Hank's 4th Birthday

Hank's birthday is here and we're ready to party!  He started off the day with his first day back to preschool.  He was pretty happy with the birthday crown they presented him with along with being sung to by the entire class.  He came out of school and was greeted by some balloons that Lyla, Jack and I picked out for him.  That kid LOVES balloons!  We swung through the McDonald's drive-thru on the way home.  After devouring his Happy Meal, he asked if next time he could order chicken nuggets AND a cheeseburger.  I told him not get ahead of himself - there's plenty of teenage years to eat the entire menu still to come.

After a restful nap, we headed out for swim lessons.  That was an unexpected plus in his day, as he was treated to a "Happy Birthday Hank" message on the lane assignment screen.  The deck managers and his teacher knew about his birthday, and they chatted him up about his big day and sang to him at the end of his lesson.  He felt super special that everyone knew about his birthday.  Following swimming we had dinner at Buffalo Wild Wings.  Hank went with his usual mac and cheese and played to his heart's content on the tablets they hand out to play on (the true draw for eating there!).  We came home for lots of present opening and some mint chocolate chip ice cream cake.  Hank was treated to video and text messages from family and a surprise birthday visit plus snacks and presents from his friends, the Durhams.  He was super excited about all his Power Rangers, Dino Trux, and Legos toys.

This birthday has been so special.  Hank was so excited, and he had so much pure joy throughout the day.  He was very grateful for all the attention and made sure to acknowledge to me at the end of the day how loved he felt by so many people.  I felt overwhelmed by all the great people that Hank is surrounded by in his life.  It feels good as a mom to see him so well-liked, highly regarded, and profoundly loved by so many.