Dax is 4

Yesterday was Dax's birthday. When he woke up, he came running into our room and said, "YEA! I'm four!" It was such an accomplishment to Dax that he made it to four. I think that partially comes as being the last of four cousins to turn 4 in a 6 month span.

Dax went to preschool on his birthday. He brought his favorite treat--chocolate chip cookies. He was so excited to go and show off his new birthday shirt.

Dax is the king of silly faces!

Really? Snow on my birthday!

After preschool we went and had lunch at Arctic Circle with his cousins. Alice, who is two weeks older than Dax, had done this a few weeks ago, and for some reason Dax decided he had to do it too.

For dinner, Dax told me he wanted soup. He has been loving any kind of soup lately. He picked chicken noodle soup. I think Randy and I were just as excited as Dax was for dinner--it's our favorite right now.

Dax probably asked me 50 times when he could open presents. So finally after dinner, we opened presents and Dax opened the big garbage truck and garbage cans he had been waiting for all day. He has been playing with it nonstop.

So excited about this truck!

Today Dax said, "Well, I guess I'm almost 5. I'm 4 now, and that's pretty much 5."

Dax wanted a garbage truck cake for his birthday and for some reason I didn't stress over this cake as much. Some years I fret and fret over the cake, but even though this cake was time consuming, I stayed pretty calm. And even if I do say so myself, I think it turned out pretty amazing!

I remember four years ago when my doctor pulled and pulled with the forceps trying to get Dax out after I had been in labor for 19 hours, and then looked at me and said, "I'm so sorry Natalie. We're going to have to do a c-section." At that point, I didn't care and since my mom had c-sections, I wasn't too surprised. It was the best thing that happened. I recovered more quickly with Dax than Mark. Dax was and still is a happy kid. He has the best laugh. When he was a baby, everyone would comment on his laugh and how cute it was--Dax still has a great laugh. Dax has always been our best sleeper. Up until he was 3, he would tell us he was ready for a nap and would go lay down. It was awesome.

Dax has the kindest heart and is so defensive of his family. Today, I told Mark he couldn't play another video game and Mark started to cry. Dax immediately looked at me with a mad face and said, "Don't make my brother cry!" We wish Mark would learn some empathy from Dax. Dax has been more challenging than Mark for me as a mother, but he has provided me with some of the sweetest moments when he just walks up to give me a hug. Dax is a great helper as long as it is something he wants to do--usually yard work or taking out the garbage!

Dax worries me already from the teacher perspective. He loves to be silly and make others laugh. I just know he is going to be a class clown, but right now his preschool teacher says he is a great listener. I hope that keeps up. Everyone loves being around Dax and he has many friends. I hope he will use that for good as he gets older. Dax is very creative and makes up stories all the time. Really, Dax is just like his dad, which is a great thing. Dax also looks the most like his dad.

I love Dax so much and I'm grateful for the past four years to be his mom. I have learned a lot about patience from Dax, but also a lot about having fun and showing love.

Dax always eats the frosting first! Happy Birthday buddy!