Four!

Wow. I'm not sure which is more amazing to us: the fact that Owen has now been in our lives for four years, or that four years and one day ago, we didn't know the kid.

It's kind of a big birthday for us, because Owen's birthday is also his last day at the daycare he's attended since he was 3 1/2 months old. Come Monday morning, Owen will be at Ludlow-Taylor Elementary School, which means we'll no longer be commuting together and I won't be able to check in on him at a moment's notice. I'm coping as best I can.

In preparation for his first day, DC Public Schools interviewed me to assess whether Owen had any developmental delays. The last question they asked was "What is your favorite thing about Owen?" I rambled on for a while, but in essence said that it was his capacity for joy. When I asked Allen the same question, he replied that it was his adventurous nature. We both agree, though, that it's hard to narrow it down to one thing, because we have a sweet, silly, smart, loving, dramatic, curious, happy, adventurous little boy and our favorite thing about Owen is that he's Owen.

Happy fourth birthday, little man.

1. Playdates involve more tears than their name would suggest.
2. Banjo-Sneaker-Rockstar-Pajamas are the coolest.
3. Hide-and-Go-Seek is a much more efficient game if you tell the seeker where you're hiding.
4. You don't need to pace yourself when it comes to stickers.
5. The high-dive isn't at all scary. Cookie Monster, however, is a whole other story.
6. Winter is the best season...except for maybe summer.
7. Peeing while standing is overrated.
8. Baseball isn't everything. There's also softball, the Nationals, playing catch, batting practice...
9. It's nice to be worshiped.
10. Three is a magic number.