At three and a half, you...

Like to lock your little toes together. Love, love, love it when you do that! Have never had - or needed - a haircut. But you love to talk about other people that have long hair and you like to talk about how long your hair is getting. And at the rate your hair grows (blame your mom) you probably won't need a haircut until your 16. At least that's one way to save money! You love to play board games - Cootie, Go fish, Candyland, Chutes & Ladders, Bingo, I Spy are some of your favorites Call lemonade "lem-ade", a piano "panano", your backpack "pack-pack", the library "li-berry", hamburger "hang-a-burger", soggy cereal "goffy", and you call hang-nails "fingernails". So, when you have a hang-nail you tell me I have to "cut off your fingernail" and sometimes you even have fingernails on your toes that I have to cut off. Tell me that you love the baby in my tummy and that you are glad that she is a girl. Its cute when you also say, as I'm eating a meal, "your baby is eating all your food!" Are learning the art of being patient, but still like to interrupt a lot, but at least you remember your manners and always do so with an "Excuse me Mom!", even if it is loud and repetitive. Are getting better at having your hair washed; you'd still prefer not to ever do it, but at least we can get through bathtime without crying. Love to give lots of hugs and kisses, but they must be followed in a certain order. Hugs are ALWAYS given first - no exceptions to your rule! If you start with a kiss, then the slate is wiped clean and you must start all over again. Kisses are given last. Sometimes you give "pretend" kisses if I have lipstick on and often you love to give "wedding kisses" and sometimes you even give "pretend wedding kisses".

Fill silent moments throughout the day with lots of "I love you's" Get a total kick out of playing hide-and-seek, and you are good at it too. You stay quiet and hidden until the bitter end. Never when we come home do you run to see us, you are always hiding and we have to come find you.

Ask for "peanut butter and jelly sandwiches with no jelly" Eat just about anything, although you are still not into yogurt, bananas and oranges. Anything to do with pesto, smoked salmon or pepperoni are your favorites. You love edamame. You are not into sweet and sugary things; you ask for "salty snacks" (just like your mom!). New movie interests are Despicable Me (Spickle Me), Cloudy With the Chance of Meatballs (Meatbulbs), Thumbelina, Barbie Fairytopia and Tangled. You are beyond obsessed with the cartoon Caillou and you love to watch SuperWhy (Super Wide). Could - and do - play Polly Pockets allllllllllllllllllllllll day long. You bring them in the car, you carry them into the bathtub and you sleep with them. We often go to sleep with or wake up to find Polly Pockets in our bed. Love role-playing games, your favorite being you reinacting "Sheri" and me or Daddy being "Kayla". As "Sheri" your back always hurts because you have a baby in your tummy and so you have to lay down a lot. You also play a Disney princess (surprise, surprise) who falls into a deep sleep and we have to give you a "wedding kiss" to wake you up. Have taken to dancing and performing on your stage - the fireplace hearth. You come out as a different Disney princess each time, we have to announce you and you sing and twirl around the stage until you run behind the living room drapes (your stage curtain) until you come out as another performer. Grabbed your two play swords and yelled "Daddy, let's play fight!" And I thought Yes, our girly-girl is going to play rough! But then, without a pause, the very next words out of your mouth were "I'll be the princess and you be the prince"... Have to be the first at everything... the first upstairs, the first downstairs, the first to finish your meal, the first in bed, etc, etc, etc, and each time you are the first you yell "I win!" You don't like it when someone else beats you. Come up with the cleverest, funniest, and smartest conversations ever Write your name so well even your Sunday School teacher couldn't tell if it was she or you that wrote your name on your paper Your coloring skills are impeccable, you stay in the lines each and every time Tell us your favorite season is winter Love to cuddle in bed. Your arms have to be around our neck and ours around yours, facing towards each other and heads touching. You used to like to sleep on my tummy, but now that there is not room you ask "Can I sleep on your neck?" Are a great sleeper. You never get out of bed. You hate the covers and only sleep with a blanket regardless of the temperature inside or out. You still take a 1.5-2.0 hour nap and sleep 10-10.5 hours at night. You've recently developed a fear of the dark. Growing pains in your legs are sometimes a part of your sleep now. You wake up crying because you legs hurt so bad and we help you work through them. Like any activity that involves crafts, coloring, glueing, cutting or drawing. You like practicing writing your letters and numbers; even better when we let you type it out on the computer. As I think of more, I'll add them! We want to keep you this age forever! You keep us laughing! We love you!