Happy Birthday, Warner

My little boy is five years old. It almost physically pains me to write that. Don't get me wrong. I am so proud of the little man Warner has become. But it feels like yesterday that he was born. I can still smell his newborn baby scent; feel his tiny fingers wrapped around mine; feel the exhaustion that comes with a newborn. It's just going really fast. I often ponder Ecclesiastes 3:11: "He has also set eternity in the hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end". It makes me think when we struggle with time going too fast, kids growing to quickly, not having enough time to be with the people we love ... that's our spirit pointing to God's perfect plan of eternity. We may not understand it or even recognize the feeling, but our hearts are longing for home.

Anyway, I'm getting way off topic. Back to the birthday boy.

Superheros are Warner's newest thing, so a superhero party it was. I was excited because I had seen a bunch of adorable party ideas on Pinterest, so I was all set when the theme was chosen.

This was Warner's first "friend" birthday party. And besides my desire to throw exciting, cute, and perfect parties in general, I actually remember my fifth birthday party. So I added stress for myself thinking about the fact that Warner might some day remember this party, so I had to be sure it all went off without a hitch. I think all Warner cared about was making sure he had a Hulk cupcake topper for his cupcake and not Captain America, Thor, or Ironman. Easy enough.

All of the kids seemed to have a great time. Most of them enjoyed their superhero capes and masks as favors, and wore them around during the party. They "earned" their capes by completing the superhero tasks (games) we had planned. I also borrowed a friend's bounce house and that was a huge hit with the kids.

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The entire party was outside, which I've decided will definitely be a new tradition moving forward for all our birthday parties.

Warner got a ton of awesome presents. Between his friends and family, it was like Christmas. Most of the gifts were superhero (the Hulk specifically) themed. Kevin and I got him roller skates (he has asked for them for months) so that should be interesting.

On the morning of his actual birthday, the kids and I stopped at Dunkin Donuts before preschool for breakfast. Here are Warner's five year stats:

- 46 inches tall (95th percentile)
- Weighs 46 pounds (80th percentile)
- Favorite color: red
- Favorite food: cheeseburgers and candy
- Favorite tv show: Superhero Squad
- Favorite thing to do: ride his bike
- Favorite sport: basketball
- When he grows up, he wants to be a: teacher
- Best friends: Maren, Drew, and Riley

Happy birthday, little man!