Wow! Joel's Five

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Yesterday was a very special day....it was Joel's 5th birthday. We had a lovely day celebrating. In the morning we went to church and Joel announced to everyone that he was no longer 4, he was FIVE! After church, we asked Joel where he wanted to go for lunch. Carl gave him many choices and after a minute of pondering, Joel requested Japanese food (I was so thankful we didn't have to go to McDonald's, but for his birthday, I would have done it). Well, we didn't know of a Japanese restaurant and we didn't think the Tanaka family was prepared for us to invite ourselves over for lunch, so we got in the van to look for a Chinese restaurant.

We found a place that was also serving Dim Sum, so we went in and had a great lunch. Joel was thrilled with the egg rolls and tried quite a few of the other dishes (his favourite was the BBQ Pork Buns). After lunch we drove home and gave Joel his presents. He got Spiderman stuff, A Lightning McQueen paint sprayer kit, a frisbee and cars, new pajamas, jean shorts, money, books, a semi-truck, and a Lightning McQueen pillow sheet and quilt. After Joel was finished opening his presents, he gave Kezia a big hug and started to clean up all the wrapping paper. What a kid! He loved all his gifts, but was most excited about the Spiderman stuff, the frisbee and the new quilt. I was tickled pink with that!
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The rest of the afternoon he spent chatting with family and friends on the phone. He also dressed up in his Spiderman costume and played with his cars. I made rice and beans for supper (Joel's favourite) and then after had German chocolate pie that Joel picked out from Marie Callendar's.

After supper Joel had a long bubble bath and got into his new pajamas and crawled under his new quilt. I looked at the clock after I prayed with him and it was 9:17.....Joel was born at 9:17 CA time. Hard to believe how the time has flown. Where has my little baby boy gone? Now I marvel at how tall he is (he's 4 ft) and how much he can do. He can cut with a knife and fork, serve food at the table, he can ride a two wheeled bike, buckle his own seatbelt, he can write his name and lots of other words, he knows words in Spanish, Lau, and Japanese, he can dribble a basketball, and care for his baby sister, Joel can fold laundry, he can dance, and he's got a huge heart for those around him and through that he teaches us a lot about life. We are so blessed to have Joel in our family.
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