Nicholas is Three Today!

Three years ago today I was in the hospital after becoming a mother for the first time. Today I was in the Target, letting that same little boy pick out a toy. I left Henry at home with Grandma Toni and took Nick out for some one-on-one time with Mommy. I was feeling rather sentimental and wanted Nick all to myself. Since I'm a little bit nuts, I let our three-year-old chose what we'd have for dinner. He chose macaroni and cheese with cupcakes for dessert.

We had Panera's macaroni and cheese for dinner, and Nick picked his own cupcake from a large selection. He chose the one with the cookie on top, because my son is an intelligent little man. It's actually a gingerbread cupcake. A few weeks back there was a Groupon for cupcakes from Cuddle Cupcakes. I took full advantage of that offer. The cupcakes are amazing!

Nick's favorite thing to do with me? Hands down, making cookies tops his list. I wanted to bring some homemade cookies to daycare tomorrow so all of the kids there could celebrate with Nick. We made sugar cookies shaped like cars, and Nick (while in the Target) picked out his own sprinkles. He helped me roll out the dough, cut the cookies, and apply the sprinkles. However, about two seconds after this photo was taken, Nick ruined one of the sheets of cookies. He turned on the water, you see, and soaked them. "I was just washing my hands, Mommy!," he insisted. Anyhow, we still ended up with lots of decent, non-soaked car cookies. It's easy to tell which ones Nick made. 

My favorite part of the evening was just talking with Nick. He had some interesting things to say. Let's listen to the interview:

For some reason, he wouldn't say his age. Whenever I asked Nick his age, both in the morning and at night, all he would say is "I'm Nick." Now, this isn't because he doesn't understand age. We've been talking about turning three for some time, and Nick has been able to count to three (with meaning) for months now. I think he's being stubborn and refusing to say what we want him to say. A strong personality can be rough, but this kid won't give in to peer pressure easily. I'm very proud of him, regardless.

Perhaps that's a good attitude to have about age. If someone asks me, "How old are you, Melissa?," I might be better off if I simply answered, "I'm Melissa." My son seems to have better self-esteem than most, so this method is working for him. 

I hope Nick's third year is full of happiness, learning experiences, and plenty of playing. I never imagined three years ago that I could have such a complex and yet wonderful son.