Our little Valentine's baby turned 9 on Saturday! How did this happen? NINE! And so we begin the last year of single digits for my baby boy. I know people say this all the time, but it really does seem like just yesterday that we were welcoming our little Lukey into the world...and today he is NINE years old.

Valentine's Day/Lukey Day started quite early this year. Luke came into our room at 4:30am rubbing his eyes, holding his blankie like he has for the last nine years that he's woken us up in the middle of the night. He said, "Mom, something weird is happening in my room". I get up to investigate and walk him back to bed. He tells me "the birthday fairy hasn't come yet".

PANICK!! It's time to PANICK! TOTAL MOM FAIL! HOW DID I FORGET??!! I'M SO TIRED.

For the last nine years, the birthday fairy makes a visit during the night and fills the room with balloons. Without fail, every year...if you are an Evans' you wake up to a room that has been magically filled with balloons. If you are an Evans' girl, in addition to balloons, you also wake up to the "Happy Birthday Princess" CD on full volume.

Think quick. I can do this. I'm sure I have a package of balloons lying around the house somewhere. I wait an agonizing 30 minutes for Luke to fall back to sleep. I hurry to the kitchen and start rummaging through the cupboards and junk drawers for balloons. No luck. I start thinking of ways to explain to my baby faced nine year old that the birthday fairy stops coming when you turn into an official "big kid". No, I can't do it.

Think, think, think.

And then I have an idea. Brillant! TOILET PAPER! I will TP his room while he sleeps. He will love it!

Only problem...we are down to our last roll of toilet paper.

This will have to work, I think. I sneak into his room and carefully drape toilet paper around the room, across his bed, around door knobs, and finish by taping pieces across his doorway.

I stand in the hallway admiring my super mom skills (even at 4:30am) and then BANG!!! I drop the tape dispenser onto the hardwood floor. Luke jumps awake.

I threaten his life if he even thinks about getting out of bed. Explain that it is still the middle of the night and to please GO TO SLEEP.

I head back to bed and lay my head down on my pillow. Just as my eyes close, I hear the noise of three excited kids having what sounds like a frat party in Luke's room. And in lie of music, Luke has turned his noise machine on full blast. The sound of RAIN on full blast is enough to send me over the edge.

I threaten them all...I must get sleep or I will never survive the day.

I don't think anyone went back to sleep, but at least they turned the volume on their party down a few notches and I was able to sleep another hour.

And that was just the beginning. The rest of the day went like this.

Birthday pancakes
Lacrosse game
Freebirds for lunch
Gat Splat Paintball
Mooyah burger for dinner
Birthday cupcakes
Sleep

And since the day ran out before we got around to giving Luke his present...this birthday spilled over to day two.

IHOP with PawPaw
And finally a birthday treasure hunt with 10 clues leading to his NEW BIKE.

I'm exhausted. But what a great day we had.

Happy Birthday Lukey!!! We love you so much!