Four Already!

Hey, not-so-little-man! I am amazed that you have reached your fourth birthday already! It seems like just yesterday that I found out I was going to have a boy. We chose the name David because it means "beloved" and because we wanted a strong name for our first boy. I can't imagine calling you anything else - the name David fits you so well.

Happy Birthday! The fourth year of your life has been filled with many wonderful events and surprises. It was also shortly after your third birthday that we got the official diagnosis of high-functioning autism for you. I have watched my three-year-old make incredible leaps and bounds through ESD preschool and therapy. Daily we find new ways to connect and bond with you, and I am so proud and happy that God blessed us with a little superman! Only you would prefer Spiderman, I know.

So here's to a very Spiderman-filled day! I hope you liked seeing your big bunch of balloons and your special Spiderman outfit for the day. I knew you would love the water sword from the dollar store that you've had your eye on for months now. I'll bet you thought your momma would never cave and get you that, did you??

And it's not a birthday in our house unless we get cupcakes for breakfast. I love the way you carefully peeled the wrapper off yours and oohed and aahed over the surprise blue cake! It will be fun to take some of these to share with your classmates at preschool. And later, we will have a big Spiderman cake and open lots of presents at your favorite restaurant.

I hope it all makes you feel super special - because that's exactly the way I felt when the nurse gently laid you in my arms just seconds after you were born. Special.

Happy Birthday, Beast!