I am extremely proud of my boys and with?that comes a little bragging from time to time. They can be a little ornery and can get kind of loud, but they are truly the sweetest kids. I know I’m biased, but that comes with the territory of being their mom. My boys do many things on a regular basis that make me proud. This is just one of the latest.

Here are pictures of my little sweeties dropping off their donations to Toys For Tots. Toys that they picked out and bought with their own money. One of the things I love is how considerate they are about picking out the toys. Each of them takes their time and really thinks about what they would like to receive if they were only getting one toy for Christmas. They don’t just pick the cheapest thing and move on. When it comes to the price their only concern is that they have enough money to pay for it on their own. This year they had all done a really good job of saving and budgeting for the holiday season.

I am so proud that by boys do this. Not just that they do it, but that they want to do it. Proud that they understand the importance of giving and sharing. I love the compassion and kind hearts that my boys have. Not just at Christmas, but all year long. I wish I didn’t have to teach them that there are kids out there who don’t have any presents under their Christmas tree. But it is a truth that can’t be denied and a lesson important for them to know. I know some adults that my kids could teach a thing or two about giving and not being so selfish.

We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give.?~ Winston Churchill

The tidbit for today is…a website I wanted to share with you, Hubbard’s Cupboard. It’s a site for infant, toddler, pre-k, and kindergarten aged kids. They offer lesson plans, arts and crafts, and so, so much more. If you have young children, I really encourage you to check this site out. And, it’s all FREE!

I really wanted to share this site with you today because of the wonderful activities they have for Christmas. Click here to go directly to the Christmas section. There’s a daily activity for the whole season or you could just pick the ones you want to do.

I hope you’ll check it out and that your family will enjoy it as much as mine does.

I can’t believe my baby turned 5 yesterday. I know parents say this all the time, but it really does feel?just like?yesterday that we were driving to the hospital to welcome him to the world. We spent the whole day as a family celebrating the birth of the last member of our little family tree (for now until grandkids come along in the?future).? Dad took the day off of work and we took the day off of school. It was all about our youngest, the baby of the family!

He came into my room?yesterday morning and first thing out of his mouth was “Mom, I’m 5 today.” He’s really been looking forward to this birthday. The thought of being a whole hand old has been pretty exciting to him.?He also had been warning me for the last 16 days that?he was going to look different. I’m not sure what he’d been expecting, but maybe he thought he would look older.?After he came in my room and announced he’s 5, he crawled in bed to cuddle like he does most mornings. We usually lay there and whisper?about whatever comes to his mind. On his mind?this day, of course, his birthday. I wasn’t at all surprised when he asked me if he looked different.

I truly cherish those mornings when I get a little snuggle time. I know that the time is coming where he won’t be doing that anymore. He’ll outgrow me faster than I’m ready for him to. All I can do is enjoy every single minute of time I am blessed to spend with him and look forward to his future. I know it goes by fast and I never really understood that until I became a mom. I feel such joy and ache all at the same time on every birthday of each of my boys. I always have and probably always will cry the night before their big day. The last time they will be that age just hits me so hard. The night before his birthday was no different.

It seemed like the day was a huge success. The birthday boy was thrilled with the all of the surprises that Dad and I had planned for him. He was also very appreciative of the time and effort to make his day special. We had kept the whole day a secret, not telling him anything that was planned. We decorated the house for him after he went to bed and he loved waking up to all the decorations. He looked around in awe just thanking us over and over for all the balloons, streamers, and signs. He loved going to Wacky World and playing on the inflatables. You know a place is a success when your kid tells you it’s the coolest place they’ve ever seen. And I knew we couldn’t go wrong with the bowling. He loooooves to go bowling. Making a day fun for my 5 year old really isn’t hard. He loves everything, especially when the whole family is involved. What makes it special to me is how much he really does appreciate it and how thankful he is.

So, my youngest son, thank you for coming into my life. Thank you for making me laugh every single day that I’m with you. Thank you for being so loving and sweet. Thank you for being silly and dancing and singing and playing and just doing all of the fun things that you do. Thank you for telling me out of the blue how much you love me. Thank you for all of the hugs and kisses that you give to me. Thank you for always being full of surprises (I should have expected it when I found out I was pregnant with you on April Fools day). Thank you for giving me so many things to be thankful for that I could list pages and pages of them. Thank you for just being you and letting me be your mom.

Happy Birthday, T-Bone!!