Karter at Five

FIVE! This was a VERY long awaited birthday. The countdown was on and the anticipation grew to astronomic proportions. I suddenly thought it might be wise to ask him, "What does your birthday day look like?"  I didn't want the day to arrive and have him bitterly disappointed and let down, so I thought that if there were notions that needed to be squelched, I better get going on that!  

But he didn't really have high expectations. He wanted cake and friends over and I'm sure presents were in that list too, but he didn't make too much mention of them until the day or two before and even then he wasn't asking for much. Phew!!

We counted down days for quite a while and it was the first question he would ask when he woke up in the morning. .  . how many days now?? 

We decided that since one of his favorite questions each day is, "Can I have someone over?" that we would have multiple play dates/birthday parties instead of having them all over at once. 

So he had two friends the day of his birthday, and three the next day. This worked really well and it was fun to see them having fun together!

 Blowing bubbles.

We actually did not end up having cake. We went to the grocery store and this is what he picked. He had it all figured out in his head. "The brown thing with white in it!"

And pictures and commentaries from the last year:

I'll start with Karter and Konnor's relationship since this picture is first.  These boys love each other and can play incredibly well together, BUT Karter also loves to bug and tease Konnor for no apparent reason other than to hear him cry or whine.  (this seems familiar).  We could do without that part, but on the whole Karter is very glad to have Konnor around and they are pretty good buddies. Now that Konnor is getting older, he can play certain things with Karter and Karter DOES enjoy having someone to play with. He does not have a whole lot of imagination, and therefore if he is all alone, he grows bored rather quickly. 

 Karter is definitely ready for school. I was not looking forward to this at all, but there comes a time when it is okay.  I think I will be sad, but okay when September comes.  Because he is so ready and is constantly needing something to do or somewhere to go or someone to have over, it becomes easier to have him go because it will make him so happy! I am still very glad that it is only two days a week. It will be a good balance.

 Karter's favorite time of the day is when the kids come home from school.  He counts that down too. "How much time til the kids get home?" is a constant refrain in my afternoon.  When it gets close, he will often head outside and wait for the bus to come.  Then he has new faces to play with!

 Karter loves all sports and is another "always on the go" kid.  He loves soccer and hockey best, but will join in whenever he can at whatever he can.  When I teach Phys. Ed at school once a week, depending on what we are doing, he will join in and get right in there with the Grade 4's - especially in hockey and soccer.

 Karter is really starting to love the water and swimming. After a slow start last year, he really embraced it and was totally good with jumping in over and over by the end of the summer (with his crab). He has already jumped in the pool once this spring and though it took his breath away (literally!), he did not hesitate at all. (though he probably will next time!)

 Karter loves story time at the library. We go once a week and he knows most of the kids and loves the "teacher".  It is familiar and fun and they do such a good job there, that the kids LOVE going!  

He also loves books. We still try to sit down once or twice a day and read a few books together. If I try to escape after my coffee or breakfast, he will sit on me and force me to stay until I have read him the three books he has grabbed for me to read.  I do really enjoy this time and so does Konnor, so I am thankful that it is part of our routine.

 Karter also really enjoyed Bible Boys (and Girls) this year.  He goes to that "class" while we meet for Bible Study. I cannot believe how much he learned this past year. They started going through the Jr. Catechism and he just grabbed onto those question and answers and really figured them out.  It is not odd to hear him saying something like this, "That is just a stone. You cannot worship it b/c there is only ONE TRUE GOD. How many persons are there? Three. God the Holy Spirit, God the Son and God the . .. . . . . Father!"   I love it.  There have been a lot of discussions and conversations as a result of the things he learned there and I am so thankful for the time the teacher has taken.

 Karter loves to talk about God and ask questions.  He is really trying to figure Him all out.  He knows He is big - but how big? Bigger than the house? Bigger than the truck?  But then how does He fit in our hearts.  When we read a Bible story before bed, I am often interrupted in the middle of every sentence as he thinks of another question. Some are related to what we are reading and some are not.  It is pretty neat. I love these conversations and hearing him say that he loves God and Jesus SOOOOO much.

 We memorized Psalm 103 as a family (with the church) and Karter is able to say pretty much the whole thing too! We are still perfecting the last few verses, but he can recite most of it perfectly.  We're pretty proud of him.

 Karter loves Kevin - Kevin is the one who will spend the most time playing hockey in the basement with him and that is his most favorite thing in the world to do.  Kevin, though he has a fairly full and busy schedule, will usually take the time to teach him new things or help him practice.  

 Karter also loves Kade but they maybe bond more over screens.  Kade has somehow (to our dismay) created a deep love for x box and you tube videos in Karter.  He won't last as long as Kade on a screen if left unsupervised, but he sure does want his turn.  He has lately started calling me screen girl b/c he thinks I spend so much time on the computer.  He figures for every minute I get, he should get the same - and he actually believes that that is the right and just thing for me to allow. Never mind that I am working and he is not.  Those details are not important.  He feels thoroughly persecuted and mistreated when I tell him no. I am a firm believer that video games make kids bratty.  It is true of him and thankfully we have a weekend only rule that is well enforced and not argued with.  He is quite familiar with the concept of a weekend as a result!

 Karter loves Kylie and when they get playing together it is wonderful. It is the only time Karter plays with his imagination.  He can do it and he does it well, but I believe that everything he has learned concerning using his imagination was taught to him by Kylie.  She is amazing that way - especially with the nicer weather, it is so fun to see them playing outside and pretending and having a good time.  

 The many faces of Karter!

Though Karter has a room in our house and even a bed, he spends every night on an extra mattress on the floor of either Kevin and Kade's or Kylie's room. He does not want to sleep in his own room with Konnor. This works out fine, so this is the way it is for now!

 Karter's last year was a year of many dental visits. He has (HAD!) bad teeth. He had  a few taken out and replaced with silver and a few cavities filled. He was amazing through it all, but we are glad to be on this side of it and thankful that at the last dental visit that she declared his teeth excellent and his brushing VERY GOOD!  I don't think we slacked terribly on him, but it sure made us smarten up!

 Karter loves spending time with Jonathan and loves it if he can "work" with him.  His favorite is when Jonathan plays hockey with him, but he is equally happy to go out to the shop and help him .. . and Jonathan reports that Karter is actually a HUGE help.  He also loves going on scrap metal runs or other odd jobs. Part of the joy is the Tim Hortons run they go on when they are done. Regardless he loves Dad time.

 Karter loves spending time with friends.  Mason and Karter remain very close and have lots of fun and get into little bits of mischief together.  Karter also loves spending time with the other boys his age at church - and there are a bunch of them to choose from.  He also loves his cousin Savannah!

 When Karter puts his mind to helping - or when there is a reward at the end, he can go like there is no tomorrow. He can help me put the house in order in a very short time if there is motivation. There are also moments, when picking up one toy is a monumental chore that he is pretty sure he will never make it through alive.

 Karter is starting to do some "school" things. I don't do any work with him specifically, but once in a while I will get him to copy letters or something like that while we are working in the office. He will sit at his desk and I will sit at mine, and he does quite well. He can copy most of the letters very well, though he doesn't know all of their names.  He knows a bunch and most of his numbers. I am not too worried about having him figure it all out. Kindergarten will be here soon enough.  He knows how to write his name so they should let him in :)

 Karter is also an amazing help at the grocery store. He gets a comment pretty much every week on how good of a helper he is too (which I'm sure spurs him on!) At the checkout, he usually loads the cart onto the counter while I start packing on the other end. He also loves to organize the shelves if he sees things kind of out of place and push the empty milk crates down the track.  He would be a good stock boy.  He also helps with Konnor - or bugs him.  Some days are good and some days he is just not allowed to sit in the cart with Konnor!

Karter, like everyone else in this family, doesn't require a lot of sleep.  We are a bit dysfunctional with bedtimes right now and Karter often goes to bed at a time far beyond his years.  This will change next year for sure when he has to get up for school. Right now he sleeps in so it works out okay!

 Karter is a snacker and asks too many times a day for snacks.  Thankfully he does like healthy snacks too. One of his interesting quirks: He eats yogurt with a measuring spoon. Always. And usually the smallest one there is.  Not sure why, but it has to be that way for him.  

Karter also loves to sing. He has his favorite songs that he learns from his older siblings and to which he gets most of the words wrong. He also has his favorites that we sing as a family after supper.

 Karter! We love you so much.  Our prayer is that you would be like your favorite Bible character - David.  You love listening to the story of David and Goliath that we have on a CD.  May you be brave like David. May you be strong in the Lord like David - putting your trust in Him in every situation! May you praise the Lord with everything that you do, and when you sin, may you, like David, turn to God in godly repentance, asking for forgiveness, and knowing that God will cleanse you and wash you til you are whiter than snow.

Thank you for all the joy you bring us. Thank you for all the help you are to us. Thank you for the things you teach us (some that we don't like learning!) Thank you for being a great brother to all your siblings and a great son to us!  We are so grateful that you are a part of our family!!

We LOVE you!