Elijah's 3!

This is long overdue....

My sweet little Eli turned 3 years old on Christmas day. The time has flown by so fast. I can't believe my baby, who I feel like I just brought home from the hospital, is already 3.

He's an amazing child-so sweet and kind and loving. He's very independent and patient, sometimes too much. He'll wait and wait and wait for help until we forget he's waiting. But that's where his independence helps him out. He's very good at figuring things out on his own and, more times than we can count, has figured out how to use Russ's XBox, the computer, cell phones, you name it.

He also loves hugs and cuddles. He can be in the middle of being reprimanded and he'll be angry and crying and still come to you for a hug. Many times all that needs to be done to solve a meltdown is sitting on the floor, asking if he needs a hug, and he'll practically fall into our laps.

He adores Isaac and wants to be just like him. He watches every little move Isaac makes and copies it. If Isaac doesn't like a food, neither does Elijah (even if he was scarfing it down a second before). If Isaac loves Star Wars, so does Elijah. If Isaac is in plays, Elijah wants to be too. Many times Isaac will say something and a second later we hear the same phrase coming from Eli.

He also loves Sammy and is such a great big brother to him. Every morning when I bring Sam in to their room Elijah's face lights up and he says, "Sammy's awake!" He calls him his "sunshine" and kisses and cuddles him. He makes sure Sam is always comfy, adding and extra blanket or pillow behind him. He just dotes on him.

Elijah's our little police officer around the house. He makes sure all the rules are followed and things are done like they should be. He's quick to remind Isaac of what rule he's breaking, or tell us if we forgot our mealtime prayers. He's a stickler for rules and how things should be done. And he tries to help us when we're disciplining the older kids by adding a "Yeah, Katie!" or "Yeah, Isaac!"

He's very generous, always willing to share his treats or give you his last bite of food if you ask for it. And speaking of treats, while he does like cookies and candy, he will almost always choose fruit over any of that. The kid loves his fruit! His other favorite foods right now are mac and cheese, yogurt, cheese sticks, popcorn and smoothies. He can eat too. I'm a little afraid of what his teenage years will bring, seeing how much he can put away at 3!

He and I have our special cuddle time at night before bed. We call it our "snuggle buggle" time and we are each others "Snuggle Buggle's". I'm also currently his girlfriend and, I gotta say, I love that. I know the time will come all too quickly where I'm embarrassing to him.

I'm so proud of the wonderful person he's becoming. He's my sweet little Eli, my Snuggle Buggle, my best Christmas present, my wonderful middle boy.