Big Boy Birthday

In 2004 our wish was granted, our dreams came true, and our prayers were answered with the arrival of our first bouncing baby boy. I hope I never forget the unspeakable joy of cuddling and nursing that warm bundle of love in front of our wood burning stove on cold nights. We covered him with a million kisses a day, and poured every ounce of love we could into him. In the evenings when he was fussy and wouldn’t let me put him down, his Daddy would happily take on dinner duty while he reassured me that my most important job was to hold and love that baby because there would come a day when he wouldn’t want to be held anymore.

Today that bundle of joy turned 5. This was his big boy birthday with a big boy football, a big boy bicycle, and bigger clothes. Despite the celebration of the day Zac is still a curious mix of little and big boy. My greatest joy on this day was not watching his little man hands cradle the football or watching his imaginative play with his fishing adventure set, or even watching him learn how to ride a bicycle on which he has to stretch his legs to reach the peddles. No, my greatest joy was when he walked into our room this morning with the announcement that he was five today, then, without another word, he crawled into our bed, leaned over and wrapped his arms around me, put his head on my shoulder, and settled in for a good long cuddle. Happy birthday little man!