7 Years Old!

This post is long overdue!!  Matthew turned seven on September 20th, and had a wonderful birthday.  His actual birthday was a school day, and his party was on the Sunday following his birthday, and we had sixteen children and various adults at our house for a Bey Blades themed birthday.  It was wild!  I invited a few of Matthew's friends and some declined because of hockey, so I panicked a little and might have invited a few too many in case more people said no!  And then last minute I remembered Matthew's foster brother who lives in Richmond with his family, and they made it out, so all told we had tons of kids.  At first I thought, uh-oh, this is going to be ridiculous, but in actual fact it was quite reasonable, and fun for everyone!  It rained, and then hailed, and then the sun came out... So the backyard was kind of soggy but there was some trampoline fun during the sunny bits.  And then our playroom was put to good use, hot dogs were had, and ice cream cake was presented, complete with sparklers...

On Matthew's actual birthday we had spaghetti, and they went
a little nuts... This is 100% raw Matthew!  In action!
Ready to charm anyone...

Matthew is our charmer.  He is good with kids, adults, dogs, boys, girls, random strangers, and the odd alien or bald eagle that comes his way.  He's hysterically funny [When he's not driving us nuts] and full of personality.  His hearing problems have resolved, speech and language delays and pathologies almost entirely disappeared, urology issues decreased [although I think he will always live with symptoms of an irritable bladder, and nighttime is still an issue], and he is maturing.  He stretches us all, as individuals and as a family, and continually reminds us to enjoy life, and always look on the bright side.  He loves his teacher, Ms H, and his Montessori style classroom at school.  He's an excellent helper~from cutting veggies to entertaining the baby, he has a naturally helpful and cheerful nature.  And he's as cute as a waterbug.  He weighs 38 pounds and is three feet tall (106 cm).

Likes:
-Bakugan, Pokemon, Star Wars paraphernalia (he hasn't seen the movie itself), Bey Blades, Lego, toy soldiers, marbles, Ben Ten, and Club Penguin
-soccer
-his baby sister
-trampoline time
-wrestling
-camping
-riding his scooter (he's still wary of his bike and will always favour his scooter)
-wrangling candies, privledges, treats, and prizes
-sleepovers with gramma and grampa
-hands on toys and activities
-climbing trees
-playing in the ravine at the park with his brother and a neighbourhood buddy
-getting dirty, muddy, dusty, and wet

Dislikes;
-anything 'girly'
-academic endeavours
-bathing
-missing out on anything fun


We love you, Matthew!  You are a character, and you sparkle.  It's fabulous.  I always think of your birth mom and pray for her on your birthday; I know she loves you so much and that your birthday must be a hard day for her, when she especially misses you.  She gave you, and us, a remarkable gift by giving you up; a gift we never take for granted.  You're awesome, and we love you.  I love you.  You're a blessing to have around and I'm so glad you are in my life, and that I get to be your mom and watch your life and your personality unfold.  Every month that goes by you get more and more mature and amazing and fun, and it gets even more rewarding to be your parent.  I admire your spunk, tenacity, courage, and resilience.  Never lose your sparkle, baby.

xo