St. Patrick’s Day is always associated with luck and that connotation took on new meaning for me six years ago. When Sloan made me a dad on March 17, 2017, I felt luckier than a leprechaun sitting at the end of a rainbow with a big pot of gold.

The greatest day of my life.

As Sloan celebrates her sixth birthday today, I can assure you that I am still feeling lucky. It is impossible for me to express the joy that she delivers to my heart daily and a silly blog post can’t even begin to scratch the surface.

Happy birthday to this sweet girl! (photo courtesy of Nicole Lynn).

So instead of me vainly throwing words out to describe something that can’t be described, let me offer just a few insights into Sloan’s time as a 5-year-old…

She had plenty of firsts. Sloan played on her first sports team, went to her first dance, and visited Pullman/cheered on the Cougs for her first time. Bold and brave since birth, Sloan is always willing to jump headfirst into any new experience or challenge.

Sloan played t-ball for the first time as a 5-year-old.

Sloan also improved in certain areas. Her sleep habits became more normal, her temper cooled down, and her coloring skills evolved to a point that surpassed those of her dad. Most impressive of all, she became a more patient big sister. Once not very understanding about Beau’s differing stage in life, Sloan and her brother will now amicably play with each other for long stretches of time. Sidney and I aren’t complaining.

Sloan and Beau became great siblings over the past year.

She learned a lot. Sloan can now read, count to 100, and memorize song lyrics at an astonishing rate. Most impressively, her vocabulary has grown exponentially. Out of the blue, she will use words that Sid and I had no idea she knew. Just in the past few days alone she has correctly used “concept,” “intriguing,” and “literally” seemingly out of thin air.

Sloan is doing great in school and is learning a lot.

Sloan has also become more independent. She fixes her own snacks, entertains herself for hours, and has no problem communicating with other adults and telling them what she wants. As her kindergarten teacher quips, “Sloan is 6 going on 25.”

Sloan loves crafts and can do a lot of them all by herself.

With all that said, we hope Sloan makes strides in other areas as a 6-year-old. We cross our fingers that she becomes more cooperative in the morning, stops sneaking candy from the pantry, and refrains from talking back. We hope she comes to grips with the fact that she can’t win every time, realizes that a lot of content on YouTube is trash, and finally stops asking if I will buy her something every single time we go to the store. Lots to aspire to over the next 52 weeks 😊 .

Sloan has my heart.

But at the end of the day, we will take these potential opportunities for growth in stride. I know I will continue to draw on Sloan for inspiration. I admire her radiant love of life, her already strong faith in God, and her genuine concern for others. My money is on another banner year for Sloan Anne Reser. Don’t Blink.

Past Sloan Birthday Posts
Sloan turns 5
Sloan turns 4
Sloan turns 3
Sloan turns 2
Sloan turns 1