1,2,3 Birthdays!

This year Eva was so excited for her birthday. For the past year, when asked, she would tell you when her birthday is and how old she'll be. Eva remembered her 2nd birthday party being at the Bounce House. So when I asked that this year if she wanted it again, she squealed with delight.

I was also excited because I wanted to do something special for her as a "big girl." She's really into this princess stuff. So when I asked her if she also wanted a prencess party, all she could say was "Princess Tiana!!" OK. Done deal!!

Her actual birthday is February 4. And for several weeks in January/February, we were in Florida visiting my parents. Eva is always excited to be with her Poppi and Gaia, so she was especially happy to be with them on her actual birthday. :-) It was a regular day for the most part. The night before my mom and I wrapped her birthday gifts and set them out for her to see in the morning. (same thing my Mom used to do for me)

When Eva woke up, it took her about 10 minutes to see her presents. She couldn't open them up fast enough. Bless her heart, she waited for her slow mom to set up the camcorder and get the camera. She spent the next several hours playing with all her cool stuff :-)
 
John and I had been waiting for her 3rd birthday so that we could witness her first Build-A-Bear experience. She was so overwhelmed by the wall full of bears....and it didn't help that she had no nap by this time of the day. She has such a good time helping to fill her bear with stuffing, give it a heart and a hug. She spent a lot of time giving him a bath and getting him nice and clean. She got to name her bear and get his birth certificate. Introducing....

Pirate Bear

Afterward, we did a little shopping and headed home. We surprised her with a birthday cake and she joined us in singing to her :-)

When we got back to Ohio a couple of days later, it was time to get ready for the Bounce House and Princess Parties. That Saturday was her Bouce House party. Everyone had such a good time. (Eva was especially excited to see her godparents!) This party was a little bittersweet because I knew this would be Eva's last (Bounce House) party in Ohio. I felt so blessed to see her big brother and sister, cousins and other Ethiopian adopted friends there. 

The next day was Eva's Princess party. I wanted her to have something special, just with her little girlfriends. And of course, it had to be Princess Tiana. She LOVES Princess and The Frog :-) She so enjoyed wearing her Tiana dress and being the birthday princess of the day. Quite a few of her friends had gotten sick just a couple of days before her party :-( So there weren't many girls there, but the kids had a good time all the same! 

 


 






Make no mistake......this is NOT the beginning of multiple parties based on age!! Haha. Next year, there will be just 1 party. Happy Birthday Baby!!

To My 3-Year-Old

Dear Eva,

Oh My! Where has the time gone to? I mean, really! You are officially 3 years old. I can remember, just like it was yesterday, when Mama and Daddy flew to Ethiopia for the first time to meet you. It was just a few days before your first birthday. We tried to celebrate the best way we knew; we got you a cute outfit and Daddy brought you a Hostess cupcake. He just KNEW that you would take to the sweet, sugary taste of it. Wrong!! You wanted nothing to do with it or us. You scraped that cupcake right off your tongue and cried the whole time.

Fast forward 2 years: I can hardly believe you are that same little one that we held back in Ethiopia. Where do I begin to talk about how amazingly fabulous you are? You are so smart and determined and independent. Your personality is like a bright light that shines in a room. All anyone has to do is be in a room with you for 10 minutes and they can see your energy, attitude, and spunk! Your beauty truly radiates from the inside out.

So what are you into lately? You still like Doc McStuffins, but lately you’re all about Tiana and the Princess and the Frog. You can recite practically the whole story, and when I try to help, you tell me I’m wrong and correct me. You still like the color purple, but every so often you’ll choose the color blue also. You still love to eat. You’re always hungry!! And now candy is assumed to be one of the main meals of the day. When we go out to eat Ethiopian, you know that’s where to get injera…and you love it!

I don’t know where to begin on describing how smart you are. You hear every conversation going on around you and know right where to chime in. You can retell something that has happened weeks ago….with all of the drama and hand gestures as if it had just happened. You are such a whiz with your colors and numbers and everything. You are the one who says the blessing at dinner, and at bedtime you say the prayer all by yourself. You amaze me. Should a 3 year old know this much?

Fashion! Can we talk about fashion for a minute? What a little fashion plate you are. You want things to match...shoes, jewelry, hair accessories. You’re not into purses yet, but I know when that time comes, that will become part of the fashion as well. You are quick to remind me that crocs are not shoes and flip-flops are not sandals.

For all the things that I’ve tried to show you, teach you, discipline you in, it is only a speck to what God has done. God has truly done an awesome work in you and He’s not done yet. I can only be excited with anticipation about all of the things that you will learn in this next year. What will I need to teach you? What will you need to teach me? Will we both learn what we need to? Will one of us be more stubborn than the other? We’re so alike, you and I, in so many ways. I thank God everyday for the grace that He gives me for the challenges that we face. You are my precious girl. My big girl. My girl.

I love you always and always,
Mama