Ainsley turned 3 yesterday (April 3rd)! We have had a great time celebrating her birthday! Her birthday party was at Chick Fil A. Simple, but fun was my goal this year! The theme of her party was Mickey Mouse, since her big birthday celebration will be at Disney World! When the kids arrived, they loved the Mickey Mouse puzzles, games, and coloring books. The playground was a hit too, of course! We provided food for the kids...and had enough for some adults too. Then, we dug into Ainsley’s Mickey Mouse cake. She loved the frosting, like always. Everyone gave really great gifts that she is truly enjoying. There were over 19 kids there, plus parents, so we had the whole section to ourselves! Ainsley was so happy to see her friends. It meant so much to me to see the people we love help celebrate our daughter. My Mom was able to be there too! This was great because Braxton got to have his own personal attention from my mom while Brian and I could focus on the birthday girl and guests. The only kink in the party was when Ainsley’s GIANT Mickey Mouse balloon mysteriously escaped the restaurant and floated away in the sky right in front of Ainsley’s eyes. Tears were coming, until her smart Daddy told her Mickey is just floating back to Disney World to wait for us there. I hope they have a giant Mickey balloon just like it, because trust me...she will NOT forget! Make sure and look at Ainsley’s Birthday page for pictures. More pics and details of more birthday fun to come!

I am so proud of our 3 year old! Now that she is 3, we are working on helping her be even more independent. She now has a sticker chart as an incentive to try new things and make old things habits. We will work on one task at a time. Her first task is “I can put my dirty clothes in the hamper.” This also involves putting her shoes where they go in her closet, and putting clean clothes back where they go in the drawers. Each time she accomplishes one of these tasks, she picks a sticker and puts it on the foam sheet on the fridge. When we feel that task has turned into a habit, we will go on the other task. Tasks to come are: Getting dressed by herself (She has no interest in this at all), clearing the table, putting on her shoes EVERY TIME (she’d rather I do it!), writing her letters (she has no interest in this either. She knows the letters and their sounds, but does not want to write them). Any other ideas? The purpose of this is to make these things HABITS...one thing at a time, so we can move on to other tasks and stop revisiting things. Anyways, so far it is going well. And I don’t have to make so many trips to her hamper anymore!

I also updated Braxton and Ainsley’s picture pages. You will find pictures of our trip to the zoo in Tampa, which is the #1 Family Friendly Zoo in the U.S., and I agree! We fed a giraffe, rode a camel, played in water, rode a real roller coaster, rode a ski lift (without the snow) over the animals, rode a train, pet reptiles (Ainsley’s favorite...she is just like me), pet and fed sting rays, rode the fastest carousel ever, and more! The highlight for my Mom and I was the 8 month old monkey riding his mommy’s back. I could have watched those monkeys for hours! We also went to a children’s museum lately. This was a neat place to explore things and allow the kids to engage in pretend play, like grocery shopping, orange factories, fire trucks, doctors, etc. I enjoyed our time with friends there, and I look forward to our next outing all together--The Orlando Science Center! We also had an Easter Egg Hunt Playdate at our house recently. There were around 15 or so kids here at the house. We enjoyed an Easter craft, a hunt in the yard, and yummy cupcakes. The kids did very well. And the adults enjoyed each other too! Anyways, too much has happened since the last blog to tell everything, but those are the highlights.

Braxton is funnier and funnier every day. He and Ainsley are officially “best friends” in addition to brother and sister. They play together constantly. Wherever one is, the other is close by. This has been a joy to watch, and it has helped me have a little more freedom since they entertain each other so well! Our favorite thing is still going outside. Braxton’s favorite thing outside (besides balls) is his golf set. He rolls the “caddy” around and holds a stick in one hand, the ball in the other. Braxton really loves the brooms outside too. One thing I love is our times of reading on the floor together. Braxton does not like to read much, but when I sit down to read to his sissy, he joins us! He doesn’t want to miss anything! Braxton is taking after his sister’s love of bread. He loves to sit down with his daddy every morning while Brian puts his shoes and belt on for work. If Braxton is in the other room with me and hears the jingle of the belt, he goes running to “help” his daddy get ready for work. I am proud of how well Braxton is listening. He follows directions very well and responds well when we say “no”. He seems to be beginning an attachment to a blue blanket he owns. So much to tell you about this little guy of ours! I can’t get enough of him!