Abraham, Rachel, Soren and Liam. Our life together in Smalltown, Idaho.

Tuesday, January 11, 2011

Soren's 4th Birthday

My little boy is growing up on me. On January 1st, 2011, he turned four years old. We had our usual family shindig to celebrate. Grandma and Grandpa Hanson, the Smiths ("Clee, Marty, and The Kids"), Uncle Quentin ("Nano"), and Haunties Briar and Merritt came to celebrate.

I know it's hard to believe that I have such mad artistic skillz, but I actually made this poster myself. Freehand.

Soren wanted a "Max" cake. Auntie Merritt did the drawing and I added the worms myself. Freehand.

The thing Soren was looking forward to the most on his birthday this year was the cake candles. He got them out early in the day and spent a good amount of time making them walk around and talk to each other. He inserted them into the unfrosted cake, he pushed them into the frosted-but-undecorated cake, and--at long last--he was able to place them in the finished product.

Auntie Briar lit the candles and everybody sang.

The Birthday Boy blew out the candles while we were singing, so we had to re-light them and try again.

There were balloons everywhere, courtesy of Soren's daddy, who used his manly lung capacity to blow up about thirty of them. Liam LOVED the balloons.

Just thought this pic of Collette, Marty, and Tessa was cute.

Arielle took most of the pictures. She and Abraham decided to put together an avant-garde shot of the streamers. I feel that this shot says a lot about the increasing isolation of the modern man.
(Streamers twisted and strung by Auntie Briar and Uncle Quentin.)

For gifts, Soren pretty much received trucks from everyone. He was delighted. (A little too delighted-- he got a pretty insane during the gift opening and started throwing boxes and gifts around like a rabid monkey.) Cousin Marty--his idol and favorite playmate--gave him one of his own trucks and a toy gun. (Funny story about the gun: Marty called me that morning to ask if it was okay if he gave Soren the gun--isn't that sweet?-- but I thought he said "gum," and so I was like, "Oh yeah! sure! That's great!" But then it was a gun, which I was fairly tranquil about, until Soren started talking about killing people with it. He seemed pretty confused when we tried to talk to him about why that wasn't okay, so we decided to put it away until he can more easily grasp basic moral principles.)

Grandma and Grandpa also gave him a cool rug for his bedroom with streets on it for his trucks to drive on. He's taken to locking himself in his bedroom for long periods of time to play with all his trucks on his new rug.

All in all, it was a pretty happy birthday.

5 comments:

heidi said...

This might sound a bit tangenty, but:

Right at this moment, after reading this beautiful post, I'm remembering you mentioning to me many months ago how Nick had THE BEST MEAL HE"D EVER HAD in SF and...

In that same sense I'm just feeling like that's the most beautiful and tranquil birthday story I've ever read. I feel so happy. I love feeling the (imagined) feeling of playing with my trucks in my room on my rug, knowing that I have my own coat hook in the hall in my own house with my own love love love. From countless peoples and most especially from my mommy who I WILL claim for my own one day. Once the trucks manage to manifest their power inside of me, I will be able to do ANYTHING.

(Probably just as well that you aren't letting the toy gun manifest its power JUST yet. He might take a Baby Stewie turn with his daddy. Ask Seth, he'll explain.)

I'm just kidding.

He's pretty wonderful, huh, that little boy of yours? And had a wonderful day with wonderful people.

AND HE"S FOUR. It's idiosyncratic and silly, but THAT's a big part of what really really got me. Four is the BEST number. The BEST. I love the #4.

loves--

heidi juniper

p.s. I forgot! I melted at the first of the Soren-with-cake pictures. And melted more with the next. Was reminded of a story from long ago... of the Happy Birthday SOREN Singing that he was so mesmerized by that other birthday... two birthdays ago? I don't know.

But it sure sounds like he's building super-powerful beloved-by-many-wonderful-people memories, how his beloveds love him and love that he was born, love that he grows, love that he is the most Soreny Soren he can be.

Yay FOUR Soren... Yay Everyone.

So say we all.

(Ask Cory Sparks about that one. No one else we know is man enough to watch multiple seasons of that show. Except us. Yeah, I'm pretty manly. OH! AND! I'm thirty FOUR. I forgot, cuz I'm looking forward to 36. Multiple of four and all.)

The END.

Rachel said...

Heidi,
This was an adorable comment. It made me feel like maybe I am an okay mom after all. Thank you!
(And I even know about Baby Stewie!)

Karen said...

Rachel, all your "freehand" work was amazing. I can't believe you didn't even use a ruler.

Natalya said...

Soren looks a lot like Abe did in these pictures. The thing is, I think Soren is cute. I never have ever thought that about Abe. Weird.

Natalya said...

I also just realized by looking back in the archives, that this blog is more than 5 years old! Congratulations! That's an accomplishment! That's older than your first-born son! (But not older than your first-adopted son, which, by the way, is Herb still around?)
Love, Natalya

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