I have 6 favorite dates a year and yesterday was one of them. The day you were born will always be special to me and memorable on so many levels. The emotions I felt that day were all over the board but the most prevalent was unconditional love for you, my baby boy. You joined our family here on earth that day and we have all been so blessed because of it!
Yesterday was perfect. I'm sorry you had a little cough and had to stay home from school but I know you liked, "skipping school," as you told the other kids, only to encourage the rounds of fake coughing that ensued among your siblings, who were a little green with envy. We cuddled and read book and then you got to watch a show, like you love to do, and be lazy in your jammies for a while. We had eggs for breakfast, your request, but not hashbrowns, also your request, because I didn't have time to make them. As usual you were forgiving and excited to be sung to at breakfast. I let you have a veggi/fruit juice box which more than made up for the lack of hash browns.
You were sung to at breakfast by your family and then you started getting text messages from other family members and friends, wishing you a happy birthday. You opened your present from mommy and daddy at breakfast, new long sleeve shirts and a coat, and from Braxton and Emmett, who shared with you some of their favorite football cards. Straight from their hearts.
After our nap I asked you if you wanted to go pick apples at Bellewood, which you've been asking to do for a few weeks, because the day was so sunny and clear and we had some time before the kids got out of school. You excitedly said yes and went downstairs to pick out one of your new long sleeve shirts to wear. You chose the blue collared, button up shirt and it looked so handsome on you. You even put it on and buttoned it yourself and it was only cricked by one button. So you asked for help. I tried to layer it with the sweater on top, but that was pushing it, you didn't want to so I let it be and you wore your new coat. Which you took off in the car because it was warm enough that you didn't even need it.
The apple farm was busy so after testing a couple apples we decided to order some fries to wait for a cart to free up so we could ride ourselves out to the orchard to pick. Regular fries for you. Sweet potato fries for me. Ketchup for you. Tartar for me. Waters for both. We broke up lots of your fries to cool and laid them on the napkin to be blown on. I cherish these days that we have together to nap and eat fries. They are some of my very favorite. I sometimes wish they would last forever, that I could keep you to myself in your jammies all day, in my arms, but that would be such a dis-service to the rest of the world who needs your smile and your spark.
We ended up having to get boxes for the fries and take a range check for the apple cart and picking. It was time to deliver the eggs and pick up the kids so I said we could come back after that. We did. We picked up the kids and delivered the eggs and came home to meet two other girls from church that we were watching. We loaded them all up in our car and drove back, a block, to the apple farm. This time to score a cart right away.
I drove the apple cart and you sat in the back, rear facing, sandwiched between Braxton and Adelle and one of the girls we had with us. You were smiling the whole time. When we got out to the orchard you didn't want to pick so you just stood and held the bag and proved to all of us that you were big and strong. And I took pictures of you.
When we got home Emmett and two more friends got off the bus at our house. You played with all the kids while I made your dinner request, pancakes! It was easy for me and fun for all the kids to sing happy birthday to you as you blew out your candle on the pancake mound. Dinner was served, buffet style. Or maybe animal style? Then off to soccer went some of our family.
When you came in and asked where the cupcakes were I didn't know what to say. All month you have been telling me you wanted popcorn cake and now here you were asking for cupcakes. So I made them. Because your a little spoiled, but mainly because society makes me feel obligated to give my 4 year old cupcakes on his birthday if it be his desire. So luckily, I had a cake in a box, that I whipped up into cupcakes in bear shaped molds and after the company left you and Adelle frosted them with homemade butter cream frosting which you chose to dye blue. The best part of this whole thing was that later when daddy and Braxton came home from Scouts, you only took one little bite of your cupcake that you insisted on having! And then you were over it and onto the rest of the night. Sigh.
We skyped with Grandma and Grandpa Ashmore that night because you got packages from them in the mail. You loved the bow and arrow they sent you and the junior football. Just like you wished for. More so though you seemed to love the bubble packaging that the gifts were wrapped in. Typical. Adelle had brought her own money to Costco earlier and her and Emmett secretly picked out a Thomas the Train book and activity mat for you which they paid for without you even noticing, thanks to the helpful Costco employees who were distracting you by asking you birthday questions.
So you opened up that before bed as well and were excited to play with it. You really scored in the sibling department, by the way.
I think we sang Happy Birthday to you 4 times yesterday. Once at breakfast. Once at dinner. Once for cupcakes... okay, maybe we only sung to you 3 times but it really felt like 4. Oh!! I was 4 because we sung to you right when you woke up in the morning. I knew it was 4. Four birthday songs for the special 4 year old boy.
Before bed was the best. You were upstairs getting your jams on with Braxton, Adelle, and Emmett, and they were all done before you. So on any other night they all know that one of them has to wait for you to be done because you don't like being upstairs by yourself. But, last night you noticed Emmett waiting for you, patiently, and you told him, "Emmett, it's okay. You can go downstairs. I can be up here by myself now that I am four." Emmett was so proud of you that he came straight down to tell me the new. You are big Gage. Larger than life, actually. I love you, more. Forever.
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