4

I absolutely can't get my head around the fact that my first baby is now 4! What a fabulous four years they have been too!

Andrew was born June 25, 2007, after a difficult pregnancy which included a month of bed rest and a cesarean birth. But, oh my goodness was he worth all the puking, pain and boredom. He was the most adorable baby! He has been amazing us every day since.

In his short 4 years he has been quite the traveller. He has gone with us to Ohio for football, to San Diego for fun, to Sweden to visit friends and family, and numerous trips across Nebraska and Wyoming to visit grandparents and friends. We also take him to Denver frequently for baseball games, museums, plays, the zoo and shopping. He is a wonderful companion on a trip. He rarely fusses in the car and always looks forward to seeing new things and people.

Besides travelling Andrew enjoys being outside, especially if it involves our friend's ranch and being a real cowboy! He truly loves all things ranching, horses, cows, tractors, snakes (knows rattlers from bull and which one's will hurt and which one's won't), turkeys, deer, elk, hiking and fly fishing. He has a full "cowboy" wardrobe and utilizes any excuse to gear up.

Andrew's other loves are dinosaurs, Toy Story and Cars. He can name almost all dinosaurs and he also knows what they like to eat and little facts about them. The genius of Disney Pixar and their marketers has rubbed off on my son as much as everyone else's, and yes we own most of what they sell pertaining to Toy Story and Cars.

Andrew has also made a lot of adjustment this past year when he became a big brother. He is a great brother to Henry though (most of the time:). Sometimes, he thinks Henry is bigger than he is and is ready for rough housing, but, most of the time he teaches Henry and makes him laugh. He makes sure Henry doesn't get into anything he shouldn't and he helps us by watching him and taking his baths with him. Henry could not adore anyone more than he does Andrew.

Things he's said lately:

Me: "Who do you want to invite to your birthday party?"
Andrew: "Let's invite someone we don't know and make a new friend."

(After getting into trouble and me talking with him about his behavior)
Andrew: "Mom, I'm glad we had this little talk."

I don't even remember what we were talking about, but, Andrew had flat out proven me wrong on something so he immediately said, "You were wrong Mom!"

What I think of most though, when I think of Andrew is how darn smart he is! His vocabulary is amazing. He likes to play games where we form rhymes or little sayings using alliteration. He is also quite the arguer. Yeah, I know what do you get when two lawyers have a child...well we got him! It is hard to stay mad though, when his arguments are so reasonable and articulated so well. His "but, Mom" is more than just that in a whiny voice, he says, "but, Mom, you and Dad always say it is important for me to do what you ask and when you said I was supposed to...." Well, you get the drift. And boy does he love to argue! His daycare is always talking about it too. He will argue the color of the sky when it's pure blue. "It isn't really day blue, it is more denim blue..." Okay, Andrew!

Andrew, you are truly our bestest big boy. These have been the best 4 years of our lives because you were there to share them with! We love you to the moon and back!

Happy 4th Birthday!