Today, Audrey is 3. I hung her birthday banner up all week to get her excited, and it worked. She likes to look up at it and say “Happy Birthday Audrey.” One thing about not having many connections in town is that I don’t feel obligated to have a party. And I like parties, birthday parties anyway. I tend to start simple and get very detailed as the planning goes. Which is why after each party I say that I am not doing this again. I figure this is the last year that I can get away without a real party for Audrey. Then I began to think about her 2nd birthday and realized that I played the exact same card last year. Poor third child.

After a normal day of school, we went for a short walk to get the mail. Along the sidewalk, Audrey begins to throw-up. Megan and I are standing with our legs sprawled apart trying not to get the backsplash as she is hurling in front of the neighbor’s house. About an hour later, she learned the very important lesson of leaning over the toilet. I really think that this is the first time that she has ever thrown up. That was about 3:30pm, and Alyssa and I knew for sure that our Chuck E Cheese family party was canceled. I think I was just as disappointed as them. Not that I like that place, but I do love watching my kids enjoy themselves.

Despite the events of the day, and there were more, she remained in a good mood, bouncing back to her normal self after each “event”. She had some typical BRAT food for dinner but I was not going to let this ruin her birthday cake. She sat and smiled, we sang, she blew out the candle, but she declined on her own piece of cake. She was such a champ today. I hope she will feel better tomorrow and can enjoy a piece of that cake. For now, she is cozy in her bed and I am hoping she can stay there all night. Sweet dreams, big three year old. More

The single most popular word said around our house is Auuudrey! Any given day that word can come out of any of our mouths, and what it really means is things like this:

You just spilled milk all over the floor.
You knocked over Megan’s Lego tower.
You just colored all over Alyssa’s homework.
Get off the counter.
You do not need another pack of gummies.
Why are you wearing a completely new set of clothes?
Why did you take your shoes off?
Bubby does not go outside.

Ah, this age is a good one. She will be 3 in a short month and I am nervous if she is going to be better or worse as a three year old. She is defiant, independent. She gets into everything. Not in a destructive way but just an annoying way. She changes clothes every time she is locked in her room for time out – which is often. She is fully potty trained, but never flushes the toilet. She and Megan can fight like no ones business and neither of them will give in. She lays by her door every night whining. She kicks, she screams. She has 3 Bubbies, her favorite stuffed animal, which instead of replacing each other she just has to have all three. But at the end of it all, she has to read her books in bed, she must get back up to hug and kiss her sisters, and really just wants my attention. She is funny, sweet and completely lovable. And despite being my earliest riser, I love to see her happy face each morning and start the day with a new set of Auuudreys!