Alex's 9th Birthday

My oldest kiddo just turned nine years old today! That means, that he is officially at his half-way point until college years. What the heck?! I was trying the other day to picture nine years ago. If I close my eyes and concentrate, I can picture it clearly. He was a big baby boy, and super sweet and innocent. Fast forward a year and he's toddling around the house getting ready for his baby sister to come along. Time started flying the second he was born. Now he's nine and probably just a few years from outgrowing me. He's only got about 10 inches to go! Heck, we already have the same foot size.

For his birthday this year, he wanted a New York Jets football cake. Once again, I was happy to oblige. Not the hardest cake I've ever made but he was super excited about it. He wanted to have a bunch of kids over, but he was happy to just have a couple of friends. We had a fun time with some of the cousins and then had cake, ice cream (soy for the bday boy) and, of course, presents. I'd love to say that he gets harder to shop for the older he gets, but that would not be true. He has so many interests and obsessions that it's nearly impossible to get him something he doesn't love. He finished his monster collection with The Bride of Frankenstein and The Phantom of the Opera and got a nice castle to play with them in. He also got a couple of those neat hover toys that take some crazy practice to fly. All in all, it was a fun day.

As for Alex now, he's a fun one. He's a heavy reader, staying up way past his bedtime regularly just to get a few more pages in. He's bright kid with a big imagination and great art skills (hereditary?) that he uses often. He will play every sport possible and is excelling at them these days, making more and more goals/scores. He's got a big heart and it breaks easily. He's all boy, but I've seen him break at the slightest things. Which, naturally, hurts my own heart. When he gets in trouble (not as often as I feel like it is), then he is very good at punishing himself before I even get the chance. He's a great kid and I'm so proud and blessed to be his mom. It's been an amazing nine years and I love watching this kid grow up. Happy Birthday, Alex! We love you so, so much!