Braden is THREE

My sweet boy turned three over two weeks ago. We've been so busy with parties and Easter and life, that it's been hard to find the time to write this very important post. Because Braden--he's such a special fella. And at three, he's so many things that its hard to even figure out how to capture them here.

Well. I guess we can start with the facts. Braden is 37" tall (38%tile) and weighs 31 lbs (42%tile). An inch and half taller and four and a half pounds heavier than Finley at three. He's a stout little guy. He's our great sleeper (probably thanks to the sweet thumb sucking). He still naps most days--he goes to his room for a few hours and normally sleeps--sometimes the lure of his toys is too strong and he plays. But mostly he naps. He goes to bed around 8 and gets up between 8 and 7. He normally goes to bed without a fuss--he asks for a few bedtime stories, then climbs into his bed with Tucker the giraffe and prays the same prayer (Dear Jesus Amen. Thank you food. Amen.) and then normally tells me to leave and close the door. He's not the best eater. He loves chicken nuggets, PBJ, corn dogs and taquitos... and can sense a vegetable no matter how hard you try to trick him. He's on to me.

He was somewhat willing to take these pictures, and closed his eyes peacefully for a lot of them. Like he thought he was hiding. His curls are still wild, and so is he. He loves trains, the iPad, Mickey Mouse and Mary Poppins. He's an emotional guy and definitely marches to his own drummer. If he doesn't want to do something, he's probably not going to do it. He's gradually becoming less stubborn and more reasonable, but wild bouts of kicking and screaming are pretty common around here. But at the same time, he really loves hugs and kisses. He likes to cuddle and be tucked in on the couch. 

He and Finley are playing better together everyday. For some reason, he's fairly respectful of Finley's Legos and does a pretty good job of not knocking them over. He chats about Doctor Who and Transformers and Legos even though he has no idea about them--he just knows they are things Finley likes. Keaton is sloooowlly growing on him. He's still pretty nervous about him and often tells me to "take care of Keaton" when Keaton is getting too close to him or his stuff. He really doesn't like it when Keaton drools, which is funny. Sometimes he'll randomly give Keaton a kiss or pat him--but mostly he tries to avoid him. We're pretty sure he's an introvert--he'd much rather stay home and eventually asks to go home when we've been out too long. He's happy to sit in the playroom and play with trains or watch Mickey--unlike Finley who wants to be around us all.the.time.

Basically, he keeps us on our toes. Anything we thought we knew about being parents got switched up with this kid--in the very best way. It's so fun to watch him grow and learn and kiss his sweet cheeks whenever he lets me. We're so grateful for all 1095 days of this guy!