:: he was born 9 days early so this post is kind of like only 1 day late ::

the boy? he's three.

THREE.

and three? it's complicated. it asks interesting questions and its brain can hold multiple ideas in it at once. it is ever more logical, and at the same time ever more emotional. it knows about and experiments with affect (the other day when three was in his room and mommy was in 6-months's room, three did this weird grunty whiny frustrated thing and then informed mommy, instead of asking for you i did another thing to get you to help me - god help us all). it declares its independence in one sentence (hey! now that i'm three, there are three grownups and one baby!, three informs me) and tears up when someone suggests that there will ever come a time when he will not live with mommy and daddy (he may know more than we realize about this). three is social and anti-social; three is purposefully funny and purposefully annoying. it is also inadvertently both of those.

if the gifts three received for its birthday are any indication (tent and sleeping bag, slip & slide, stomp rocket, giant floor puzzle, kid-proof digital camera and more), three is going to be a fun and a full year.