My Baby Isn't A Baby Anymore

My baby, Garrett, turned 5 on Groundhog Day. That pretty much means he's not a baby anymore.

As I usually do on birthday mornings, I woke him up with the Happy Birthday song. Before he even opened his eyes, he squealed, "IT'S MY BIRFDAY! I'M FIVE!!!" He was just a little bit excited about this momentous day.

For breakfast, I figured he would ask for donuts, waffles, or some other sugared-up meal. To my surprise, he wanted granola with craisins. Granola with craisins and a candle he got.
After taking Liam to school, we headed home to slave over a chocolate cake. Once again, Jack and Garrett needed to watch it bake, and they thought the timer might never beep.
As I assured them, the cake was finished with plenty of time to spare before grandparents arrived for dinner.

Ni, my mother-in-law, was a good sport to sit with all three boys on the bench. When sitting so close to them, you never know when you might get an elbow or tomato guts in your eye.

After dinner, the boys quickly found her iPhone. They love to play games on her phone, and they're really good at running the battery down.
Meanwhile, the grandfathers talked politics or some other topic that made me want to plug my ears.
But then my boy came to sit in my lap and gave me the perfect distraction.
He may be 5, but he's still mommy's boy.

And Didi, my mom, bless her soul, cleaned the kitchen for me.
When the political talk ended, Jack got some lovin' from Big Daddy.
Liam is a giver. Always has been. It's nothing we've taught him. It is his spiritual gift. When he came home from school that day, he was very upset that he hadn't thought to get Garrett a gift. I tried telling him that what Daddy and I bought G would come from all of us, but that wasn't good enough for Liam. He quietly set to work on something in another room and wouldn't let any of us see. He gathered two of his old easy readers and wrapped them in a box. "Because Garrett is reading so well now, " he added. And he made him a card. What a sweet brother!
Naturally, the evening was tapped off with that cake that took forever in the eyes of the five year olds.
In some way, it's hard to remember life without Garrett, yet it's hard to comprehend he's FIVE. Where did my baby go?!