October 23, 2011

On the morning Hadley turned 5, she came into our bedroom and said, “Goodbye four, hellooooooooo FIVE!”  That seemed like an appropriate way to usher in the Big 5.  She then asked if she was in fact 5, and I told her yes.  I didn’t want to say that actually, it would be 3:02pm when she would officially turn a year older.  This would just lead to a whole bunch of questions and disappointment because Hadley’s been looking forward to turning 5 since October 24, 2010. (That’s a whole lot of “fives” in one paragraph.  Perhaps I’m excited, too.)

Still, it is the way of things for me to go through an October 23 day and think about all the things that went on hours before I met Hadley Grace.  Driving down 270 in the dark on a Monday morning; looking at the baby blanket and pink and blue hat as I laid in the hospital bed and thinking soon there would be a person in those threads, and that person would be my child; the doctor and Jesse talking about the wonders of Zappos minutes before Hadley made her entrance into the world.  These memories I hope will stick to me for the rest of my life.  And as Hadley grows older, I’ll tell her more about the day she was born.  For now, we celebrate her and the wonderful things she’s brought to our lives the past 5 years.

We started the day with presents.  Look how thrilled Harper is.

We picked out a few presents that are similar for Harper to open so she wouldn’t have a screaming fit be upset that she didn’t have anything to open.   She actually did pretty well. I think she understood that once Hadley went to school the next day, she’d have free reign over the new toys.   “That’s fine, Hadwee.  You go ahead and enjoy those things now.  You can’t take ’em with you to school.”

After presents, Jesse made “Mickey Mouse” pancakes for the girls, and then we went to church. In the afternoon Hadley enjoyed “an extra long” computer time, and then the four of us went to Toys R Us.  Hadley got three five dollar bills from her grandparents and great-grandpa, and it was ripping a hole in her pocket, so we took her to Toys R Us so she could pick out a toy.  She thought she’d use the allowance she’d been earning to add to the sum, thus walking out of the store with three different Polly Pocket toys.  We now own a Polly Pocket car, some sort of Polly Pocket rollerskate/bowling contraption, and another Polly Pocket gal with several changes of clothes.

Hadley’s next request was to go out to eat.  Her favorite place to go right now is Hard Times Cafe.  I’m a little embarrassed to admit it because, well, it’s the kind of place you might meet a fella like Bob Ewell.  But Hadley LOVES it, so that’s where we went.

These two are best buds.  Two peas in a pod.

And we’re happy as long as you give us what we want and don’t bother us too much.

After dinner, we went back home to have a birthday cupcake with FIVE candles in it.

Happy Birthday to my lovely Hadley Grace.  You are the smartest, funniest, cutest 5 year old I know.