Jayden is THREE

Our sweet, fun-loving, crazy counting boy is THREE years old today!! I can't believe he is now considered a "pre-schooler"!

Dear Jayden,
      Happy 3rd Birthday, Buddy! Today you are THREE years old although you think and would rather be four, five or six. You had a great birthday party and very special people came to celebrate with you! Family from Mt. Carmel made the journey to help you celebrate the big 3! A new bike, trampoline, and water slide were your biggest gifts!! You loved everything! For your special day we went to the water park and daddy was able to go with us. You two had a blast!!
      I am proud to say that this year has been the healthiest year of your life so far. Isn't that crazy? You had your second surgery of your life this year and it was, by far, one of the best decisions we have made for you and your health. Those darn tonsils caused a lot of problems. You did get some cool toys out of the deal, meals full of ice cream (which haunt us to this day), and cool new apps for your iPad, which is an obsession of yours.
   You have become a super athlete this past year. A lot of boys your age love sports, but I don't think it is to the extent that you do. You are awesome at basketball, baseball, and catching the football. You have some work to do on the greens, but I know your little friends can teach you how to do that or maybe even your grandparents! I heard that you will get to play organized basketball in the fall because it starts at age 3. How cool is that?
   This year brought on a lot of changes for you too. We moved to a new house which you totally accepted. You lived in a pink room for a while. We were so scared that you were going to miss our old house, but you could care less about it when we drive by. It was a relief that you slept through the night in your crib when we moved just like you did at the big blue house. However, about six months ago you learned how to jump out of your crib. We decided to make another change and move you to a big boy bed. Guess what?? You rocked at that too. Another big relief. A change you didn't take so well was the arrival of your baby sisters. I know, two sisters, at once. I guess it didn't help that one came home and then a week later the other did. Six months later you are the coolest thing in the world to them. They watch you, laugh at you, become your little targets. You tickle them, try to pick them up, and make them laugh. It is pretty cool to see you love them.
     We really didn't travel much as a family throughout year but we did make a few visits to family down south, our annual trip to the zoo in St. Louis, and several trips to Taylorville to visit. You stayed in Mt. Carmel with your Nana and Papa when the babies were born. We missed you like crazy, but you had so much fun! You did get to go on a really big trip to Las Vegas to see my friends Mike, Melanie, Mayson and baby Makynzie. It was your first airplane ride. I have to say you did might well except when they took your stroller away in security. That made you so mad. Really mad. We had a lot of fun and took a lot of pictures. It was a great opportunity to spend some Mommy and Jayden time together. Aunt Maddie went too. She was a lot of help and played with you!
    After this birthday, you are going to start school. I think you are going to love school once you get used to it. You are a routine oriented child and that is what school is all about. You did a good job adjusting to your new babysitter, but cry every time I take you. You say, "No, not Janels!". She always sends me a text 2 mins later telling me you are fine. You sure do like to make your mom feel bad. Something else we have been working on is potty training. You are outsmarting me on this one. "No, not the potty!" you yell or say, "Ok, I sit on potty and count to 20!", but you do nothing. I guess when you are ready, you will go. You still love warm milk. Yep, 38 seconds warm to be exact. If it is too cold you will say, "It is cold, cook it!" so we will.
     One thing about your birthday means that our summer is almost over. We had a great summer playing and doing as much as we could considering all that it takes to get out the door. You love to push your sisters in the stroller and push the button to close the van door. We get a lot of attention when we go out and about and everyone thinks our crew is pretty cute and are impressed with you being such a helper. It really is a big help that you like to help!
     Happy 3rd Birthday, Little Man. You are growing up so fast (and talking fast too) and we couldn't be more blessed to call you ours. You are a sweet, ornery, loving, hard-working, smart, athletic, determined little big boy. We are looking forward to watching you grow this year! You are going to have so much fun!

Love always,

Mommy & Daddy (and your sisters too)