Lucky #7

Oh, birthdays are SO exciting! Today the First Little Nguyen turned SEVEN! Seven years old!? In seven short years, our little man has grown from a sleepy-eyed 9 pound, 7 ounce bundle of joy into a racing 54-pound ball of energy! The time has passed so quickly, and any thought of it just makes my head spin. Or it makes me cry. Mostly both. I am unbelievably thankful and terribly sad all at the same time. I think all parents must feel that way as they realize the years are speeding by.

I think it must have been all of 6:30 a.m. when the First Little Nguyen roused us all from sleep with shouts of, "I'm seven now!" He couldn't have been downstairs for more than 30 seconds before discovering a few birthday gifts at the breakfast table. He wasted no time in opening those, and then settled down to build the LEGO Stone Chopper that his younger brother had given him.

After the long-awaited birthday breakfast (you guessed it -- cinnamon rolls), we headed out to pick upa Mystery Guest at the airport. All week long, the First Little Nguyen has known that the Mystery Guest was coming to visit on Saturday, but he didn't know who it was. Not knowing who has been driving him crazy! So, when he finally found out the who was actually his beloved Aunt Hoa, he was overjoyed! He loved spending the afternoon with her.

After dinner, Aunt Suzy and Uncle John joined us for birthday cake. The First Little Nguyen requested a warm chocolate lava cake, and I produced. He asks for something different every year, and it's never of the Betty Crocker variety! This child has a sophisticated sweet tooth! After he blew out the trick candles on his cake (again and again), he made his wish and polished off his sweet treat in no time flat.

The excitement of the day, and the anticipation of his Top Secret birthday party tomorrow (think Mission: Impossible for kids), had the First Little Nguyen snoozing in no time. I checked in on him about ten minutes after I tucked him in. He was fast asleep. As I looked at his little face, sleepy eyes closed and resting, I caught a glimpse of the little bundle of joy I held in my arms seven years ago tonight. I know he will always be that same bundle of joy: our bundle will just grow bigger each year.