Tommy Turns Five

We now have a five-year-old son. I have no idea how this happened. Somehow the giant baby we brought into the world has grown tall and slim, has learned to speak articulately, and is learning to read. We love our Tommy so much and are grateful each year for the opportunity we have to celebrate his birth.

This year we planned a marathon birthday celebration. At Tommy's request we had German pancakes for breakfast. We opened presents and played a bit with each one. Then we got on our bike and joined Ben in "le tour de Hawthorne" as we biked into work with him. We left our bike at Ben's office and then caught the train up to the zoo. Every time we go to the zoo we have to buy some candy from a specific vending machine and eat it on the big grassy lawn. Tommy's birthday was no exception.

After the zoo we went back to Ben's office and ate pizza and played foosball. We tried to make Tommy feel as special as possible.

We then biked home to meet up with our regular park day with our homeschool friends. Tommy brought a little tennis set he got for his birthday and practiced hitting the ball back and forth with his friends. We ate cookies and enjoyed the sunshine. We then went home, ate dinner, and had a small birthday party with our friends upstairs, the Meuses. Tommy requested chocolate brownies with peppermint frosting in both red and blue. I guess I didn't add enough food coloring because the red part turned out pink. Even though it looked like we were announcing that I was pregnant with twins, Tommy was thrilled with his party and his cake and even ate some of the pink part.

Thanks to everyone who participated with us to make this a special day for Tommy. We are so proud of our five-year-old boy! Here is a little video we made of Tommy's birthday celebrations: