Dear Justin - Happy 3rd Birthday!

I can't believe Justin is 3. He is so much fun- it's hard to remember that he wasn't always able to run in circles and talk my ear off. He has learned SO much in the last year- he's able to have little conversations with us now- even if they are usually about tractors and trucks - or food. It's hard to believe I'm going to have to wait another 2 years to be doing that with Kyle.

Justin has taken on the role of big brother quite well. He's such a loving boy that I had no doubt he would love on his brother - but it makes me smile EVERY time I see them together.  He usually asks to hold him at least once a day - and enjoys getting down on the floor with him to play. He has me "make a spot" for him if I happen to lay Kyle in the the middle of the play-mat - so he can get in on the action too. Having two boys almost makes me want a third - if I didn't have to be pregnant again.

The arrival of Kyle has made Justin a little less dependent on Mommy! He adjusted so well to my "I'm sorry I'm busy feeding Kyle" response. I wasn't sure how he was going to react but he seems to just move along to whomever else is around to help him or figure it out himself. I was wondering how he would react to Kyle being up with me after Justin goes to bed and he doesn't even question it. I guess maybe at 3 you aren't quite in to the "not fair" stage yet.

In the last year he has really learned a lot - including his numbers and letters. It's awesome to see him recognize things on signs when you are driving down the road. And he's sure to tell us what number is on the clock when he gets up in the morning (Dave has tried to teach him to stay in bed until the first number is a 6). School is pleased with his development and his teacher said he is usually the first kid to yell out what is on her flash cards - and often corrects his friends when they are wrong (smarty pants). 

He has some wonderful little friends at school and it's fun to try and keep up with who is his favorite - it seems to change monthly. He gets stuck on one little friend for awhile and then all of a sudden he'll be talking about a different friend all of the time. And he says their first and last names when he talks about them - I asked his teacher if all of the kids do that but she said no! His favorite a couple of weeks ago was Harper Lee - but now it seems to be Emily and Molly. Before the girls it was Evan. It cracks me up to listen to him say their full names. He has not talked about any of his "guy" friends in a few weeks. He is ALL ABOUT the girls right now. If I ask him who he played with it starts with Emily and Molly then goes to Harper and Katie and Charlotte.

He has recently learned his middle name and often calls himself "Justin Prinz David" which is funny to hear. And if you call him something other than his name (like hey- you are messy) he will say "no - I'm Justin Prinz!"

Last weekend he told me I was his best friend.  And he keeps saying it - and I LOVE IT. I hope he always loves me as much as he does right now! He is also saying "I Love You" a lot which is cute. When I am holding Kyle he climbs up on my lap and says "Your two little boys" and then looks at me and says "you say it" until I say "My two little boys" back to him.

He is also loving the term "Sounds good" and says it to me about a million times a day. Sometimes it is response to something I say - but quite often it starts with him asking me a question like:
Is it dinner time?
Yes, Justin
Sounds Good

Or even better is when he comes up with something he wants and says something like
"We'll eat breakfast, get dressed, brush our teeth, watch Cars....Sounds good"

He says "Nevermind" a lot as well - he sort of knows what it means but he uses it a lot when he's done with talking about something. 

Some of Justin's favorite things at 3 are:

• Tractors, tractors and more tractors
• Construction Equipment
• Airplanes and airports
• Dinosaur Train (the cartoon) - Though Cars has recently taken the lead as his favorite
• Chicken Nuggets
• Pizza
• Cake - banilla (vanilla)
• His family- he loves his aunts, uncles, cousins and grandparents. I love that he seems to have such great relationships with them all even though we don't live close to anybody. 

Some things that he doesn't seem to care so much for:

• Bath-time (why is this such an ordeal? - it's getting better if Kyle is in the baby tub at the same time)
• Going in the Potty (he knows how but he sure doesn't seem to want to do this full time!)
• Staying in bed ALL NIGHT - he usually gets out at least once

Justin- you are a sweet, sweet boy. You are always hugging and kissing your friends and family. You STILL play with my hair like you did when you were a baby. You are shy and take some time to adjust to new situations but I love watching you sit back and take things in. You make us so very happy. I'm excited to see what the next year brings for you!

1st Birthday Post
2nd Birthday Post

We're having a John Deere Birthday Party this afternoon - so pics to come!