My Baby Is Not A Baby Anymore!

What a handsome kid that is! This post is all about my little guy. Ethan is five years old now. However, he is still my baby. I've heard other moms when talking about their last child say, "He will always be my baby" and now I know exactly what they were talking about.

I can't believe he's been in our family for only five years, because it seems like forever. I somehow always knew that he was coming. My first three kids came along, and I always felt something missing. When Ethan joined us, I felt complete. I knew all of my kids were now here.

He truly is the "youngest" in our house. As the youngest, he is definitely babied, but also ignored, and bugged by the older kids. He has learned that if he wants something, he most likely will have to get it himself. He has picked up on things faster than the other kids because he had three older siblings showing him the ropes. And, of course, he sometimes gets away with murder. I never thought I would ever treat my kids differently, but I have found myself doing just that. I was so strict with the girls (still am), but with Ethan, it is sometimes so much easier to just give in. I've gotten tired and a little lazy and he is taking advantage of that! But, somehow I think we will both turn out fine.

Here's my little guy when he was brand new. After "expertly" delivering three other babies, I thought I knew what I was doing. However, I went to the hospital twice with false alarms before Ethan finally showed up. I guess I was just so anxious to be done with the pregnancy, that I jumped the gun a little bit. But he was totally worth the wait...


When he was little, I watched two little girls from my neighborhood. They were so cute and called the baby, "EEFEN". The name has stuck and I'm not sure if we will ever call him by the phonetically correct way again.

I have to share this memory I have of him when he was little. I caught him one day hiding in the cupboard under my sink. He was so hilarious.



So, this is a snapshot of Ethan at age five:

• He loves to go to preschool. I'm sure it's mostly for social reasons, but he asks me everyday if it's school day. He goes to preschool with all of his buddies and they have a blast together. He comes home singing the songs that he learned and can't wait to show me what he made that day. I hope this "love for learning" lasts many more years!!

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  He loves playing the Wii. This is borderline obsession with him. If I'm not fully paying attention, he will slip downstairs and play before doing his chores. His favorites right now are Lego Batman and Lego Indiana Jones.

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  He is a complete pill about doing his chores. He suddenly becomes "stuck" to the floor, or his feet can't make it up the stairs, or the task is simply too hard, or....you get the idea. Most of the time, he winds up in time out, and then finally complies. It has been known to take several hours to just put away his laundry! (SIGH!)

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  He adores his big brother. Those two are so cute together! They are usually best buds, which is so fun to watch. They rarely fight, but they do love to wrestle with each other. This is a new concept for me. Until Ethan came along, Braiden was a pretty mellow kid. Now, they will just be walking by each other and one will tackle the other. It is hilarious, and they seem to love their "male bonding time".

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  He is an outstanding eater. This kid can really pack food away! I never have to worry about him not eating. He isn't TOO picky (although he does have his moments...what kid doesn't?), but I'm continually amazed at the amount of food he eats. The kid is going to be a football player someday!

These are the cute memories that I want to keep of Eefan forever! I'm learning the hard way that life goes by WAY to fast. I wish I could slow it down just a little bit...

Well, anyway, enough nostalgia. Here's how we celebrated the big day. We went bowling at Boondocks. It was fun, but the kids didn't make it through all ten frames (very short attention spans when there are video games all around you just begging to be played). But we had a great time and Ethan bowled a pretty good game (bumpers are an awesome invention!)

We then supped at the Training Table. This is Ethan's restaurant of choice these days. He is always suggesting it. I guess they make their Kraft Mac 'N Cheese better than anyone else, or perhaps it's the cheese fries (let's hope it's the latter!)

Then we went home to open presents. Ethan got a Big Wheel from Grandma Geneal and Grandpa Blair. It was so cute to watch Grandpa put it together (not a single cuss word was heard the whole time!)

And then Grandpa Dennis helped Braiden with the Legos. We have great Grandpas in our family!

After looking at that face, you can tell it was a very successful birthday! Happy Birthday, kiddo! I love you bunches and bunches!