This year you were filled with anticipation for your 3rd birthday. You talked about it for weeks and the week before you kept telling us who was coming to your party and reminding me that I was to make you a special cake. On Friday, you celebrated with your buddies at school. The sugar-free mini muffins with Halloween finger puppets on top were a surprising hit with the class. We also revamped last year's paper dolls party favors with Sofia heads for your class. When you came home, you told me which puppet everybody got. Your teacher said, you sang Happy Birthday the loudest.
On Saturday, you had a kid’s costume party with your cousins and friend Lydia. I wasn't sure how it would turn out as it started with some turmoil over not wanting to take a nap and stay in your room for quiet time. I tried to encourage you to take a nap by reminding you that the party would begin after nap time but you were willing to throw the party out the window in order to skip the nap. I guess my negotiation skills are no match for your three-year-old defiance. Once everyone arrived, you went into I'm-such-a-big-kid mode. You do this specially when you're around Lydia who is two year's older than you. You talk differently and you want to show her all your toys and you even snuck upstairs to your room with her at one point to play and tried climbing up the shelves in your armoire to turn on the music for her. Luckily, Daddy secured the furniture to the wall a couple of weeks ago when we converted your crib to a toddler bed. You don't do these things normally, only when people come to visit us and then you get into everything. I guess you just want to be more grown up.
For the kids’ party, we had a painting activity where you got to paint your own mask. It was a bit messy, but you really enjoyed it and keep playing with your mask even now. We had a hard time getting you to listen and do what we asked you at times. It seems you thought you could act out during the party without any consequences but when I reminded you that you could still go to time out for spitting and behaving poorly, everyone quieted down and I was glad to see that you took me seriously because I sure didn't want to have to put you in time out for your party. I wish you hadn't picked your birthday to test us so much.
The frog cake was a big hit this year. Although cakes shaped like things that don't look like cake are nothing special to you. As far as you know that's just how cakes are. Last year, you even thought for a minute that TJ might be a cake when you tried to taste him. When the boys asked if they could eat a leg or a hand, you followed immediately with "I want to eat an arm". I said you could, thinking you would just take a bite and leave the rest, but you continued eating and eating it. You know, 3 lbs of fondant sugar went into that cake, I never thought the kids would really be eating the solid fondant.
Presents were a blur because I was busy feeding the baby brother but you got lots of toys. Maybe too many, we might have to come up with some creative way to handle the excess of toys next year. Everyone left after the presents were opened and I know you still wanted to keep playing with everyone and it makes you sad when people leave, especially Lydia. You played with your toys for a bit while Daddy and I cleaned up and then we went to bed only to wake up ready for another party the next day.
Sunday's party was a bit more subdued. Although you started off in similar defiant fashion. It took me about 45 minutes to convince you to take off your skirt so I could iron it. You mellowed out into a gracious birthday girl, saying thank you to everyone as you opened your gifts. Maybe, it's because there were more adults around, you seem to behave much differently around your "peers" sometimes and I fear that will lead to a lot of copy cat behavior later on. Oh the worries. On Sunday however, you were sweet and nice to your little cousin Autumn who is just one. You tried to share your favorite stuffed guy with her and you were patient and understanding when she wasn't ready to give up the toys you had handed to her and were wanting back. Again, you weren't ready for everyone to leave at the end of the party. But the way you exhibit this is by becoming preoccupied with toys or doing other things when it's time for everyone to go and say goodbuy. Unfortunately, a lot of times, you miss saying goodbuy to them and when you finally relent, it's too late and everyone is in their car driving away.
This picture cracks me up. I'm constantly telling you to watch your hair from getting in your food when you eat. Well, this time you listened and held your hair back to blow out the candle in exemplary lady-like form.
This past year, has been the hardest for us, Mami & Daddy. You've grown so much. As a baby, you were always strong, holding your head up high and immediately straightening and stiffening up your legs when I put your feet on any surface. I couldn't cuddle you much, because you'd just try to stand on me. Even at one month old, Abuela made you a cake and we were trying to take your picture with it. I was trying to hold you and you kept standing up on my lap and twisting around to face me. I finally handed you over to Daddy who had better luck. You didn't like to be held like a baby instead preferring to be held facing out to see the world or over my shoulder to see the "back of the world".
Now that you are three, I think those characteristics have developed into a very strong willed and independent little girl. Good qualities to have but I wish you had waited a little longer to master them. You don't like to be told what to do and generally refuse to do it unless it was your own idea. Maybe you get that part from me but I don't think I developed those traits until I was much older. You get your loud, messy, put a ton of food in your mouth, fall down and put buckets on your head traits from Daddy, that's clear. I don't know for what kind of combination this will make. I guess we'll have to wait and see.
Over the past year, you've had your ups and downs with the potty training saga that began long, long ago. Just when we think you've mastered it, you have set backs. I'm sure that's one of the traits you got from Daddy too ; ) But you manage to go potty pretty well most of the time especially when we're out shopping. Sometimes, when you have an accident, I've caught you after you've quietly gone to the bathroom, cleaned up and changed into new panties. It's so cute.
You've done really well with your new toddler bed too. You were super excited about your new duvet cover that I made for you. When you saw it, you threw your favorite blanky on the floor and excitedly declared, "I have covers!". You even allowed me to edit down your guys (stuffed animal collection) that normally sleep with you without any complaints. Nap time on the weekends is the only time, we've had trouble keeping you in your room. It seems you think you've outgrown your nap, but when you fall asleep on the way home from school after skipping your nap, your body seems to disagree. I think you're in too much of a hurry to grow up.
Your teachers say you are very well behaved at school. You help the other kids work out their issues and often work out your own sharing issues without the intervention of the teacher. You remind everyone as to proper behavior and putting things away. Today, I asked you if you wanted to stay home with me and you said you wanted to go to school. I hope you still feel that way when real school begins.
I think this next year will be full of more surprises. I hope to see you get a little softer around the edges. And I'm excited to see all the new things you will learn.
Although there were several occassions during the opening of presents that you said to me in an annoyed tone of voice, "Mami, don't picture me" as if I were some kind of paparazzi, you were much more amenable on Sunday's party that we were actually able to get this extremely rare shot with you.
Still growing strong:
weight 34.8 lbs (75-80th %)
height 36" tall (50th %)
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