The Birthday Boy

Sam is turning 6 today. He was born two days before Thanksgiving. I didn't think he would ever show up. I was overdue and the dr. finally took pity on me and brought me in for an induction. Grandma Cindy and Grandpa Max stayed with us for a few days after that and fixed our Thanksgiving dinner. Hard to believe that was 6 years ago.
He's been waiting for his birthday for so long. He was the first one up this morning, ready and excited to celebrate his day.
He woke up to this:

 And this:

 

For his birthday, they had a feast at school(which according to him wasn't a feast because there really wasn't that much food). Okay, so really it was  for Thanksgiving, but it was still fun to do on his birthday.
He requested spagetti for his birthday dinner. Aunt Amberlee and her family are in town for the holidays, so they got to come and celebrate with us. There was so much exictement going on that he hardly took the time to even eat his dinner.

Things we love about Sam: (Don't mind if I brag for a minute. I can because it's his birthday and that's what you do):
I love his charm. He know how to turn it on when it suits him the most (ie. when he's in trouble).
I love his smarts (and this is where I'm boing to brag) - He's always been smart. He started kindergarten this year and is loving it. He's doing so well, not only academically, but behavior wise, he obeys the rules. He's good at math. It just sort of clicks. His teacher has him doing first grade math and expects he'll be moving on to second grade math before the year is up. I love that she is not going to limit him to just kindergarten stuff. She's going to let him go as far as he can go. He's also good at reading and is in a higher level reading group.
I love that his tender heart. When his Grandma Cindy stayed with us a few times during her radiation treatments, I would often find Sam in her room lying in bed with her. Recently we got to visit some old friends. While we were out to dinner with them, Sam sat in between Nicole and her husband's grandma, Ardis. He was so thoughtful of Ardis and wanted to make sure she had enough to eat.
I love his sense of humor. He always says the funniest things - we call them Samisms. Just last week he was talking about the Indians and how they don't like to be called Indians. They like to be called 'Nate of Americans'.
I love that he wants to help out with the cooking (okay, so I don't always appreciate that and don't always let him, but I try to have patience and give in and let him help where he can.)
I love him for who he is. Who can't help but love Sam. I'm so thankful that he is a part of our family. We love you, Sam. Happy birthday.