Happy 6th birthday to our dear Nathaniel Thomas!
Our Natty Bumppo is six years old. We think this every year, but we are always amazed at how much he has grown this past year. While he has literally grown like a weed (almost 3 1/2 inches this past year), he has also grown in maturity and appearance. We just love this boy to pieces. He is just such a sweetheart. We love how silly, sweet, helpful, strong willed, and independent he is. He has always been our little firecracker, ball of energy, snuggler, charmer, and a joy to have as our son.
This past year has been lots of new changes for Nathaniel. He lost his first baby teeth (front bottom teeth). He became a big brother for the second time. He joined a real baseball league. He got to join AWANA Sparks instead of Cubbies. All the milestones just remind us of how fast boyhood goes.
Nathaniel finished his last year of preschool. We have loved the time that he had at Genoa Baptist to learn more about Jesus, playing with others, writing, reading, and how to act in a school environment. He will be off to Kindergarten at brother's school this next year and he is so ready and excited. He was born ready, but even though we could have put him in school last year, we decided it would be best for him to be a year older. His preschool teacher agreed since he has always struggled to sit still for long periods of time. He has grown so much in this area this past year and we are grateful that we were able to have the choice.
Here is a look into the past year of his life.
Appearance
Nathaniel is still a child of physical touch. He loves snuggling with mom and turns into a house cat if you rub his back. If he is sad or hurt, he wants someone to hold him. He loves having his parents pick him up. Dad carries him up to bed every night.
Monthly Highlights
Here are some of the highlights from each month. I probably missed some because if I don't have pictures for it, I can't remember it. It's basically like it didn't even happen.
July - 4th of July Parade, Swimming in Grammy and Grandpa's pool, Camping Themed Birthday Party, Cousins Birthday Party, Westerville Touch a Truck, Edmund's Birthday, Metro Parks Day Camp, Ohio State Fair
August - Zoo, First Day of Preschool, Ohio State Fair, Farm Days at COSI, Splash Pad, Camping with Gramma and Papa, Peach Picking
September - Apple Picking, Kindness Award at Preschool, Birth of Baby Emma
October - Preschool field trip to the pumpkin patch, Trunk or Treat at Edmund's school, Trick or Treating as a ghost, Pumpkin Picking and Carving, Noah's Ark Party at preschool, Gramma and Papa visit
Questions
Our Natty Bumppo is six years old. We think this every year, but we are always amazed at how much he has grown this past year. While he has literally grown like a weed (almost 3 1/2 inches this past year), he has also grown in maturity and appearance. We just love this boy to pieces. He is just such a sweetheart. We love how silly, sweet, helpful, strong willed, and independent he is. He has always been our little firecracker, ball of energy, snuggler, charmer, and a joy to have as our son.
This past year has been lots of new changes for Nathaniel. He lost his first baby teeth (front bottom teeth). He became a big brother for the second time. He joined a real baseball league. He got to join AWANA Sparks instead of Cubbies. All the milestones just remind us of how fast boyhood goes.
Nathaniel finished his last year of preschool. We have loved the time that he had at Genoa Baptist to learn more about Jesus, playing with others, writing, reading, and how to act in a school environment. He will be off to Kindergarten at brother's school this next year and he is so ready and excited. He was born ready, but even though we could have put him in school last year, we decided it would be best for him to be a year older. His preschool teacher agreed since he has always struggled to sit still for long periods of time. He has grown so much in this area this past year and we are grateful that we were able to have the choice.
Here is a look into the past year of his life.
Appearance
Nathaniel has grown so much this year. His chestnut hair is thick and coarse. He has the thickest hair out of anyone we know. He still has his smooth pale skin but he has been getting more and more freckles, which he is excited about. (Although, we miss hearing him call them peckles.) He has heart shaped lips, and and eyes like the summer sky framed by long lashes. His build is strong and lean with muscular limbs. He still has his cute little vampire teeth on the top and has lost his bottom center teeth. They have not come in yet, so he still has a gap and no big teeth yet. He has an impish smile and almond shape eyes like his dad.
Personality
Personality
Nathaniel is full of energy. He has been on the move every since he learned how to move his body. He is strong for his age and very athletic. His body and personality were made to move. He loves to climb trees, do flips, ride his bike, ride his scooter, play baseball, and twirl around. He has an attitude of wanting to try to do everything himself, except for when he's tired. He also can have quite a perseverance, trying his best at almost everything he does. And if he doesn't get it right the first time, he sticks to it and does it. Mom taught him how to blow bubbles with gum and how to whistle this past year. He is the only kid in the family who can do either, much to the jealousy of his older brother. It is because he practiced a ton because he really wanted to master each skill. This ability to stick to something and practice will help him in different areas of his life.
Nathaniel is extremely social when he is comfortable. In new situations he hides his face in mom's torso. He is most nervous when he finds himself in large groups of people that he doesn't know. When he is comfortable, he is amiable and welcoming, naturally having conversations and bonding friendships. We don't think we have ever met anyone who has not loved Nathaniel. Nathaniel prefers to play with others than by himself. He loves to be where people are and easily makes friends wherever he goes. He HATES being left out. His best friend is Edmund and they can always be found exploring and playing together. He always has best friends at school and all of the girls seem to really like him. He will play with Clara too if brother is not around. His relationship with her has started to blossom this year since brother was at school most of the day and because Clara has gotten older.
Nathaniel's soul is always singing. He loves to make up songs to himself in his little voice. It is rather high, and once recently he asked mom if he sounded like a girl. She assured him that he did not and that she loved his voice and that one day it would get deeper like dad's. Gramma and Papa bought him an MP3 player for his birthday and he is in love. He loves listening to it, listening to Coldplay, Beethoven, VBS songs, or the Flyers. Even if he doesn't know the words, he quietly tries to sing along.
Nathaniel was born a helper. It's just the way that God created him. He comes by it naturally, since his mother is the same way and so is his big brother. He doesn't always want to help with everything that mom and dad ask him to do. He hates wiping the table, but he loves to help chop vegetables for dinner or help mix ingredients. He is always excited to be the taste tester. Some of the things that he helps out with around the house are cleaning up the toy room, getting the mail, watering the plants, washing windows, dusting, picking vegetables and fruit from the garden, and helping keep Clara out of trouble. Mom leaned on him a lot when Emma was born to help watch Clara and he did a fantastic job. He is always getting an extra sticker at preschool because he helps the teachers push the chairs back in and clean up after snack. He doesn't like when others get to help and he doesn't get too.
Nathaniel's soul is always singing. He loves to make up songs to himself in his little voice. It is rather high, and once recently he asked mom if he sounded like a girl. She assured him that he did not and that she loved his voice and that one day it would get deeper like dad's. Gramma and Papa bought him an MP3 player for his birthday and he is in love. He loves listening to it, listening to Coldplay, Beethoven, VBS songs, or the Flyers. Even if he doesn't know the words, he quietly tries to sing along.
Nathaniel was born a helper. It's just the way that God created him. He comes by it naturally, since his mother is the same way and so is his big brother. He doesn't always want to help with everything that mom and dad ask him to do. He hates wiping the table, but he loves to help chop vegetables for dinner or help mix ingredients. He is always excited to be the taste tester. Some of the things that he helps out with around the house are cleaning up the toy room, getting the mail, watering the plants, washing windows, dusting, picking vegetables and fruit from the garden, and helping keep Clara out of trouble. Mom leaned on him a lot when Emma was born to help watch Clara and he did a fantastic job. He is always getting an extra sticker at preschool because he helps the teachers push the chairs back in and clean up after snack. He doesn't like when others get to help and he doesn't get too.
Nathaniel is persistent. This is just a kind way of staying the he is stubborn, like his mama. It can make him inflexible and sometimes hard to discipline. While he has made a ton of progress since last year in settling himself down when he gets upset, he can still work himself into an angry mess. We often just have to let him cool down on his own in his room.
Nathaniel is still a child of physical touch. He loves snuggling with mom and turns into a house cat if you rub his back. If he is sad or hurt, he wants someone to hold him. He loves having his parents pick him up. Dad carries him up to bed every night.
Loves
Here are things that Nathaniel loves at 6:
Songs - My Lighthouse and You Will Never Run by Rend Collective, I See The Moon, anything by Coldplay, Tremble by Mosaic, Beethoven's 5th Symphony, Twinkle Twinkle Little Star
Food - Strawberries, Raspberries, Bread, Cheese, Pasta with Sauce, Ketchup, Olives, Bacon, Icecream, and Popsicles
Shows - Ready Jet Go, Wild Kratz, Clifford
Books - The Bible, Berenstain Bears, Don't Let the Pigeon, Anything From the Library
Toys - Baseball, Legos, Tractors, Rocks, Bike, Magnatiles
Cooking - Stirring pancakes, Spinning the Lettuce in the salad spinner, Measuring and stirring anything as long as mom will let him taste the batter
Activities - Playing outside, Going on Bike Rides, COSI, Zoo, Baseball, Playing at the Park, Climbing trees, Having play dates with friends, Reading books,
Sayings - No. I won't. I'll never., What you said?, Can I please have some of that for my collection?, I'm dead (when he doesn't want to do something),
Shows - Ready Jet Go, Wild Kratz, Clifford
Books - The Bible, Berenstain Bears, Don't Let the Pigeon, Anything From the Library
Toys - Baseball, Legos, Tractors, Rocks, Bike, Magnatiles
Cooking - Stirring pancakes, Spinning the Lettuce in the salad spinner, Measuring and stirring anything as long as mom will let him taste the batter
Activities - Playing outside, Going on Bike Rides, COSI, Zoo, Baseball, Playing at the Park, Climbing trees, Having play dates with friends, Reading books,
Sayings - No. I won't. I'll never., What you said?, Can I please have some of that for my collection?, I'm dead (when he doesn't want to do something),
Other Likes - Collecting ALL things (rocks, seashells, wrappers, beads, pine cones, pretty much anything. this kid is a hoarder), Picking flowers
Dislikes
Here are things that Nathaniel is not a fan of at six: Being in large groups of people he doesn't know. Flying insects (especially bees). Being excluded from anything. Some things never change.
Monthly Highlights
Here are some of the highlights from each month. I probably missed some because if I don't have pictures for it, I can't remember it. It's basically like it didn't even happen.
June - COSI, Genoa Vacation Bible School, End of Baseball Season, Parks, Big Machines at COSI, Vacation in Minnesota, Planting the Garden
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| metro parks program |
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| monkey bars |
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| vbs party |
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| big machines |
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| cosi |
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| hocking hills |
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| baseball final game |
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| watching e play baseball |
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| ikea anniversary |
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| planting the garden |
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| game on |
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| daisy prince |
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| the cousins |
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| lake superior |
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| grand marais |
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| swimming |
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| 4th of July |
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| cousin birthday party |
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| camping party |
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| parks program |
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| fishing at the fair |
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| ohio state fair |
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| zoo |
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| farm days |
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| farm days at cosi |
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| tractor driver |
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| splash pad |
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| peach picking |
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| camping |
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| riding the tractor trike |
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| hand washing clothes |
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| first day of preschool |
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| apples |
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| kindess award |
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| meeting baby sister |
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| apple picking round 2 |
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| funny ghost |
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| ghost children |
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| carving pumpkins |
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| gramma and papa |
November - Celebrated Clara's 3rd Birthday, Baking Pies and Hanging at Home for Thanksgiving, Raking Leaves, Getting our family Christmas tree.
December - Driving through the Fantasy of Lights, Columbus Zoo Lights, Preschool Christmas Concert, Baking Christmas Cookies, Decorating the ginger bread house, Creating a train at Snowflake Castle, Sledding, Christmas in Indiana.
January - Relaxing at home, Playing in the snow, Emma's Baptism
February - Fantastic Fridays at preschool (for dressing up), Valentine's Day party at preschool, Sledding
March - Spring break, COSI, Magic Mountain, Zoo, COSI at Edmund's school
April - Easter Party at preschool, Neighborhood Egg Hunt, Dyeing Eggs, Easter in Indiana, Start of baseball, AWANA Graduation, First Lost Tooth
May - Mother's Day, Spring concert for preschool, Preschool Graduation, WCES Art Show, Mother's Day
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| making cotton candy |
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| princess party |
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| raking leaves |
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| pumpkin pie maker |
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| getting the tree |
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| our tree |
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| christmas babies |
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| christmas concert |
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| zoo lights |
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| zoo lights |
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| christmas eve |
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| new year's eve |
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| snow bear |
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| sledding |
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| emma's baptism |
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| brothers and emma |
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| sledding |
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| pinewood derby |
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| valentine's party |
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| little valentines |
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| snowman |
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| zoo |
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| kindergarten registration |
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| first lost tooth |
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| dyeing eggs |
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| neighborhood egg hunt |
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| easter party |
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| cousins |
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| egg hunt |
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| easter loves |
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| natty and emma |
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| mother's day |
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| preschool graduation |
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| preschool graduation party |
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| baseball |
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| 6 years old |
We thought it would be fun to interview Nathaniel and ask him a few questions each year. Here were his answers.
1. What is your favorite color? Blue, Pink, Green... I like all of the colors actually.
2. What is your favorite toy? I like all my toys, Legos a little bit better.
3. What is your favorite food? Shrimp Scampi with pasta and beef stroganoff.
4. What is your favorite TV show? Wild Kratt's.
5. What is your favorite thing to eat for lunch? Pringles
6. What is your favorite thing to wear? My pajamas - Michigan shirt and blue shorts.
7. What is your favorite game? Sleeping Queens and Ticket to Ride
8. What is your favorite book? Paw Patrol
9. What is your favorite animal? Puppies and cats
10. What is your favorite song? New VBS Songs
11. What is your favorite subject at school? I don't have a favorite of that. Learning letters, maybe?
12. What is your favorite sport? Baseball
13. What is your favorite thing to do outside? Going swimming
14. What is your favorite holiday? Christmas because I like getting presents
15. What do you like to take to bed with you at night? Little foot and my blanket
16. What is your favorite thing to have for dinner? Beef Stroganoff
17. What do you want to be when you grow up? What my dad does.
18. What is the best thing about your family? We have a baby.
19. Describe yourself, what kind of person are you? A boy.
20. If you could go anywhere where would you want to go? To Lake Michigan, Lake Huron. All kinds of places. I like to go to Indiana and Minnesota and Florida and Mississippi.
21. What is something that makes you happy? Little Foot
22. What is something that makes you sad? When Edmund hits me
23. What are you scared of? Dinosaurs and ghosts
24. What is something you are really good at? Playing baseball.
25. What is the funniest thing you have ever seen? When I make Emma dance.
1. What is your favorite color? Blue, Pink, Green... I like all of the colors actually.
2. What is your favorite toy? I like all my toys, Legos a little bit better.
3. What is your favorite food? Shrimp Scampi with pasta and beef stroganoff.
4. What is your favorite TV show? Wild Kratt's.
5. What is your favorite thing to eat for lunch? Pringles
6. What is your favorite thing to wear? My pajamas - Michigan shirt and blue shorts.
7. What is your favorite game? Sleeping Queens and Ticket to Ride
8. What is your favorite book? Paw Patrol
9. What is your favorite animal? Puppies and cats
10. What is your favorite song? New VBS Songs
11. What is your favorite subject at school? I don't have a favorite of that. Learning letters, maybe?
12. What is your favorite sport? Baseball
13. What is your favorite thing to do outside? Going swimming
14. What is your favorite holiday? Christmas because I like getting presents
15. What do you like to take to bed with you at night? Little foot and my blanket
16. What is your favorite thing to have for dinner? Beef Stroganoff
17. What do you want to be when you grow up? What my dad does.
18. What is the best thing about your family? We have a baby.
19. Describe yourself, what kind of person are you? A boy.
20. If you could go anywhere where would you want to go? To Lake Michigan, Lake Huron. All kinds of places. I like to go to Indiana and Minnesota and Florida and Mississippi.
21. What is something that makes you happy? Little Foot
22. What is something that makes you sad? When Edmund hits me
23. What are you scared of? Dinosaurs and ghosts
24. What is something you are really good at? Playing baseball.
25. What is the funniest thing you have ever seen? When I make Emma dance.
This has been an amazing year of growth for Nathaniel. It has been a full year with new life, highs and lows, and new adventures. We are grateful to have Nathaniel as our child and the privilege of watching him grow up each year.
Happy 6th birthday to our sweet Nathaniel Thomas. We love you to the moon and back.
Love, Mom & Dad
Nathaniel at - One Year
Nathaniel at - Two Years
Nathaniel at - Two Years & 4 months
Nathaniel at - Two Years & 8 months
Nathaniel at - One Year
Nathaniel at - Two Years
Nathaniel at - Two Years & 4 months
Nathaniel at - Two Years & 8 months
