5 Year Old Ethan

It is hard to believe that I have a five year old.  I feel like the years have gone by super fast since my little E.E. was a baby.  He came into the world kicking!  Seriously, I've never seen a baby kick his legs like Ethan did, even as a newborn he would kick those legs a hundred miles an hour...it was like the excitement he felt for life just couldn't be contained in that little body.  And he didn't like to sleep, we used to drive him around at all hours of the night just so he would nap a bit in that car seat, then as soon as we hit the speed bump coming back into our apartment complex he would wake up screaming and ready to play again!  When he first learned to walk it was really a run, and he would run circles around our little living room for hours.

Some things haven't changed much, he still wakes up running.  The moment he wakes up I hear his little footsteps charging up the stairs, he's always ready to greet the day on a dead run.

There are so many parts to Ethan's personality.  He is so sensitive, he is kind and sweet, he doesn't like seeing other people sad or distressed.  At the same time he is also mischievous, he loves to be funny and play little jokes.  He thought he was so funny the other day when he poked his toy sword out of his shirt and said "look mom, I have a hernia like you."  (Yes, I need surgery).  He loves to have fun and be social...he cries almost every time I pick him up from preschool because he just wants to keep having fun playing with his friends.  He still doesn't have any stranger anxiety or a shy bone in his body, everywhere we go he likes to make new friends and tell everyone our life story.  He likes routines and consistency, change is hard for him.  The 9 moves last year, all of the changes this past fall settling in a new place, and then a new baby brother were a little rough on him.  But just the past few months I have seen so much growth in him, I think a large part is that he's finally feeling comfortable with the consistency of our routines and life again.

His love language is definitely quality time.  He loves his Dad because he plays with him so much.  All of the time I hear him say, "you are my best buddy Dad."

He is a smarty pants.  He knows his letter sounds, and can count to 110.  The thing that amazes me is his ability to figure things out.  He has an engineering and scientific mind, he's curious about how everything works.

I love how he has a big vocabulary but still uses words incorrectly.  Instead of instructions he says, "let's read the constructions."  Or sometimes he'll throw out a sentence like, "I need an assessment."  He calls cannon balls "bomb-its."  Instead of saying without you...he always says, "I won't with about you."

I love this 5 year old Ethan!  I can't believe the ways he has changed in the last year.  I love that he is still so innocent and guileless.  I love his imagination right now, he is constantly inventing a new world to play in...they go from pirates, to animals, to Donkey Kong, to cowboys all within an hour.  I love that he is sweet and fun.  Like all parents do, we really feel like Ethan is such a special little boy with the potential to do great things.  We are so thankful for our little E.E. boy, and can't imagine life without him!

Ethan's Answers to His 5 Year Old Interview:

Favorite Food:  Chocolate Ice Cream and Mac and Cheese
Favorite Color:  Red
Favorite Toy:  Brown Dog
Favorite TV Show:  Wild Kratts
Favorite Movie:  Star Wars (he saw this once when it was playing on TV and my Dad was in town, the rest of us fell asleep, but Ethan watched it all)
Favorite thing to do:  Play
What do you like to play:  Anything that my mind loves
What do you want to be when you grow up:  A pet doctor, a "vicksinarian"
Who is your favorite person in the whole world:  Henry
What are you really good at:  playing stuff that I like
Who's your best friend:  Momma
What do you like best about Mom:  that she's so snuggly and so sweet
Who's your best buddy:  Caden, and Daddy is my funniest Daddy
What do you like best about Daddy:  that he plays with me.
What do you like best about Caden:  he plays with me like Daddy.
What do you like best about Quinn:  that I can do cheek to cheek with him
What do like best about yourself:  how I can jump down from stuff that Caden can't