Caitlin,
I had really good
intentions of writing this or at least writing it early and then posting it on your actual
birthday, but every time I thought about writing it, I just couldn't find the
words. I said this last year too, but I guess part of me is just in
denial that you are three years old, and by putting this off, I could pretend
it never happened. And, now I am so late in writing and posting this, and my
mommy guilt has set in. I think we might be closer to you being three and a
half than we are to you being three years old. Life has been good lately,
which means we have been busy. We have been busy doing fun things with
you and also getting to know your baby sister and adjusting to life as a family
of four. That doesn't mean you aren't important though, and I want to
finally get this posted before you are actually three and a half years old!
The past year has been
pretty great with lots of ups and downs, and you truly are coming into your own
as a little girl now. I've been looking back on the "One Frame a
Day" pictures over the past year, and I seriously can't get over how much
you've changed since the beginning of your third year. You started the
year off as a toddler who still looked a little baby-ish, and are ending the
year with no trace of baby left. Often times, I look at you and just
can't get over how old you look. This is exaggerated by the fact that you
have a new baby sister and look like a giant when I compare you both.
Everything about you just seems so huge to me now. It's just crazy.
Here's a sampling of
life over the past year!
- You started a new school and loved it. The first
week was a little bit of an adjustment, but you have really come into your own and
learned so much there. You also
have made some new friends, and you are constantly talking about them at
home. Your teachers in Junior Pre-K were Ms. Jeanne and Ms. Hager,
and we were so lucky that you started your time off at this school with
them. You tell us that your friends at school are Carsyn, Amy,
Elizabeth, Cayla and Morgan. I
think you play with the boys sometimes, but right now, you just prefer the
girls and that’s ok. You are often
found playing in housekeeping, playing in the kitchen and with the babies
and also dressing up like a princess.
- You talk non-stop. Daddy and I can't get a word
in edgewise. You love interrupting us if we are trying to talk to
each other (the horror!). If I try to make my way into yours and
Daddy's conversation, you are quick to tell me "Mommy, I'm not
talking to you. I'm talking to Daddy."
- The non-stop talking has led to many hilarious
conversations with you. I started
trying to document these on the blog, but I really need to start doing a
better job of writing them down so I don’t forget all the funny things you
say. You keep us laughing most of the time!
- You are a master negotiator. Negotiations take place
about how much dinner you'll eat, when you'll go to bed, how many books
you'll read at bedtime, etc. Sometimes though, it doesn't always work
out to your benefit. I'll say "eat 3 carrots", and you'll
counter with "How about 4?" Daddy and I think it's funny when
this happens, and we take your offer right away!
- You have definitely become so much more adventurous
this year. You are still somewhat cautious, but you love to jump,
climb and try new things most of the time.
- You went on your first airplane ride to Clearwater, FL
and a surprise trip to Disney World. This was kind of our last
hurrah as a family of three, and we thought it would be a really fun
memory for you before your little sister arrived. We were worried
about the trip because you came down with a really awful bug the week
before, but thankfully, you were on the mend by the time we got on the
airplane. The trip was awesome. We had such a blast with you. We spent a lot of time at the pool in
Clearwater and also exploring the beaches there, and then we took you on a
surprise trip to Disney World where we went to the Magic Kingdom for a
total of about 1.5 days.
- You rode your first rollercoaster, Goofy’s Barnstormer,
at the Magic Kingdom and absolutely loved it! You rode it three times with Daddy
(because I was 7 months pregnant at the time) and were so proud of
yourself each time.
- You also met Minnie Mouse at Disney World, and since
then have been telling us that she is your best friend.
- You love bounce houses too. You are already asking for a Daisy Duck
bounce house party for your 4th birthday.
- You love to go swimming, and thanks to your puddle
jumper float, you are feeling a little more comfortable in the pool.
- You learned how to dress yourself head to toe this
year! This has been such a huge help now that Natalie is here!
- We started working on daytime potty training with you
over the Christmas/New Year break from school. We did this because Daddy picked you up
from school before break, and your teachers told him that they expected
you to come back in panties for the new year. You did awesome with a few accidents
here and there, but nothing major.
By the time you went back to school after the break, you were
wearing panties all day!
- We started nighttime potty training in April because I
wanted to try and get this done before your world was completely rocked
when Natalie arrived. For the most
part you do ok as long as we take you potty before we go to bed.
- You love to play dress-up, and your favorite dress-up
outfits are princesses (duh!).
- We had your three-year appointment on May 29th,
and you weigh 28 lbs. (23rd percentile) and are 37 inches tall
(50th percentile).
- You are still a picky eater and are unwilling to try
new things most of the time.
- Your favorite foods are chicken nuggets, French fries,
carrots, cherries, cantaloupe, grilled cheese, corn on the cob, pasta with
butter and parmesan cheese and mac and cheese. All typical standard kid’s fare. You do a pretty good job of eating both fruits and vegetables
though. It’s just the protein/meat
that you struggle with. We’ll get
there someday, I hope!
- You did finally try cupcakes this year and now you love
them. You wouldn't touch them in
the past. The big catch is that you
like for us to take the icing off for you to eat them. Occasionally, you’ll eat some of the
icing with your finger and then ask us to take the rest off.
- We are officially done with sippy cups! You drink from a big girl cup 100% of
the time now!
- Most of the time, I can count on you to be a big
helper, and it is awesome.
- When you get upset about something (usually because we
tell you no), you go into your playroom with Bubby and cry on the soft
spot (your beanbag). You do this because there is a soft spot at school
where the teachers tell you to go when you need to compose yourself.
- You love wearing dresses. It doesn't matter where we are going or
what we are doing, a dress is always your first choice.
- You also love shoes!
I got you a pair of sparkly gold ballet flats last year, and I think you wore
them to school most days during Jr. Pre-K.
- Accessories are a big hit as well. Sunglasses, hats and
hoodies/jackets are your favorites.
- We have recently introduced you to Disney movies, and
the princess movies are your favorites.
Right now, you love Cinderella and Beauty and the Beast the
best. You also love Toy Story
(especially the one with Jessie – Toy Story 2), Shrek, and Finding Nemo.
You will sit through an entire movie and hardly even realize that we are
in the room with you. You are also
a fan of Sesame Street, Super Why!, Thomas the Train and recently, Mickey
Mouse Clubhouse.
- You love doing puzzles, and we have graduated to the
48-piece puzzles this year.
- You learned how to ride your tricycle this year as
well, and you are often found riding it around the house, doing the loop
around the first floor. Our walls
are dinged up from this, but at least you are happy. It’s nothing a little paint can’t
fix.
- You ask why A LOT.
You are very curious about everything!
- You love reading books with us! I love that you love books so much, and we have started taking sporadic trips to the library to get some new things
to read. We typically read 3-4
books at bedtime.
- Bubby is your lovey, and you are so attached to
him. As soon as you pick him up,
your thumb goes in your mouth. Bubby's
name changes daily. Sometimes you
call him Bubby, Binny, Minnie, Wendy, etc.
I still think you are a cute little thumb sucker, but I think we’re
getting to the stage where we may need to try to start breaking that
habit. I think sucking your thumb
(and putting other fingers in your mouth) could be what causes you to pick
up random colds/illnesses sometimes.
- You love your cousin Leah so much, and I’m pretty sure
the feeling is mutual on her end. You play well together and love spending
time together. I’m so thankful that
you have her to grow up, but I wish we lived just a little closer so we
could see her more often!
- You can show us what emotions look like by doing
different facial expressions, and it is so cute! Our absolute favorite is your angry
face.
- You can count to twenty most of the time. Sometimes, you skip 15-17 though.
- You know all of your letters and can spell both your
first and last name without any help!
- You still love going to the park any chance you get and
I think the swings are still your favorite thing to do there.
- This year, you have become quite the Daddy’s Girl. I think part of this had to do with the fact that I was pregnant this year and couldn't do as much with you as I usually do, but really, I think it would have happened whether I was pregnant or not. Your daddy is so much fun, and you love playing and roughhousing with him. I don’t blame you kiddo, I think your daddy is awesome too! I also think Daddy can be a bit of a pushover with you sometimes, and I think you made this clear when you told me one night that “Daddy is nicer than you, Mommy.” It kind of broke my heart a little bit, but don’t worry, I still love you even if you think he’s nicer.
Love you to the moon and stars and moon
and back (and that’s a really long way)!
Love, Mommy
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