Dear Andrew…5 Years Old

You used to sing so perfectly.  Key and pitch seemed such a easy things to find even when the words were not.

But on your 5th birthday, finding words, even huge, 20 year-old mature, college sophomore words, comes with ease and frequency…but your pitch, while singing the theme song to Indiana Jones, could use a little work.

I still think your are musically gifted but it is enthusiasm that has your, “duh duh DAH dah,”  going a bit too far into the soprano range.  I smile with pride because I am the reason for your unabashed joy.  I am throwing you a pool party.

As you sing and leap around the living room, your daddy and I giggle to ourselves.  How far you have come in 5 years.  I can’t believe there was a time when I cried about your development because you, my love, are nothing short of amazing.  So very smart, so frustratingly observant (can’t get a thing past you), and so darn grown. This last year, you’ve become much more emotional, giving in to tears not only during sad times but also during happiness,  pride, embarrassment.

It has been an emotional few weeks.  When you turned 4, you asked us to give you a little brother.  He is now a very loved fixture in your life, which was not really a surprise.  You wanted him so badly, we just knew you would be instant buddies.  We didn’t expect to see you in a new light when we brought him home.  It was like you grew, in that moment in time, by another year or two.  It both hurt and felt incredibly surreal.  Our baby is no more, he is a little boy.  One full of promise and potential but also one who has already achieved so much.

This week, you will graduate from preschool.  It seemed like a cruel joke to be signing your up for kindergarten the week we expected Matty to arrive.  It felt like closing a chapter with you and opening it with him.  For you, this is a whole new adventure that begins with this August and continues for the next 13 years.  I know you will enjoy it.  You admit to being scared now but you will find your place in this new world and beam with pride from all of your accomplishments.  You love the taste of success and you will have a healthy portion.

You make us so proud each and every day, Andrew.  You have always been so very loved and wanted in our lives from the day you were born and continuing every day since.  We want so much for you and are so blessed to be part of this exciting journey.

Happy birthday, sweet, darling boy.  May this next year lead to more independence, more exciting adventures and many, many more smiles.  We love you.