My favorite boy: Five

It’s so hard to believe this boy is five years old.

It’s amazing how Lucas is no longer a baby. “I’m a big boy!” he insists. He reads so well, and loves stories so much. He’s gotten so tall, his limbs occupying the length of his “bed bed crib.” His face has changed so much, but his smile remains ever bright, his laugh infectious.

It’s so funny how witty he is, how quickly he picks up on jokes and puns and wordplay. We pun and we jest, and instantly he learns, adapts, makes quips of his own.

I love the variety in the stuff he likes, from Paw Patrol and Star Wars to BTS music. I love his enthusiasm for everything, be it books or toys or clothes. I love how he’s so willing to try new things, from food to adventures.

Oneal and I always say he goes from 0 to 11 the moment he wakes up. His energy is at 100% every waking hour. Even in his sleep, he rolls around, drapes an arm across me, plants a foot on my leg, utters complete sentences. I love how he has no fear, and he climbs everything and goes everywhere with no hesitation. It tickles me no end that he’s adopted my favorite thing to say, “Let’s see what’s there!”

Everything he loves, he loves with his whole being. He absolutely loves his Paw Patrol shorts and his Paw Patrol books and his Paw Patrol toys, just as he absolutely adores pretty much every Star Wars character he encounters.

One of the most adorable things Lucas does is ask people their favorite colors. When he sees anything red, he tells me, “Mommy, it’s your favorite color!” If we’re playing, he hands me the red version or the red part immediately. When he knows he’s going to see his Ate Nixi, he asks to wear a pink shirt.

When he wanted Nixi to try playing with his Nintendo Labo, he made sure to color the robot pink first, head to toe, before he let her give it a try.

One time, we were going to meet up with our friends, among them Maddie, who’s just a few months older than him. We didn’t know her favorite color, so he decided to wear his rainbow suspenders. He was so thrilled when he saw she was wearing rainbow sandals!

He has the brightest smile and the most infectious laughter. We love tickling him because he laughs with his whole body. He loves hugs and snuggles, and it’s adorable how fond he is of saying “I love you.”

We often complain that he’s loud, and talkative, and he never stops moving, and he doesn’t listen. But we talk to him and explain as much as we can, as well as we can, and he’s always sincerely repentant. He’s smart and he’s quick, and we often say he’s too smart for us.

He’s a precious thing and we love him.