My Baby Girl Turns 3!

Ayla Celeste Walde turned 3 on November 10, 2011. In many ways it seems like the time has flown by. Sometimes it seems like she's always been with me. Other times it seems like it hasn't been three years.

I don't have any official stats yet, her doctor's appoinment is in a couple weeks but according to our scale she weighs 38 lbs. She is tall for her age! (I know I have a hard time believing it too!) She wears size 3T in most clothes but 4T shirts fit her well also. She wears a size 7 shoe. She is a mini me in many ways. She has my need and desire to be the center of attention, she talks to anyone about anything, she sings all the time, she is not shy and of course she is very smart. She can count to 17, she knows how to sing her A,B, C's. We are currently working on learning letters. We just started so far she has learned A and B. I told her B has two bumps so now anywhere we are if she sees a B or sometimes an 8 she yells out "Look Mommy it's a B see it has two bumps!" It's really cute and funny to see the reactions of people around her. She is very stubborn (of course this was inherited exclusively from Lucas's side  :)). She is also very independent. She attempts to do most things while yelling "No I'll do it!".

Her likes: She loves watching certain TV shows, Dora, Sesame Street, Max and Ruby, Caillou, and Olivia. She loves coloring, playing play doh, painting, and just about anything crafty. She loves stickers and has numerous books that she calls her "paperwork" that she fills with stickers. She loves to doodle and "write" and has a notebook that she calls her "journal" that she "writes" in. She LOVES reading books, this is probably her favorite thing. As a lover of reading myself plus an English teacher I am very thankful that she loves reading so much. Her current favorite book is Dooby, Dooby, Moo, it's about farm animals who want to win a trampoline so they enter a talent show at a fair. It's pretty funny. Other favorite books are  Are You My Mother, No David, The Cat in the Hat, Green Eggs and Ham, and If You Give a Pig a Party. She also loves to sing!...And she'll sing anywhere she's not shy about it. Current favorite song is "I'm Bringing Home a Baby Bumblebee". Other favorites are "I'm a Child of God", "Popcorn Popping", Jesus Wants Me for a Sunbeam", "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star", "Wheels on the Bus", and "Itsy Bitsy Spider". She will sing any song including commercial jingles or anything she thinks is catchy. For those of you who live in our area I'm sure that you've seen the Empire carpet commercials, well the other day she was walking around singing 800 588 2300 EMPIRE! She loves dressing up and all things girly like wearing her church dresses around the house or pretending to put makeup on. But she also likes rough and tumble play. She loves to "wrestle" with Daddy and loves playing chase. She also loves playing hide and seek but she never stays in her hiding place long enough. She loves her baby brother. It's really cute. Recently they have started "playing" together. She always makes sure that he has a toy. In the morning he usually sleeps in later than her so by the time that Caiden gets up she and I have already been up for awhile. She will hear him first and go running into the room, and by the time I get there she has crawled into the crib with him. It's really cute! I let them play in there together for a few minutes before I let Caiden see me. As soon as he sees me the play time is over it's feeding time! She loves cuddling when it's bedtime or when she has just gotten up from nap. She also loves having her back or arms rubbed. (Mommy does too!) Every night at bedtime after prayers I lay next to her on her bed and rub her back or her arm while we sing songs. We usually start with a few funny ones then move on to quieter ones before I leave. She loves this and it's our special time and helps her calm down so she can go to sleep. She is very funny and always says things that make me laugh. Be sure to check the side of our blog where I have a list called "Funny Girl" which is different funny things that she says and does. She loves to put on "shows" where she will sing or dance or do somersaults, or some other type of entertainment. Her favorite foods currently are: Peanut Butter and Jelly ( she eats it everyday for lunch) cheeseburgers, pizza, fruit (all kinds), green beans, fruit snacks, pretzels, cheese, and yogurt. 

Her dislikes: She does not like bedtime (what kid does). She doesn't like it when Mommy watches the news. She doesn't like sitting still for long periods of time. She doesn't like bugs and has an irrational fear of them often not going outside if she sees a bug out there. I've literally had to make her go out the door because there will be a bug within her sight. She doesn't like when Daddy plays his games (Wii). There really isn't much that she doesn't like.

She is and always will be my punky. I call her that because she's my punkin and she's spunky. I love her more than she will ever know. I couldn't imagine loving someone or something as much as I love her until she came along. I'm so thankful that the Lord gave me the opportunity to be her Mom and to raise her. Sometimes it's challenging but it's also fun, moving, and rewarding.

Here are some pictures of Ayla on her birthdays present and past:

  First picture ever, literally her birthday!

 Newborn Ayla

 First birthday

Second Birthday

 Third Birthday

Check back in a few days for a post on the events of her actual birthday and birthday party!