Peanut, Buster and Jamie: To Harrison on your fourth birthday

Buster Brown, you are FOUR years old today! How did that happen? Seriously, how did that happen?

Harrison, you are so smart and so funny. I have loved you at every age and stage, but man you are really fun at this age. I remember when you turned three, I was really nostalgic for the baby and toddler years, but now that you're turning four- I'm just really excited to see what is coming next! I have really enjoyed watching you become a kid this year, no more toddler days for you!

This was a year of a lot of firsts for you Buster, you went to the dentist for the first time (and did awesome!), played soccer for the first time (we'll try that again later), started gymnastics and started preschool. You go to preschool at First Baptist Church of St. John, right up the road from our house, and most days you really like it. Toward the end of the year you started to fight me about going; you do not like the nap time part of the day, although I hear from Ms. Phylis and Ms. Nicki that you sleep every day, so I'm not sure what you don't like about it! You love your teachers, especially Ms. Phylis, who will read to you whenever you ask her too. Almost every day when I come to pick you up, I find you on her lap reading a book. I'm so glad you go to a school where the teachers love you, and you can learn and grow in a safe environment.

I love your imagination, and you can play by yourself for hours if I'd let you. I love watching you from the kitchen window, playing with your construction trucks in the sandbox. You are really into 'fixing' things, and you can drill and undrill screws in your tool bench for a good chunk of time. You are also hoping for 'real legos' like your big cousin Reggie has for your birthday (you're going to get them!), and I can already see that this will be your new obsession.

Speaking of obsession, boy do you love to watch TV! You would literally watch it all day long if we'd let you, it wouldn't matter what was on- you would be on the couch with eyes glued. Unfortunately for you, you were born to two tyrants, but when we do let you watch, your current favorite show is Paw Patrol, although you'll also ask for Bob the Builder or Cat in the Hat occasionally.

Harrison, you are already such a good 'reader'- Papa and Grandma got you a flashlight buddy for Christmas and I love watching you on the monitor 'reading' books in bed- just like mom. I think once you do get the reading thing down, we might have to put a limit on how late you can stay up with your books. You really will listen to anything, but we've been checking out more non-fiction books lately, we just got a book on John Deere tractors for instance, and the way you stare at each page for minutes- it's like you're reading the pictures. I read you a book on emergency vehicles last week while daddy was gone, and you wanted him to read it to you yesterday. Imagine my surprise when you asked daddy the same questions I had asked you (What if Uncle Chris FLEW to our house to give us a checkup instead of going to his office?), I think daddy was impressed with your deep thinking and I was impressed with your memory!

Your memory- boy do you have a great memory! I am amazed at the things you remember, you can have a book read to you two times and have it memorized by the third reading. We have a habit of checking out the same books from the library (mom does not have your stellar memory), and I'll only realize that it's a repeat when you start reading some of the text to me!

You love the library, you could go to the library every day if I'd let you. I introduced you to the computer games earlier this year, and I was afraid that would be all you wanted to do from then on, but we've been many times since and you haven't even asked- I was so relieved! You like to help me check out your books too, and I know when we get home, the first thing you are going to do is sit down next to the bag and take an hour looking at all of them. Harrison, I wish more than anything else that you retain this love of books throughout your life- nothing would make me happier than to be able to discuss books with you over breakfast in your teenage years. Maybe you'll even have an E-reader by then. ;)

You also love the playground, any playground, and you always ask to take your big construction trucks that you got from Grammy and Papa Bear on your third birthday with you. You like to dig in the sand or the rocks, but you always ask to sit on a blanket- you do not like to be dirty. Some other places that you love to go are the zoo (still a fan of the giraffes!), the Frisco Train Store (although your sister doesn't like it, so we don't get to go all that much anymore), and The Magic House, of course.

You took gymnastics this year, and that was the one place that I never had to fight you to go to. You made a LOT of improvements with your balance, coordination and strength and you had a lot of fun too. You haven't shown an interest in any other sports yet, but you do like to kick the soccer ball around with cousin Reggie.

You have a lot of friends Harrison, but your best friend is definitely Penelope. Nobody can make you laugh or make you cry as much as she can. You guys like to play school together, you like to pack your suitcases for 'trips', you like to play pets, read books, basically you play together all the time! Penny has been on an independent streak lately, and you get very sad when she wants alone time without you.

You are a pretty good eater, but you will not touch a vegetable and you're picky about fruit. You are a good meat eater though, as long as I tell you that it is meat you are eating and not pork, chicken, beef, etc- you just like meat. You were on a fish stick kick for a while, but now I'd say your favorite food is macaroni and cheese- not from the box, you like elbow macaroni noodles and melted Velveeta. You love white milk, yogurt, cereal bars, waffles, strawberry cereal, pancakes- you're a breakfast food lover for sure.

Harrison, you are my snuggler, my lover, and I so love that about you. I hope that never changes. Nothing makes you happier than laying side by side, under a blanket, reading book after book after book. I can remember laying with you on my chest in the morning after your first bottle of the day, and we would both fall back asleep. That seems like yesterday, but here we are four years later!