Jonah Turns 8!

Jonah had a birthday, hip hip hooray! He turned 8, which is a very special year. He got to have a birthday party with friends this year, but I'll do that in another post. He chose donuts, cantalope, and juice for his birthday breakfast this year.He got to open one gift at breakfast and it was a game for his DS. I figured it would keep him busy the rest of the day, and it pretty much did. He chose to go to the park and to go swimming for his birthday, but I didn't take any photos... what's wrong with me? Well, lots of things, so we won't go into that.

Anyway, we had a little family party that evening. My parents took him out to dinner for his birthday (he chose to go to Ihop, because he loves their Funny Face Pancakes) and when they got back, we were ready to party! We had a huge surprise for Jonah, so Andy and I were really anxious to get this party started.

 goofball

Jo chose a chocolate cream cake and it was soooooo yummy. 

 Jo and Gma Marge (she gave him some money for his birthday-always good!)

 Grandma Darlene gave him some new jeans and a glow-in-the-dark shirt that also changes color in the sun. Pretty cool!

 Papa Bry and Gma Claudia gave him some binoculars, a pocketknife, and a slingshot. Oh my, was this kid excited. Especially since he gets to go into Boy Scouts now that he's 8. I think he's ready!

 Money and a book to make giant paper airplanes from Gma and Gpa Collette

 Andy and I gave him some new flip-flops, pokemon stuff, and swim stuff (water guns, goggles, pool toys, etc)

But the big surprise was yet to come..... Jonah had been asking for a pet lizard for about 6 months, and I told him he had to wait until he was old enough and responsible enough to take care of it on his own. Andy was very doubtful about getting one, but I felt like he could do it. So, we got Jonah a leopard gecko. I was so proud of Jonah, because that was all he had asked for, and when he didn't get it while he was opening gifts, he didn't cry, or pout, or anything. He was very grateful for the gifts he received and was so happy. 

I went into his room a little later (where we had set-up the tank on his dresser with the gecko inside) and I had my camera ready to film his reaction. I called to him and asked him to come and help me with something. He came in and asked what I needed and then he saw the aquarium and got the biggest grin on his face. He was so excited and it made me so excited! He named his gecko Tiger. He had to wait 3-4 days to hold him (so Tiger could get used to his new surroundings) and when he was finally able to, he was the happiest kid ever. What a fun and happy birthday!

Jonah at 8:

Jonah is such a great kid. He is so curious about everything and always wanting to try new things. He is incredibly creative, and sometimes that creativity gets him into trouble. He is in the gifted and talented program at school, and he is doing really well. He excels in math, reading, and spelling. He enjoys school for the most part, but because of the class he is in, he has a lot of homework.... he doesn't like that, and neither do I! Jonah loves to read, and if he is enjoying a book, he will sneak a flashlight to bed so he can keep reading after lights out.

Jonah loves playing sports. He likes football, basketball, and soccer. He also likes to come up with his own games and I will see him outside sneaking around, playing this or that. He loves to jump on the tramp, ride his bike, and climb. He climbs anything he can... Trees, fences, houses, etc. I'm surprised he hasn't fallen yet. He also loves to play with friends. He is an amazing brother and includes Baron in nearly everything he does. I love that they are such good buddies. He is accepting of everyone and a loyal person. He stands up for his siblings always, and doesn't back down. 

He also loves, loves, loves video games. He would play his DS or the Wii all day, every day if I let him. He enjoys computer games too, but not as much as he used to. His favorites are Pokemon games, Mariokart, Super Smash Bros., and Donkey Kong. Luckily, he enjoys board games to, and we like to play cards, or checkers, or other things together. He got Battleship for Christmas, and it has been fun to play. He wants to learn to play Chess next.

Jonah is a great eater. He loves pretty much everything. He is definitely not like his mom in the fact that he doesn't really like sweets. He can take them or leave them. He is still about average, weighing 52 pounds and he's about 51 inches tall. He wears a size 8, and his little bro is catching up to him! He has pretty much lost his lisp for the most part, but I'm going to have the speech pathologist at his school check him out, because I've just noticed recently that he has a tongue thrust when he eats.

Jonah is so fun to be with. He always has us laughing with his clever, witty comments. Sometimes he takes it a little too far, and we have to reign him in. He loves to go to movies, and he still loves to swim. He is my one kid that can entertain himself for hours and rarely ever complains about being bored. He has gotten more daring recently, and will try a lot of new things that he used to not be willing to do. I love this kid so much, and am so grateful for him every day. I love you Jonah Boy! Happy 8th Birthday!