Happy 7th!

I asked Nathan if he wanted a friend party or to go bowling for his birthday, and lucky for me, he chose to go bowling.  It's been a nice break from the huge themed parties, although I still went a little wild on his cake.  We went bowling on Saturday, followed by pizza, root beer floats, and rented a movie.  (Nathan threw a strike on his very first roll).  On Sunday, he requested "everything that you eat with a fork" for breakfast (meaning not cereal).  He wanted mac & cheese for lunch, and tomato soup with rice for dinner (I love this kid.)  He wanted an eagle cake, so I did my best at that.  Thank goodness for easy frosting in a can and Twinkies.  He loved the Hot Wheels track we got him (same as his friend Jack from OK has).  Apparently what he really wanted for Christmas was a Hot Wheels set, which he didn't get.  Owen also loved the race track, and kept pushing everyone out of the way.  Nathan was kind enough to let Owen get more than his share of playing time.  Nathan is learning that it's easier to just give in to Owen than fight with him. 

This is a little long, but I wrote this for Nathan's superstar week (back in December).  Thought I'd share it (with a few minor edits):

ALL ABOUT NATHAN
Nathan was born on January 9th, 2004 in Houston, Texas. His given name is Nathaniel Ray, with Nathaniel meaning “gift from God” and Ray as a family name on his Dad’s side. We also considered him our ray of hope, since we had two failed pregnancies before he was born. Being the oldest of 4, Nathan is a great leader and example for his younger brothers (Jared, Owen, and Weston). Besides being a natural leader, Nathan is full of energy and enthusiasm. Here are some more things about Nathan:

Nathan was born in Texas, but we moved to Oklahoma when he was 19 months old. Nathan loves to cheer for the OSU cowboys and has met “Pistol Pete,” the college mascot. We moved from Oklahoma to CA in June of this (last) year.

Nathan didn’t walk until he was 15 months old, but by 2 years old, we counted nearly 100 words that he was saying. He loves to talk! Sometimes he is shy when he is in new situations, but once he gets warmed up, there’s no stopping him. He has been known to exclaim, “I can’t stop talking!” Nathan even talks (and sometimes walks) in his sleep.

Nathan loves books. He has more books than anything else, and a day without reading books is rare. We started reading to Nathan when he was just 2 weeks old. Nathan still loves books and can read many words on his own now. It is fun to see him read books to his brothers.

Nathan loves to learn. He is good at reading, writing and math. He learns quickly – he was one of the first to learn how to tie his shoes in Kindergarten and to tell time on a regular clock. He also does not like to miss school. One time last year, we thought about keeping him out of school for an extra day since he had been sick the day before. We started to call the school, but he threw a fit. Nathan grabbed the phone from us and insisted that he was going to school.

Nathan has a good memory. He will often name streets or landmarks or remember something we said a while back. It’s hard to beat him at the “Memory” game.

Nathan loves to play sports – basketball, soccer, baseball, golf, football, anything with balls. His hand-eye coordination is very good. He started playing YMCA soccer when he was 4 years old, and was excited to score his first goal… for the other team! Nathan also likes to watch sports. One time he even watched 3 hours of golf on TV with his great grandpa.

Nathan loves to be outside, digging in the dirt, playing sports, on the trampoline, camping, hiking, and throwing rocks in the water. His first camping trip was at 3 months old. When he was a baby, we could always get him to stop crying by just stepping outside. He rode in a backpack many times until he could walk. Now he often goes hiking with his dad and brothers, and he walks to and from school almost every day.

Nathan also likes to travel and has been through several different states – Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Florida, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, New Mexico, Nevada, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Texas, and Utah. He also has been to Australia (twice) and to New Zealand.

Nathan loves apples and healthy foods – he eats about 3 apples a day. He also loves steamed broccoli, carrots, and many fruits and vegetables. However, he also loves popcorn, chips & salsa, and orange juice and ice cream smoothies.

Nathan loves to go to church every Sunday. He is a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (aka the Mormon church). Nathan likes to read his scriptures and pray with his family every day. He also looks forward to special family nights on Monday evenings. Sometimes he gives talks, scriptures, or prayers in front of the other kids at church. He wants to go on a church mission when he gets older.

Nathan is very independent and a good helper. He helps with making dinner, the dishes, vacuuming, laundry, cleaning toilets, washing windows, changing diapers, taking out the trash, and he makes his own lunch for school. Sometimes he has to help his younger brothers or hold his baby brother.
We are very proud of Nathan and happy to have him in our family. He was nicknamed “Nate the great” in kindergarten - it’s true. He is great! We love Nathan!