The Tolbert Family: Happy 3rd Birthday, Eleanor Grace!

Happy 3rd Birthday, Eleanor!

Three. You have been a part of our family for three whole years and have brought us joy every single day. You are a blessing and a miracle to our family and we are forever grateful for you.

~ You are quite the fashionista. Your favorite items these days are tutus and headbands. They don't always match your outfits, but I'm trying to lighten up a little bit and let you express yourself! You are pretty cute even if you don't match!

~ You always have something to say. You talk ALL the time. Whether it's about things you like, things you don't like, or just whatever is on your mind, you are sure to let everyone know all about it.

~ You have the most precious way of saying your name. You can't quite say your "r's" yet, so your name comes out, "Elea-Noah" and I love it. Sounds quite British.

~ Sometimes when you are asked your name, however, you come up with something new that you think is just hilarious. Lately it's been "Elsa Anna Big Girl Princess."

~ Speaking of names, your names around here are Eleanor, Ellie Grace, Elle-pie, Piece of Pie, Nor-Nor, and the Nor.

~ You are a child with firm convictions. Some might call this stubborn or strong-willed, but either way, they all describe you to a T. We don't always have any idea what will set you off, but if you don't want to do something, you will let us know in no uncertain terms. But we're working on it, and Mommy and Daddy always win :) That being said, I always get excellent reports about your behavior from everyone else!

~ You are a great sleeper. Once we get you to sleep, that is. You've started to become quite the negotiator when it comes to how many songs Mommy has to sing as I rock you, or how many minutes Daddy has to snuggle you before he can put you in the crib. It's hard to say no though, because we know these days won't last forever!

~ Once we do get you in your crib around 8pm, you sleep all the way until 8 or 9 in the morning. Sometimes even later if we have nowhere to be. You do have to have your bink (blankie), lamby, unicorn, three tiggies (kitties), two bears, second bink (blankie), taggie, and pillow. It's quite the menagerie in there.

~ You always want to be the one to pray at the table. You normally pray, "Fah God, thank you for this food and for this family, Aaaaamen." And then you always want to know whether or not your sisters closed their eyes.

~ You do love your sisters - Bears and Kate. I'm pretty sure you know that their real names are Anna Kate and Caroline, but you rarely use them. Actually, now that I think about it, you do sometimes say, "ANN-NAH-KATE" when you're upset with her for something! But Bears is always Bears.

~ You are a great singer. In fact, I think you might be my earliest pitch-matcher out of all our girls. When we sing songs at nighttime, you always match pitch exactly, even when it's a hymn with a wide range. Your favorite songs these days include Be Still My Soul, Holy Holy, Angels We have Heard on High, Jesus Loves Me, Twinkle, Happy Birthday to Jesus, and Oh What a Special Night.

~ You are very smart - at least we think so! You can count almost to twenty without missing any numbers, you are working on your letters and know a good number of them, and you can sing all your states and capitals.

~ Speaking of states and capitals, you have a really funny sense of humor. Whenever you talk about your friend Jackson at Bethesda, you say his name is "Jackson, Mississippi!"

~ You have started to get really good at riding your balance bike! In fact, you wanted to have a bicycle parade birthday party so that you could ride with all your friends.

~ You are extremely animated and easily excited about the little things. You have been over the moon this week about your birthday and turning three. You have been absolutely thrilled about every detail, down to the color of the cupcakes. You have a sweet little way of putting both hands up over your mouth to stifle the excitement but we can still see the biggest smile with your eyes and your dimples.

~ You love stories, but you would much rather stick with your favorites than read something you've never read before. You absolutely love your Opposites book, and you always want the same Pinkalicious books from the library every single week.

~ You are very good at playing independently while mommy does housework or schoolwork with the big girls. Most of the time you play baby dolls, but you also love puzzles and are very good at them! You can also sit and work on busy bag activities for quite a while on your own.

~ You are starting to play really well with your sisters as well. They think it's really fun for you to join them in their pretend play or when they put on shows. You really like to play "GBS" with them - which is actually VBS!

~ You love playing with your Daddy and he makes you laugh harder than anyone else. In fact, he often gets in big trouble for riling you up at bedtime with tickles and games!

~ Even though you are growing up, you are still Mommy's baby sometimes. You still suck your thumb when you are sleepy or upset, and you still love to be carried and snuggled by Mommy. Some days it gets a little tiring, but I love it at the same time.