Happy 6th birthday, Skogen!

SIX things that automatically come to mind when I think of you:

1. You are an amazing little boy.

I love to watch the amazing YOU!  I watch you when you're patiently playing with Torsten, I watch you when you're sitting on your top bunk reading a book, and I watch you from afar as you unpack your backpack and put your things in your locker at school.  I also enjoy watching you as you play out in the snow, while you are skiing fearlessly down black diamonds, and I enjoy watching you play soccer, too.  You are constantly amazing me by just being you!

2. You have an amazing heart.

You're the first to offer comfort when Torsten gets hurt.  You have awesome ideas about  how to help others and a keen sense of need.  You truly feel bad when others are feeling bad and you hurt when others are hurting.  On the flip side, you can't help but smile if someone is smiling at you.  And your laugh!  It's contagious.  Along with this softer side of you, comes a more sensitive side.  You tend to cry a little more than your siblings and the littlest of things hurt your feelings in a big way. I value your tenderness.

3. You are adamant.  

Once you set your mind to something, you are going to do it and nothing will stop you.  Sometimes this is a good thing and I think it will be a blessing as you grow up.  However, since you're still a kid and have a lot of authority figures around you at all times, you have been finding yourself in a bit of trouble at school this year.  I know, I know.  It's so hard to mind someone when your idea might be so much better...  You're definitely stubborn and learning the hard way, but you're coming around.  :)

4.  You adore your Dad.

In your book, he's number one.  If anyone told you that their dad could do something, you'd argue that your dad could do it 100 times better.  You light up when he talks to you and your happiness sparkles in your eyes and through your smiles when you're with him.  You love to wrestle together.  You love to ski together.  And mostly, you love to do anything with your Dad that you feel will make him proud of you.

5.  You are animated.

From the time your eyes open in the morning, until you're fast asleep at night, you're moving.  You are constantly running, jumping, and spinning.  Not only that, but I can almost see the wheels in your head turning. With your mind constantly imagining, constantly creating, you are never bored and always coming up with ways of entertaining yourself.  Your creativity almost always involves a car or two, but you have recently discovered legos, which has been a good past time for you and that constantly-spinning brain of yours.  I love to see your new lego creations and I also love that you ask me to take pictures of them all.

6.  You are audacious.

Especially when you're with your brothers, you are fearless.  You take big risks, especially when jumping off high things.  It's always funny to hear the gasps of fear from others when I have you and the other two boys out of the house.  One minute you're climbing up a tree, the next your jumping out like Superman.  You'll scurry to the top of the bleachers at soccer and then swing down the backside like a monkey.  At the park, I find you on top of the tube slides, instead of inside them, and you're always trying to come up with a way to get on top of the entire playground structure, no matter how high.

This year for your birthday, you requested a race car birthday.  I think you enjoyed and appreciated what I came up with...

I got some Balloon Racers.  They are race cars that are powered by blowing up an attached balloon and then letting it deflate.  The boys raced these cars on a folding table that I made some tracks on with some duct tape.

After everyone arrived, we got right to work, each painting their own wooden car.  I didn't have enough paint brushes, so we painted with Q-tips!  This worked really well because then each boy could have a Q-tip for each color and I didn't have to worry about having cups of water for rinsing out paint brushes between colors.

After every car was painted, we moved onto the cupcakes!

Next came the presents!

Before parents arrived, we gathered around the table again, where I sprayed shaving cream all over the place.  I also dumped a bunch of cars on the table.  This was a big hit!

We had some extra time (these boys sure do move through activities quickly!), so the boys played in the dress up clothes.

Then they each took a goodie bag home with them!

Each goodie bag included a Balloon Racer, race car bouncy ball, race car bubbles, a rubber bracelet with race car phrases, and the wooden car they painted.

I also made a life-size race car driver with a cut out where the head would go.  The boys took turns posing for pictures with their head on the race car driver's body!  Over all, it was a great birthday party!  I really hope you enjoyed it, Skogie Bear!