Happy 4th Birthday my Darling Coop!!

On Wednesday, we celebrated Coop’s 4th birthday. We had actually celebrated with dear friends on Sunday (he got to pick 4 friends from his nursery class), so Wednesday was low key with presents in the morning, cake at school, a special play date with Sophie and Lucy, and then dinner at Din Tai Fung. I guess after writing all of that it wasn’t low key at all, but really all that mattered was that he enjoyed his very special day!!

Another one of Danny's famous cakes!!!

Karen drew this scene for the kids to color at their play date!! Coop loved all of the cars!!

Coop has grown so much this year, both physically and emotionally. He has gained over 5 pounds this year, which is more than he has gained since his first year of life! He is well over 3 feet tall and will soon overtake Eens!! His keen sense of smell (I often wonder if he developed that while in the NICU??) caused some grief during our quest for finding a puppy - he couldn’t go into any of the pet shops with us because they were “too stinky”! He continues to fight seasonal allergies since the fall, with them starting again now. I will be interested to see if some of those “allergies” are linked to the pollution when we get back to the US! During this past winter his eczema around his lip flared up weekly - again, I wonder if this is not due to the environment we are living in! Besides his “allergies” and eczema, he is thriving and I love watching him grow up!!!

(The Batman costume on the right is what Coop wore for Halloween in October, the left one is his new one which fits perfectly!)

Coopie loves super heroes and everything boy!! In the picture above you will see him dressed as Batman (thank you grandma and grandpa) on his big day!! He loves video games and is definitely more technologically advanced than I am!! He can work the I-touch much faster than me and he conquers levels in Super Mario before I do!! I have also noticed this year that he is a risk taker. I watch him ride his scooter outside and one would think he has been on it since he was a baby. Much of this has to do with the fact that he wants to be just like his big brother and sister, but I think he also has a very daring personality, which is a bit scary for me!! His creativity is developing thanks to his best buddy. He is even venturing into art by drawing his interpretations of Disneyland!! Lately he has learned all of his letters, both upper and lower case! He goes around the house telling us how to spell everything that has letters on it!! His favorite is, “I know how to spell IST (abbreviation for the kids’ school!), IST”!! He just giggles after he tells me this!!

Of course, some of Coop’s challenging behaviors still prevail at times. He doesn’t like when other adults touch him or try to help him. We are working on this, he just requires a bit of warming up time. I’m also hoping this year he will gain a bit of patience when we are out and about - the world still definitely revolves around him!! Living in China does not help either of these two personality traits because people are always touching him (or trying to - he scares them when he yells!) and when you go out for what you think will be a 2 hour adventure, it can very easily turn into a 6 hour outing! Coopie also has trouble calming himself when he gets upset. I am really trying to help him learn how to control himself enough so that he doesn’t spin totally out of control, but this task is not an easy one for him or I!! He has been a fighter since day 1, and I’m sure this will be an asset as he gets older, but for now that determination gets him into a wee bit of trouble!!

I feel so blessed to have Cooper as my son. He, without knowing it has taught me so many lessons in the last four years... Each day is a gift that must be cherished and appreciated!! Hug your babies many times throughout the day, they are special treasures full of love!! And, when all else fails, count to 5 and breath deeply!!

The memories of his birth and the months that followed it are (and probably always will be) still fresh in my mind, but I have tried really hard this year not to relive the scary moments, and instead to focus on the fact that I have a beautiful, healthy, energetic, loving four year old!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY COOP!!!