And now he's 5

Nathan has been anxiously awaiting the day he would turn 5- he was so excited because "you can do so many cool things when you're 5."

His 5 year stats:
Height: 42 3/8 in (35%)
Weight: 42 lbs (50%)

he may be a bit short but he's got a ton of personality to compensate!

He woke up to our family tradition of balloons and doughnut. He was pretty happy :)

He was so excited that his birthday landed on a school day- and even more excited to bring in donuts for his birthday treats to school!

After school, naps, and playing outside we had an early dinner of his choice- hamburgers, Cheetos, carrots, and green beans.

He opened up some wonderful presents (lots of sports stuff...basketball, soccer ball, gloves, goggles) and then ate some cake!

His big surprise was that Chris was going to take him to a basketball game that night.  Chris plays on a rec league with some friends and Nathan got to tag along, stay up late, sit on the bench, and warm up with the guys....he was in HEAVEN!

When he got home he was full of smiles and stories and was so happy. It was definitely a good birthday!


Here's a little snapshot of what Nate is like right now:
-He prefers to be called Nate, not Nathan.  He started being called Nate and school and he's officially decided that he really likes it, so we are making the transition.  It's been tough going 5 years with one name and now switching things up but it's becoming more natural.
-His world revolves around sports.  He is constantly pleading with Chris to play soccer, basketball, baseball, have a race, ride his bike, ride his scooter...anything that involves moving.  And he goes from one to the other...poor Chis never gets a break when Nate's around- I love all of his energy but he definitely wears us out!
-If he's not thinking about sports he's probably thinking of animals.  He loves all animals and learning about them.  He knows so many random facts and loves to share his knowledge with everyone.  Thanks to Wild Kratts (one of his favorite shows) he probably knows more than I do.
-His other favorite tv show is The Magic School Bus. He really loves learning random facts.
-He loves his school.  He still asks why he only goes 3 days a week and can't go to after-care.  He has  made great friends and learned so many fun things.  He has recently been sick and had to miss a couple days and was completely devastated.
-He is sweet and gentle.  He is the best big brother to Abby and Elise.  He loves taking care of them and helping them.  He especially loves carrying Elise around, good things she thinks it awesome too.
-Him and Abby are great friends.  Despite the age difference they do almost everything together.
-He is learning how to read better.  He still gets frustrated but if he takes his time and focuses he can read quite a bit on his own.
-He loves to make people laugh.  The items he brings in for show-and-tell and chosen by what he thinks will make his friends laugh the most.
-He loves playing angry birds and is actually really good at it.
-He still naps basically every day (I love this boy!)
-He can eat more ice cream then most adults.  Not even kidding.
-He is so excited to go to Kindergarten in August.  He talks about it at least 3-5 times a day.
-He loves to keep us in line with "churchy stuff".  He always reminds us to read the Book of Mormon during breakfast, he loves to say prayers, and if was up to him we'd have Family Home Evening at least 3 times a week.

We love this kid so much.  He is an amazing addition to our family and we are so impressed with who he is becoming. There is always a special place in my heart for the little boy who first made us parents and we cannot imagine life without him.