Happy 4th birthday, Tate!

Last weekend was Tate's birthday. At 4 years old, Tate is big for his age almost 43 inches tall and 38.5 pounds (I miss judged that in an earlier post). That puts him in the 90th percentile for his height and the 75th for his weight. He has taken a big interest in reading and writing. He recognizes at least 15 words by sight. He will sound out letters, but has trouble putting all the sounds together to make the word. I try not to get too frustrated because of his age, but I love to read and I'm so excited that he's taking such a big interest. Michael and I each read at least one book with him every night.

The theme for his birthday is "Out of this Word World." It is combining his love of space and new interest in reading. Plus, his new favorite TV show is Word World. There is a really useful birthday section on their website. I will have to do a separate post just for the party.

I decided to have the party from 10-12, before it got too hot. Little did it would be chilly and we would have to move inside for a brief rain shower! In Kansas, the month of August, temperatures are usually still around 100 degrees. After his party, it had warmed up enough to send Tate and two of his cousins outside so Mayer could nap.

Day 231: First they shot some hoops

(Note: the thing on Tate's back is NOT his swimming bubble, but his "parachute.")

Then they moved to the homemade water slides.

When that got old, they turned into self proclaimed "mud monsters."

 Tate chose Lone Star for dinner because they sing to you on your birthday. He didn't know that he also got dessert!

 He shared with his cousins and his brother.

(And no, that is not Mayer's empty margarita glass!)

 We got Tate a new sleeping bag for his birthday. He wanted to try it out, so we made a pallet on his bedroom floor. This was the first time he and his cousins have had a sleep over. They did really well because I threatened to separate them if I had to get after them for being to rowdy they were exhausted and fell asleep almost immediately! Tate woke up crying because he was thirsty and stuck in a crack. He was crying so softly, I almost didn't hear him over the monitor. He didn't want to wake his cousins up. He ended up sleeping with Michael and me for the rest of the night. 
After the busy birthday weekend, it was Tate's first day of school! Yesterday, he started his second year of preschool. He will be going 3 mornings a week this year. We had the option to keep the same teacher, but for several different reasons we chose to switch him to a new teacher and classroom. He already knows Miss Shanna, so hopefully it won't be a huge adjustment, especially since open house was a success. Two people commented/ noticed that he was talking more and really opening up.

He is growing up so fast!  Part of me wants to keep him little forever and the other part is so excited to watch him grow up.