Ethan had his fifth birthday this week. David's parents sent him Jamie Lee Curtis' book It's Hard to Be Five. I agree, and have added my own bit to the title. The fact that my baby is five is quite disconcerting and I've even felt a bit of grief at this milestone.

Ethan's life is a miracle. My doctor still gets chills when he thinks about what could have been. Beyond that, every day of regular, ordinary, real life with him is a miracle. He makes all of us more fun. As Caleb always says, Ethan is a light. Ethan always asks me why he was born last. I tell him Heavenly Father knew we would need some comic relief here in the wilderness and so He sent you just in time. He always says, "No, not that. Really why?" And I say I don't know, but I'm sure glad you came.

In his honor, here are five things he said this week that made me smile, with a few pictures from the day:

1. Ethan roars when he goes to the bathroom. It is hilarious. (And disconcerting for Caleb when he has to accompany him into a public restroom.) A few days ago after the roaring, we overheard, "I'm getting the hang of this."

2. After I asked him what he wanted for his birthday dinner he said, "Spaghetti with no salad." That is exactly what we had.

3. (Very loudly at the grocery store check-out) "Wow Mom, we got a TON of YOGURT. A TON!! Is it a YOGURT HOLIDAY?!!" The clerk grinned through our entire check-out.

4. I took the kids to the dentist on Tuesday morning. The hygienist who was cleaning Ethan's teeth asked, "Does your mom help you floss your teeth?" He answered, "No, my mom doesn't believe in floss." (That was supposed to be a secret.)

5. As I tucked him in last night I asked him if he'd had a good day. He made a happy sighing sound and then said, "Yes. All my days are good days."