Elliot 3.0

My snuggly, happy little monkey, you're three years old now and I'm so proud of the little boy that you are becoming.

I love the way you bounce everywhere. When you're happy, your whole body shows it. Your eyes sparkle, your tail wags, your smile stretches from ear to ear. If I could bottle your joy, we'd be set for life.

I love how you've become so communicative at explaining how you feel (like the other day, when you came up and hugged me and told me that you didn't want me to go out without you--no whining, no crying, just communicating, it was a magic moment, my sweetheart).

I love how you've begun to show such compassion and love for your brother. Whenever you hear him wake up, you go running to his bedroom and entertain him until I'm ready to come and get him out of his cot. And when he's upset, you're the first one to come over to him and say, "It's okay, Oliver". You're even beginning to share your toys with him and show some patience when he messes with the ones you're playing with.

I love how your imagination has blossomed. Whenever I pretend I'm not paying attention, I overhear you making up the best scenarios with your toys, stories about lions and monsters and dragons blowing out fire and always there's an Elliot and a Mommy in your play story (and most the time a Daddy and Oliver too) and always they're looking after each other which makes me so so happy.

I also love how you've started to sing all the time. In the back of the car, in your room during nap/rest time, when you're playing by yourself, you'll just start singing. And the library of songs that you've got stored in that impressive little brain of yours is something pretty amazing.

I love how mostly you want to be a big boy and learn how to do all sorts of really grown up stuff all by yourself, but sometimes you still want to be carried or cuddled or fed just like a 'little baby boy'. Y'know what? Mostly, I love that you're becoming grown up and want do stuff all by yourself, but sometimes I still want to have my little baby boy back too.

I love how your magnetic personality shines and how you love to perform and say "Look at me!!! Look at me!!!" I don't know if you'll be in the circus performing all the tricks we practice together, or become a stand-up comedian (I still wonder if I got my funny from you or if you got your funny from me, but I love how you amuse yourself just like I amuse me) or an academy award winning actor (you're dramatic skills have been really getting refined these days--we've had to tell you the story about the boy who cried wolf more than once recently) but I do know that whatever path you choose in life, it won't be one where you'll be hiding in the shadows.

Sure sometimes you get a little bit sooky and over-dramatic or throw a very impressive tantrum, but mostly we see how hard you're trying to be a good boy and it makes me really really proud to be your mom. (And when I tell you how proud I am of you, there is nothing better than seeing you beam with self-pride.)

I LOVE YOU, ELLIOT!