Happy Birthday Christian!

My sweet little baby is 3 years old!  I can't believe it.  His birthday was about 10 days ago, but I'm behind in blogging.  We had a pretty low-key birthday. We had presents and singing in the morning for him and then I invited 3 of his friends over for a playdate-party with games, pizza, and cupcakes.  They played with bubbles, trains, dolls, and dress-up stuff.  They jumped on the trampoline for a long time. Everyone had a good time.  I had hoped to get some cute pictures of his friends gathered round singing happy birthday and blowing out candles, but I was the only adult among the kids and it was a bit like herding cats.  They never wanted to all eat together.  So everyone played and ate in stages and I got pictures where I could.  Even at the mention of cupcakes, some were unmoved.  So no great pictures, but I think Christian felt special.

What can I say about Christian?  I love him to pieces.  He is my precious little cuddler, my darling sweetheart.  Several times a day he asks me, "Can we cuddle?"  Christian exudes love.  He is kind, funny, imaginative and intelligent. He loves to be read to, especially if the book is about animals or trucks or Dora.  He is forever questioning and talking and making up stories and songs.  He loves to sing and be sung to.  The other day he rode his tricycle around in the driveway screaming/singing the song, "I belong to the church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.  I know who I am.  I know God's plan.  I'll follow him in faith!!!...." at the top of his lungs over and over again.  He will be a great missionary some day too. ;)  Although my favorite is when he sings "Baa Baa black sheep, have you any wool?  Yes sir, yes sir, three bags full!.... and one for the little boy who lives down the drain!" 

Of my three, he is the most obedient.  He is the quickest to recover from disappointment.  He is more often happy than the others.  He is the perfect playmate for my other two.  He loves wearing dresses, high heels, make-up and nail polish and playing "dance party" all day with Bella.  Yet if he's playing with Benjamin, he's just as happy putting on a ninja suit, grabbing a sword, and running around the back yard seeking out the pirates or riding bikes (aka "motorcycles") up and down the street as police officers on the beat.  

He never ceases to make me laugh.  The other night Christian wanted me to stay in his room because he was scared of monsters.  He put up quite a fuss and kept grabbing at my arm and begging me to stay.
Me:   "Benjamin is in here too.  He will keep you safe."
Christian:   "No, when he falls asleep, he won't be able to protect me anymore!"
Me:  "Oh, well, monsters are so scared of Benjamin that even if he's asleep, they won't dare come in."
Christian:   "How do you know that?"
I got frustrated at this point.  It was late and I wanted him to go to sleep.  I didn't think he'd question me and so I had no good answer ready.  Finally I answered, "I'm pretending!" Monsters are just pretend so let's pretend they are scared of Benjamin, awake or asleep, ok?"  He looked at me for a while, pondering.  Then he responded, "Ok. Good night. See you in the morning!" and quickly fell asleep.  I just love that kid.  Life would be so empty without him.