Today James turns 4. He has been so excited about this birthday and we have been talking about it for quite some time. He has been trying to grasp the concept of being 3 1/2 and up until a day or two ago he would say he was 3 1/2. Then I would say that he was almost 4. But he thought 3 1/2 sounded older. His birthday celebrating is kind of being spread out over days/weeks this year. Thursday was already blogged about... then today is the actual day, Sunday he will get recognized during primary, Tuesday they are celebrating at preschool, and some day (soon!) he will have his very first birthday party. I just need to see what Al's May schedule is like so he can be around to help me.
We love James very much. There is just something about him...that is makes him so lovable. I don't know what it is.
Here are some things about James at 4:
-His favorite color is green. I thought it was just because Avery's favorite color is green, but he has consistently said green for quite a while now.
-He loves Chick fil A. Loves. But he doesn't want to be bothered with the waffle fries. He just wants the chicken.
-His favorite book is Little Blue Truck. We've read it so many times. It is a very cute story. For his birthday he got the sequel and he was super excited.
-James will often make statements like, "When I was a baby..." or he will tell me about something that he used to love/a place he went/something he did when he was a baby. They are always random, always made up, sometimes very outlandish statements.
-He still loves to suck his thumb and rub the skin on his belly button.
-He is the cuddliest little guy I've ever known. He would cuddle all day long if time allowed.
-James follows most statements he makes with "right?" at the end. All day long. All day. He has a lot of stuff to talk about. "Mom, I am strong, right?" "Pepperoni is spicy, right?" "It's foggy outside, right?" "It's almost my birthday, right?" "We live in Houston, right?" "Birds like to fly, right?" I love this about him. Occasionally I will have to tell him that it's quiet time, my mind needs a rest. I remember one morning in particular we were driving to preschool and it had been just non-stop, rapid-fire statements/questions. When James said, "A hippo could bite me, right?" I told him that we needed just a little bit of quiet time.
-He wants to play with friends all day, every day. I arrange quite a few play dates for him after preschool, and he is always so excited. A couple of his BFFs are moving in a month and he will be crushed. I am sad for him. Luckily he has a couple of buddies that will still be around. Even if James has been playing all day long, after the friend leaves, he wants to know who else can come over. It's a little bit of a challenge for me because I don't really love/need to have people over that much! But it is good for him.
-James recently completed a little gymnastics class through the city. He LOVED it. I signed him up on a whim, thinking they would just do some running, stretching, whatever. James has a ton of energy and he needs some structure and things to keep him busy. I was pleasantly surprised when we showed up and it was kind of a legit gymnastics class! They did all kinds of stuff on the uneven bars, balance beam, vault, and trampoline. It was a cool little class. I am hoping to sign him up for another one.
-Some of James' favorites include: holidays and decorating for holidays, candy- he could eat it all day every day, pizza, cheese, cereal, strawberries, Super Mario anything, hex bugs, cars, trains, playing the wii/DS/leappad, Tom & Jerry cartoons, visiting Utah, his grandparents, going to preschool
-James is a sweet little guy and very loving. Occasionally he will have a burst of rage/temper. It is a little bit amusing, but it lands him in his room for some quiet time.
-He has the loudest voice. It carries very well. We have to remind him very often to use his 'inside voice.' When he was a baby he had the teeniest, softest cry. Somehow he went from that to full volume.
Well, I could go on forever here. James has such a big personality. But these are a few things I want to remember about him at this age. Happy birthday, Jamie!!
