5...

Tate is 5.

I get emotional on his birthdays...not only because I am one of those moms who just doesn't want their baby to grow up, but also because it reminds me that I wasn't there when he took his first breath, I wasn't there in those first couple of days of his life...I missed something.

I wasn't supposed to be there, I know this. The people who were supposed to be there with him were. And he was (and still is!) SO LOVED by those people and felt that love no doubt. Selfishly, I wish I hadn't missed those moments though. 5 years ago today, I still didn't even know that Tate existed.

We made today special. Tate got to sleep in bed with Mommy last night which was treat #1. He slept in (a treat for me!) and woke up to a donut with candles...

However, he wanted to open presents before eating his birthday donut.

He got this hat he's been wanting...

And then it was time to open his BIG gift from Mommy and Daddy...

He was SHOCKED and THRILLED when he realized we got him a 3DS...

And then he got his Sports game for it. It has all kinds of sports in it. He loves it!

He was genuinely grateful for his gifts and gave us the biggest hugs and said, "thank you so much for the best gifts!" Oh my goodness, he was so happy...and that made us so happy!

Then it was time to sing Happy Birthday and eat breakfast!

He went to preschool and then when we picked he and Ava up and headed straight to Monkey Joe's...

The kids RAN and JUMPED and LAUGHED and RAN and JUMPED and RAN and JUMPED for an hour and a half. The LOVED every second!

This picture is my favorite...hilarious!

It was virtually impossible to to get a picture of the kids that wasn't blurry because they were moving so fast...

After Monkey Joe's, we went to Golden Corral (per Tate's request) and ate dinner. Tate remembered "the place with the chocolate fountain" and wanted to go there...done. :)

After dinner, we got home and Tate played on his 3DS until bedtime.

It was a fun-filled, great day!

I love my little 5 year old!!!!