5

So when I wasn’t looking, this little noodle

Also known as this medium sized noodle

Became this big boy.

Happy Birthday Leo! Today you are five.

Goodbye baby, goodbye toddler and preschooler.

Hello, kindergartener? Gulp.

No doubt about it, you are your own person and you always have been.


Leo, there are so many things I want to say about you, so many things I want to say to you.

I’ve never met anyone like you, and I’m not just saying that because you’re my son. I’ve never seen someone experience life as intensely as you do. When you are happy, you positively glow. You beam like a small planet. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, it’s fascinating to know someone whose “default” setting is so stubbornly set to “happy.” You just seem to want to love life. Of course, you’re also human, and you’re not always smiling. And when you are not, well…

Look out.

Mostly, you are a "roll with the punches" kind of guy. And with the right distraction, you recover quickly from hardships, such as not being allowed two kinds of crackers for snack.

I give you full credit. You are a boy of few words (for now) but you know how to get exactly what you want.

You can be infuriating, baffling, hilarious and extremely clever. I'll admit, some mornings, when you wake up at 4:57 a.m. and then also wake your sister up, I do briefly consider selling you on Craig's List. But then you flash me that "I'm happy to see you" grin and throw your little arms around my legs, and I change my mind about the selling.

You surprise me every day, and most days, they are the good kind of surprises.

And now, for the record, a list of things that at the ripe age of five you love (in no particular order):

1) Scrambled eggs
2) Dora (god help us all) and Diego and your latest discovery, Mickey Mouse (you like the oldies though, not the new cheesy Disney Channel computerized crap. You call him “Dee-Bow.”
3) Books. Books are one of the few things you will sit still for. It is wonderful to see, and many a night you fall asleep like this:

4) Going to the store. Any store. You are my little shopaholic. A true boy of the suburbs, I think you love Costco most of all. For the samples? Maybe…
5) Your favorite color is yellow. You will choose something for the color. Your favorite yellow “thing” is a lemon Popsicle.
6) And maybe the one that makes me happiest of all: Your best friend is Ellie (you say it frequently, and without coercion). I’m not sure how long this will be the case but I treasure it now, even when you are pushing her down and stealing her baby and trying to hide her bobby (pacifier) from her.

Happy birthday to you, my big boy. You are growing up so fast, it terrifies me.

Thank you for teaching me patience and faith and for the daily reminder that sometimes, a smile really can fix everything, at least for a moment.