Maxy is 3!

Last night as a 2-year-old!

Also one of his last nights with his "B."

We told him after his Mickey party, he'd be all done with the pacifier but he actually gave it up one night early - he & Lucy stayed with GranJan & Grandpa the night before his party while Dave and I went to get rained on at the Dierks concert with Jason & Jessica.

Lucy told GranJan he doesn't use one anymore now that he's 3 and he didn't ask for it so we knew breaking him of it would be a breeze!

Such a cute little baker!

He had school on his actual birthday - Tuesday, May 16. He got to bring a treat in for his friends and I asked him what he wanted to take - before I could give him some suggestions, he said, "Me want take cotton candy!" I thought it was a funny enough suggestion that I went with it and bought individual cotton candy tubs for him to take to school. Dave took him in that day and said the teacher told him it was a great idea (he was afraid they were going to hate us!).

He liked the birthday banner and balloons waiting for him!

After school, we decorated the cake we made and then went to cheer Lucy on in her soccer game. After the game, we headed home to sing to our guy and give him a couple of gifts.

Big 3 year-old cut and served his cake!

The next day, he and I had our birthday date. When he turned 1, we went to Totter's Otterville. When he turned 2, we went to the Cincinnati Museum Center. For his 3rd birthday date, we went to Recreations Outlet and he loved it!
Before that, though, we went to Busken for a birthday treat and to the library to get his little gift from them (a paint set).

Max loves climbing and running. He loves jumping, hanging, swinging...he's a very brave and adventurous boy. He had so much fun on the playground equipment. He surprised me at one point when he picked up a scooter and just took off - I know it's not exactly a complicated activity but I'd never seen him ride one before and he did it expertly. 

 

Such a big guy - so independent! His school - Walnut Hills Academy - really helped us out with potty training. He was hit or miss at home and I know we weren't giving it enough focus but they had him start with Pull-Ups at school and quickly had him switch to real underpants. They even had him napping in underpants with no accidents! We're still working on going #2 on the potty but he's pretty much good to go on #1 - he loves standing up to pee "like Daddy!"

This bravery and skill level is something we'd never have seen from Lucy at this age - heck, sometimes she won't even do stuff he'll do now at 3 years older! A few weeks after his birthday, she and Dave had a Daddy/daughter date at Recreations Outlet and she would not climb to the top of this structure to go down the blue tube slide...something Max did several times on his outing.

He loves soft pretzels!

We played all afternoon and even ate lunch there but then headed home for a nap. Afterward, he had fun playing in the backyard with his water table. That night we took Lucy to gymnastics and stopped at WalMart on the way home where he found a Chase pup from Paw Patrol who apparently looked very huggable! He asked, "Me take this home?" but I said no, and maybe he could ask for one for his birthday...

Finally, the weekend arrived and it was time to celebrate with family - Mickey style! He used to be completely one-track-mind obsessed with Mickey but has since broadened his horizons to other friends, namely the Paw Patrol. But we stuck with his first love for his party theme. 

I got a bunch of decorations from a friend and her son - leftover from his party which was also Mickey-themed and they worked perfectly to transform the bottom floor of Lucy's kindergarten building into a mouskaparty!

Max had just woken up from his nap before heading over to the party so he wasn't very charismatic at the beginning of the party...I got his party shirt online and loved it!

He was very pleased with the Mickey cake GranJan made for him! 

Mission Impossible: Getting a good pic of the four fools

I told a couple of people about the big Chase he'd seen and loved at WalMart but they couldn't find him and went with other fun gift ideas. Ironically, I did not tell Aunt Terri & Uncle John and they were the big birthday winners in picking this out on their own and getting Maxy his favorite gift...it was time for hugs and snuggles as soon as he was free from his wrappings!

After seeing how well he rode one at Recreations Outlet, I was extra glad I'd picked this scooter up for him on clearance at Target months earlier and saved as a birthday gift...he loved scooting around his party!

Happy 3rd birthday, baby guy!!!

Three year old stats:

37.8 inches tall - 57%

38 pounds, 8 ounces - 95%

More from May

We celebrated our baby guy turning THREE in May but I'll save that for a separate post. 

He is a silly little guy who loves being outside. His favorite thing to do is cut grass or dig/play in the garden. He has loved playing on his t-ball team though I am not so sure he's destined to be a star athlete, either!

Lucy loves going to his games because there is a playground and she often sees a friend from school whose brother plays on another team. She has amazed me, even making a new friend or two at the park. She has really come out of her shell over the past year or two...in public and in new situations, that is. She's always been a wild animal in her familiar setting with us! 

Mother's Day 
As usual, we went out to brunch (Barleycorn's) with Dave's mom and grandma and Troy. Dave had a bunch of stuff in his front seat so I squeezed in between the carseats to sit with the sillies who made me a mama!

After brunch, we went to my parents' house to celebrate there. 

Wild man!

Teeter-tottin' with friends on the teeter totter my Grandpa made

Besties

My little loves

She's lucky she's cute

Max made this blue stuff at school one day and they were kind enough to send it home with him
I know it was made out of shaving cream but don't know what else
I let him play with it on the porch while we got dinner ready and I still don't think Dave has forgiven me...oops!
It washed right off of his body and right out of his clothes but our porch is now blue...

May Memories

The school year was coming to an end and to celebrate, Lucy's school has a little carnival. Usually it's outside, but this year's never-ending rainfall put a literal damper on that plan. The students still had so much fun at their indoor carnival and I was fortunate enough to be able to leave work to walk around in there with my girl and her friends. We even got to see our favorite 8th grader at her last carnival as a grade (middle) schooler!

Very rarely does this 6-year-old take naps - sometimes she'll fall asleep in the car but that's about it. They have a resting time in kindergarten but she says she never falls asleep. That carnival really took it out of her, though, and she fell asleep almost immediately upon arriving home from school! She got her catnap in but then we were on the go again with another year-end celebration - this time with the Girl Scouts. We headed back up to Memorial Hall for a little ceremony and ice cream party.

The soccer season kept going strong - I don't think Lucy is destined to be a star athlete - she enjoys the social aspect of it more than anything (cartwheels on the field, giggling with the teammate closest to her...) but she's really blossomed in the social aspect which makes us happy and proud. She prefers to be goalie (less running...she definitely gets that from her mama) but got her foot on the ball for some nice kicks several times!

I also got the chance to chaperone Lucy's end-of-year field trip to the Newport Aquarium. We had passes a few years ago but hadn't been in quite awhile so it was nice. I love watching my girl with her friends! 

I was the chaperone of 3 very sweet girls that day!

The last time we went to the Aquarium as a family, Max was a baby and in a stroller...so he and I stayed off to the side while Lucy and Daddy bravely walked across the shark bridge. All three girls in my group wanted to give it a go so we headed across - and we all made it!

Cousin fun:

Max and Luke were PJ matchers - not even on purpose! - after a party at Donna's house.

New sandbox at GranJan & Grandpa's house!

This guy loved making a mess at Charlie's house! 

He loved all of his Imaginext toys and costumes...

I love how he paired a cowboy hat with an astronaut costume - space cowboy!

Happy 8th birthday, Charlie!