Peanut,

You are a whirling, twirling, dancing, singing, climbing, tumbling three!

In the past few months, you have moved houses, moved schools, moved out of diapers and into a big girl bed. You have met each change with excitement and ease (except for those first two days of school, some of my toughest yet as a mom).

You are a big sister, through and through. You squeal with delight at baby Roycie and you simply can't restrain yourself from squeezing his cheeks and nuzzling his body. You have learned to ask mama whether you can pick him up, but have not learned to always wait for the answer. You delight in his waves and his smiles and his accomplishments. And you remind us daily that you view him simply as, "my baby."

You are bounding - quite literally - to new heights in our yard. On the trampoline, on your scooter, off the stairs. You've discovered a passion for gymnastics and swimming and diving (!) that make me feel as though I'm peering through a looking glass at myself at your age. You play soccer at school and you want to run or jump or climb or balance on everything, every minute of every day.

You like rules. And structure. And order. You organize your magnatiles and your markers and your animals. You parent your baby dolls and they spend time in time-out. You remind your friends that "we say please with all sent-ses (sentences)" and you oversee the new order of "no shoes and no food in the playroom." A few weekends ago when your friend was over to play, I told you that you were "in charge," on the trampoline. I am still shocked that I so nonchalantly injected this new phrase into your vocabulary.

You cherish your best friends. You sprinted across the back yard this weekend when Leo arrived and ran up for a full body embrace. You talk about friends near and far often - dylan and Mac and maggie and kippie and lukas and jack and so on and so on. And you are thrilled to be part of the new gal pack on Conway Road- idolizing Gabriella and Ariana and Brooke and Summer and McKenna and attaching yourself to them every chance that you get. And as a result, you are starting to say things like, "that's so cool!" And "okay mom."

You are opinionated and strong willed and when you don't like something or don't want to do something, you SAY SO. Sometimes accompanied by lying on the floor, and often with the refrain of "I don't WANT to." And when you get frustrated, you SAY SO too. The perfectionism is real. But you bounce back impressively fast, and we are grateful for that.

You love to create art and will sit with such focus engaged in a drawing or a stamp project or a painting. You have learned how to write "H," and practice it constantly. You are taking piano lessons at school and you can sing almost the full moana and frozen soundtracks.

You are funny! And constantly working to "surprise us" and make everybody laugh around you. You laugh with your mouth wide open and your eyes pinched closed and your head thrown back. It's the absolute best.

We've started talking at bedtime about things about your day that made you happy, and proud, and things that were hard. Often, it was hard for you that you got an ouchie. But just as often, it was hard for you that you didn't see baby Roycie when you were at school. You tell me you were happy when we went on family walk with your scooter or when you played with mama and dada. You tell me you were proud when you saw baby Roycie. It all makes my heart burst.

You are literally exploding before our eyes into big girl Harper. You've been asking daily for several months, "am I three now?"

You are three. You are so proud.

And so are we.

We love you.