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Thumper Turns Six

“When I was One,
I had just begun.
When I was Two,
I was nearly new.
When I was Three
I was hardly me.
When I was Four,
I was not much more.
When I was Five,
I was just alive.
But now I am Six,
I’m as clever as clever,
So I think I’ll be six now for ever and ever.”

– “Now We Are Six” by A.A. Milne

My sweet Thumper,

Today you are six years old.  Every year this gets harder.  Every year, you lose a little bit more of your “baby” look – the rounded cheeks, the dimpled hands – and are stretching out into an angular little boy.  And I mean “angular.”  We can’t keep your pants up for anything.  It’s like trying to dress a stick (and just like your oldest brother).  And you are tall… so much so, that you’re catching up to Rerun in height.

And yet there are so many things that have remained the same.  Your impossible eyelashes.  Your coy little giggles, and your gut-busting belly laughs.  Your incredible ability to pick a phone out of someone’s pocket and then run off with it to try and hack in.  Your stubborn refusal to use words when we’re pretty sure that you could.

We know that you are smart.  You have so many skills that you just refuse to use – unless it involves listening to the 20th Century Fox fanfare.

But even with your struggles, you are just oh-so-loveable.  You have your teachers and therapists under your charming spell.  Somewhere along the line you learned that being cute was your greatest power, and you use it fully to your advantage.  There is nothing you love more than hugs and cuddles.  You might have a hard time remembering names, but you know who the people are who love you.  At least greet people first before trying to snatch their iPhone, buddy!

Music continues to be your ruling passion in life, and there isn’t much you wouldn’t do for access to YouTube and your favorite videos (mostly involving movie studio logos).  I wish we could find a way to reach you with music, but right now you are too distracted to try to learn to play anything but the stereo system.

You have gained so many skills in the last year, started kindergarten, and learned so much, and there’s still so much to do.

But for today, it’s all hugs and smiles, because today you are six.  And if you could stay six “for ever and ever,” it sure would be helpful.  I might be used to you being six in a few years.

I love you more than words can tell, my little snuggle Boo.  Happy 6th birthday!

Love,
Mama

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