Three!

Miracle of miracles - both kids are napping at the same time!!!!! I have no idea how long this peaceful bliss will last, so I figure I should take advantage as best as possible and try to catch up with our family's blog. I'm impossibly behind, mostly because we've had company (G'ma and G'pa Winters) here the past two weeks. I'll start with the most important event - Aubree's third birthday!

Aubree's birthday was October 9th. I felt like the day snuck up on me; I can't believe my baby girl is now three! I wish I could say that the day itself was filled with fun and special activities, but the truth is much less exciting. First we had a doctor's appointment for Bryce with the ENT (who says that Bryce just has a partial tongue-tie. For now we'll just watch it and we have another appointment in 6 months). After the doctor we had to make a stop at Wal-Mart to get supplies for Cub Scouts. We had a den meeting in the afternoon. How's that for a fun birthday? Aubree was a great sport. She chose to wear a fancy pink dress and told everyone she saw, "it's my birthday - I'm three now!"
We did do some fun things. For example, Aubree really enjoyed helping me make her cake. Before mixing the cake I reminded her, "Aubree, don't stick your fingers in the batter." She replied, "Mo-om, three-year-olds don't stick their fingers in batter!" Also, Grandma and Grandpa Winters arrived that afternoon and were able to have dinner and cake and ice cream with us. Please note the color of the cake - Aubree was adamant that she have a PINK cake (the frosting is pink, the cake is pink, and even our ice cream was pink). When it came time to blow out the candles, Aubree got a little nervous. Last year she burnt her nose when she got a bit too close in her blowing excitement, and she didn't want to repeat that performance. I tried to capture the moment on camera, but Aubree refused to try to blow out the candles while the camera was on her (see the clip below). Shortly thereafter my camera ran out of batteries - Oops!

As you might expect, Aubree also really enjoyed opening her presents. I made her wait all day to open them so Daddy could be there too, and she was extremely anxious to find out what was inside the packages. We got her a kite, a Hooked on Phonics Pre-K set, and water-colors. Grandma and Grandpa Winters brought a big box full of goodies including: the Noah's ark Little People set with lots and lots of assorted Little People people, animals, cars, and props, Dora videos, cool socks, new dress-up clothes, and so much more! It was hard to get Aubree to go to bed with so much new stuff with which to play. Grandma and Papa Graff also sent Aubree a fantastic pair of ViewMaster Binoculars (the kind that uses the slide reels, but it also works as regular binoculars).
Aubree is such a wonderful girl and I thank Heavenly Father every day for the blessing she is in my life. The last two days she's repeatedly asked me, "Mom, do you know I love you so much?" I don't think that's a question I could ever get tired of hearing. Aubree is extremely observant and learns quickly. She's kind and loving and really tries to do what is right. She's an amazing big sister and a big helper to me. Her primary teachers tell me that she is a leader (Here's a quick side story about nursery while it's on my mind: a month or two ago in nursery the teachers were handing out fruit snacks. They asked Aubree to come over and get her snacks. She answered, "no, bring them to me." The teachers insisted that she come over and get the snacks, so Aubree turned to her friend and said, "Ella, please bring me my snacks." Ella happily complied. So, yeah - sometimes Aubree thinks she's the little princess). Each day brings new adventures and funny stories and, again, I am SO thankful for the opportunity I have to be Aubree's mom.