FOUR!

Our sweet Eli is FOUR YEARS OLD! I can't believe how fast these four years have gone. We are so in love with him! A few facts about our Eli Dane at age four...

-He loves animals of all kinds. He is the first to pet a dog, pick up a cat, dig up a worm, pick a caterpillar off a tree, catch a snake, etc. When the kids were swimming in a lake recently, I told them to stay out of the grassy area. "Why?" they asked. "Because there might be snakes in there!" I replied. "But I like snakes!" Eli told me matter-of-fact-ly. :)

-He is the most helpful kid I know. He just simply loves to help! He's perfectly happy unloading a dishwasher, planting flowers, cleaning a bathroom, mowing the yard, etc. if he is being of help to someone. I love this about him.

-He is sweet! I know every parent says this about their kid, but I'll say it about mine too. :) Eli is just a sweet-natured kid, and I love it! I love how loving and kind he is.

-He's pretty coordinated and atheletic. When you ask him what his favorite sport is, he'll reply, "Basketball and baseball and soccer and football." :) I love watching him ride his bike and have a catch and kick a ball all over the yard, and I look forward to seeing what he does with his atheletic ability in the future.

-More than anything else in the world, Eli loves: his Mommy and Daddy, his Mom-Mom and Pop-Pop, his beloved cousin and best friend Timothy, and his and Timothy's "treehouse." He's also into rocket ships, dinosaurs, his bike and new scooter, swimming, and his truck/horse trailer toy.

-Eli truly has a thankful heart. I love, love, love this about him. He is effusive in his gratitude for all the beautiful, daily gifts from the Lord, from a blue sky to bird's feather to his "soft, cozy bed." He loves Jesus and is so thankful to Him.

I am resisting the urge to just keep on going... :)

For his birthday, we had a party with his dear friend CJ, whose birthday is just a week before Eli's. They have the same group of friends from church and love all the same things, so we just decided to do a big party together! We went to an indoor bounce place in Forney (Moon Jumpers), and it was a blast! We had 17
kids there, and every one of them had a fantastic time, as did the adults! :)

A few pictures...

The birthday boys:

Eli and Daddy:

The three of us:

Cake time!

Later that evening we had cake and ice cream and a pinata and presents with our family for Eli and Phil (whose birthday is also May 9!). And on his actual birthday (Wednesday) we went out for donuts for breakfast and then to the zoo with my dear friend Libby and her kids Jacob, Kayley, and Macey, who are Eli's dear friends too. And then in the evening when Eric got home we went to dinner at Primo's and sat on the patio overlooking the lake, and then we came home and Eli got to open his present from us- a much-desired razor scooter!

We put four candles in a cupcake and sang to him again, and I just can't believe my baby is FOUR! He is our miracle, and we couldn't be more thankful or proud to be his parents.

Happy birthday, Eli Dane! We love you!