Happy Birthday, Riley!

It's Riley's birthday today! He turned 11. Wow. He's half of 22-and I am thinking of that, WHY?

Here he is this morning, with his presents from his brother, Kevin and I-he couldn't wait to open them.

His brother gave him a Star Wars book and a new Pirates of the Caribbean chapter book. We gave him Cool Stuff Exploded, a book he wanted, and a history book. He loves history, and learning about weird things.
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Oh, and this...an Indiana Jones Lego set. He is wild about Legos and Indiana Jones, so this is the best of both worlds for him. 

Make a wish! It's strange how images can stay in your mind. I remember Riley's entire birth. I remember taking him home from the hospital, wondering where we should put him, and what we should do next. He was such an easy baby. He slept a lot. It was easy to put him on a schedule, because I always had to wake him up to feed him. I got my whole house stenciled and painted while he was a tiny baby. He was a great shopper too! I couldn't stand to just stay in the house, so if we weren't out walking, or at "playgroup," we were at the malls. 

Now, he's developing into a young man. There's so much I love about this child. He is such a sweet, caring, sensitive boy. He used to get mad at us, while watching America's Funniest Home Videos, when we laughed at people falling down. To him, it was NOT funny! He's a quiet kind of boy, with a really big heart. I love that he can read 20 books all at the same time, leaving them open all over the house. I love that he loves his Legos, and has not outgrown the art of playing. I love how his mind works-he's quite a thinker, and very literal. I love that he's good at math, because I am not. I love that he is unwavering and loyal to his friends (and even to those who have bullied him.) He is very responsible. I am proud to be his mom, even if he refers to me as "um," because I think, he thinks he'll hurt my feelings if he calls me "mom" and not "mommy." 

Word for the day: Hike. We did some geocaching with the scouts today, at Coyote Hills. My father in law does a lot of geocaching, so Kevin commissioned him to lead this hike for the scouts. It was lots of fun. I think the boys were all intrigued with the idea of hidden treasures. They were able to use the GPS to find the coordinates of the hidden treasures. A good day was had by all.