Dear Sam,

(the following is a note from my mother)

when you wake up in the morning, you will be five years old.

that is really hard to believe. we remember when you were little bitty, like in these pictures.

Here are five memories from your life, in honor of your 5th birthday:

1. For halloween in past years, you've been a plague of frogs, pac-man, batman, and spiderman.

2. you woke me up one morning by writing on my forehead with a sharpie.

3. the first thing you really started deliberately drawing was pac-man. you were two, and you were obsessed. for about two years, you consistently drew pac man and ghost monsters. they evolved over time, beginning with teeny, tiny, barely discernable little circles, and then getting bolder later, sometimes with hats, sometimes with teeth covering their whole bodies, sometimes with legs like a spider. it's been fun to watch your motor skills develop with the evolution of pac man. Here are a few of the later ones.

4. you've had and named four pets so far. Nemo, Packter, Copster, and Amy.

5. your favorite songs over the years have included Tunak Tunak, Numa Numa, Around the World, TROGDOR, and Here Come the Geese. you're a super dancer and singer. you've got rhythm, kid!

we love you as much as ever.

love, mom, dad, and elisabeth