Absolutely Delightful

Dear Muffin,

Today is your third birthday. My goodness, my sweet son, where has the time gone? I can’t believe that you are already 3 years old. It seems like only yesterday that I held you in my arms for the very first time. My heart was bursting with love. I had been waiting my whole life to meet you. I truly had. I feel so incredibly lucky to be your mommy.

Mommyhood with you has been a joyous, crazy, intense, maddening, frustrating, exhilarating, wonderful ride so far. You came into this world with determination and never seemed to want to miss an instant of the action. You barely slept as a baby (even as a newborn in the hospital). Mommy was crazed with lack of sleep. You are my little energizer bunny. Oh how I wished you had slept more, but thank you for eventually learning how to sleep. When I think back on it, the lack of sleep was the hardest part by far. Fortunately, you were so darn cute and cuddly that I was able to keep from holding it against you. Nature’s way of helping sleep deprived new parents cope – NATURE MAKES YOU SO DARN CUTE!

I love your infectious laugh and I love to hear your thoughts (most of the time anyways). I love that you are so full of cuddles and smiles. You give the best hugs and kisses EVER. I admire your courage and your creativity. This year has been big for you. You have had to deal with Mommy being pregnant and on modified bed rest. You became very good at picking up your things (and some of mommy’s things) since Mommy couldn’t. You were very understanding about Mommy not being able to pick you up and carry you. I am so glad that I can again now! I missed that terribly. I am so proud of you for being such a good big brother to your baby sister. I knew you would be a sweet and caring big brother – it is your nature. I am so proud of you for so many reasons, but mostly I am proud of you for being such a nice caring boy.

Thank you for all of the smiles and even some of the tears. Thank you for always showing me love and everyday teaching me how to be a better person. You have taught me how to appreciate life more. Thank you for making me examine life on a large and small scope. I now truly do stop and smell the flowers and try to soak in every moment. Well, I try really hard to anyways. I don’t want to miss any moment with you – it goes by too quickly.

I feel so fortunate to be your mother and I am so incredibly grateful for you. Every. Single. Day.

Happy birthday my sweet boy. I love you so much.

I hate laundry. It’s never-ending. I have not seen the bottom of my hamper since the day we brought Muffin home. In fact, I’m not convinced it has a bottom. For all I know, under it, there could be a huge tunnel going all the way to the center of the earth, full of dirty socks and chocolate stained shorts. At least, I hope that’s chocolate.

Anyways, it’s pretty apparent that I am now the Laundry Fairy even though I didn’t get any pretty fairy wings, or useful magic wand that removes even the toughest stain. I don’t even get to wear a tiara. What a crock.

Well, at least I’m not the Toilet Bowl Fairy.

My preschooler son can skip Persuasive Arguments 101 and go straight to teaching the course. He’s not even 3 years old yet but he’s already developed the ability to read people and situations and use that information to his advantage. Divine or diabolical? As yet undecided.

Grandpa B is currently visiting and when he visits he always brings donuts every morning. Curses! I do so love the buttermilk ones and I can’t seem to decline (but I only eat 1/2). So, yesterday morning, as we were finishing up our breakfast in preparation for Donut Time with Grandpa, I’m trying to negotiate with Muffin to eat the rest of his Kashi Go Lean Crunch cereal so he can then have part of a donut. The negotiation is not going well because, of course, Grandpa and Daddy are not being very stealth with the donuts and Muffin has spotted them. So, I tell Muffin that he must eat 3 more bites of his Kashi before he can have a donut and as I am saying this I scoop up a spoonful of cereal to hand to him. Muffin looks at the cereal and then back at me and with all the seriousness he can muster, says to me, “Oh, no Mommy. That’s a choking hazard”.

Grandpa thought this was quite delightful and I have to admit it was a really good attempt to recognize Mommy’s fear and exploit it. Mommy still won the round though.