Sugar Babies: 3 Years Old

Friday, June 04, 2010

3 Years Old

At 12:11pm, June 4th 2007, we welcomed Norah Grace into our lives.

Today she turns 3 years old and we are astounded by the changes we have seen as she has grown into the beautiful little girl we see before us. She is no longer completely dependent upon us. Although she normally starts new ventures with some slight hesitation, she delights in exploring the world around her.

Norah has recently added several new skills. She can tell left and right, sometimes even better than her mommy. Her potty training has improved greatly, but she has developed a mistrust of public bathrooms. She was startled once by the unexpected noise of an automatic toilet that decided to flush before she was finished. She jumped, her eyes got big, and she declared "I'm done...!" Now she recognizes the self flushing models and points them out saying,"That's the scary one!"

Norah has really learned how to express her feelings, whether love, longing, or irritation. Her words brought me to tears early one evening as we drove to go pick up Jeff from the train station, and she turned to Justin who was crying and said, "It's okay sweet boy, don't cry. Mommy loves you. Daddy loves you. And I love you."

One night while Heather was at work, I was bathing the kids and noticed Norah sitting with a frown on her face. I asked her what was wrong, to which she responded, "I mad Mommy at work." I told her, "Mommy had to go to work, but she loves you very much and will see you in the morning when you wake up." Her facial expression suggested she was still mad that Mommy was not home, but looked forward to her return, and was happy to be loved. With quiet sincerity and a longing for tomorrow she softly and slowly said, "Mommy's my best friend."

Norah has adopted some of my pet peeves. She and Justin help pick up acorns in the front yard, and in the garden. She has learned that acorns make the unwanted little oak trees in the garden. I saw her try to uproot a sapling in the garden. When she couldn't pull it, she scowled and fumed, "That darn tree, get out of our garden! "

She has changed so much from the little baby we brought home from the hospital. She can dress herself, repeat conversations verbatim, identify almost every color, and sing several songs. One thing has not changed, however, and that is how much joy she brings to our lives.