Happy 5th Birthday Gabriel!

This kid turned five last Friday.  FIVE.

Sometimes I still think of him like this, but other days he seems far too wild and loud to have ever been this small. . .

I've posted a couple times in the last month, so I'm not sure I've mentioned things that Gabriel is all about these days.  He is loud, energetic, talks constantly, loves to read, and wants to be a super hero.  He loves is brother.  He gets excited about preschool and seeing his friends, enjoys storytime at the Children's Museum every week, Ninja Class, and violin lessons.  Many days he is quite the challenge as he pushes for his own way in all things.  He can flip out with the best of them over seemingly small things.  He has a quick temper. He has a hard time sitting still and being quiet at school. When he has something to say he just cannot stop thinking about it.  He gets easily distracted.  As frustrating as these things can be over the course of the day, we try to remember that he's showing growth and change over the past months.  His meltdowns are less frequent than 6 months ago.  He can focus in Ninja class or on practicing his violin for brief periods.  He can sit still in church without being a distraction (mostly). He can read and can spend an hour in his room reading and listening to books on CD.  He is learning how to manage his temper (and lets face it, I struggle with this too).  He now likes to color and write his name, and 6 months ago he had no interest in coloring or writing of any kind.  It's hard to see growth when you look at one day at a time and in the middle of a stressful and weary day it's sometimes hard to see the change that is happening slowly.

First symphony experience with Dad.  The people around them commented on how well he listened. 
He thought it was great fun and was proud to show off his ticket when he got home.

Transformers book at the toy store

Reading to Corban

Stories with Dad

We celebrated Gabriel's birthday a few days early since we had some family in town.  Gabriel loved being with Aunt Stephanie, Hannah Kate, Jane, Uncle Aaron, and Aunt Tiffany.  What a fun week he had.  On his actual birthday I asked him what he would like to do and he wanted to get a Christmas tree and watch Christmas movies.  As it was the day after Thanksgiving everyone agreed that was a good plan.

He loved talking to Jane and making her laugh. 
We have a video of it on my phone and he asks to watch it a lot

Beating Uncle Aaron at the Sneaky Squirrel game

Decorating a tree for his room

New Legos are the best

Happy Birthday Gabriel!