, "I think Elijah is better at this than I am.") 
* He continues to be very determined.  I've gotten to know his Sunday school teacher and she shared a recent story of how if Elijah isn't in the right mood, he just won't participate in the songs/dances that the class does and there is nothing that will change his mind. 
+ He loves to ride his bike and started riding without training wheels a month or two ago. 
* He is thinking all the time and continues to say the funniest stuff!

We are so proud of our big 5 year old!