Happy Birthday, Nora!

Tomorrow morning, I will wake up the mother of a three year old. (Actually this morning as it's already past midnight.) Awww... I didn't realize I would feel so emotional about her turning three. I've been referring to her as three or almost-three for a while now, and she's certainly very grown up lately in her speech and mannerisms. She's not the same girl she was a year ago. I love her independence, but I can't believe how quickly her babyhood is slipping away. It brings tears to my eyes when I think about it.

She's such a sweet girl, and she loves to cuddle, which is nice for Mommy - but I don't know how long that will last. We used to cuddle in my bed every single morning, it was kind of a routine for us, but a few months ago she started waking up saying, "Mommy, I don't want to cuddle!" She wanted to get right to breakfast and whatever else was awaiting her. We still cuddle a couple of times a day, but a lot of times she will want to wiggle in my arms for just a minute and then jump up and show me a trick (like her "ballet" or "gymnastics" moves, all made up at this point since she hasn't started classes), or play catch with her "balloony loon," or any number of things that an active three year old girl might want to do.

Recently she's been telling us that she plays tag with Scout, our cat. Jason and I find this hilarious. "I bet Scout's always 'it,'" I told him. "And somehow she always wins, too." So cute! Today Nora crawled under the bed after Scout, who is good natured but only to a point. Scout actually took off for the other room and had been gone a couple of minutes before Nora realized it. She told me, "I'm trying to give Scout a kiss." Later I heard, "Don't be mad, Scout! I'm just a sweet little monster!"

Happy birthday, sweet little monster!