This is the baby.
She was 9 months old here (she's 22 months now... wow!)
She is kid #3 at my house.
I have to laugh at how much 'easier' she had it; how much she gets away with...
Here's what I've learned from being a Mommy of 3: 1. Dirt (and food) washes off. (I never let my other kids feed themselves spaghetti or the like because they got messy and I had to clean them up-- #3 won't LET me feed her. SO it's bath time every night. Lucky girl!)
2. After nearly 7 years of being a Mommy, I'm tired of saying 'No'. (#3 is the kid I redirect more because I'm just tired of saying no... though I'm sure she doesn't think that.)
3. Happy baby smiles are better than clean houses. (You might recall that last year I did the summer long cleaning challenge... not this year. It would be counterproductive with 3 into everything kids... and also, what would the point be? Let them explore. The house will be clean enough when they all move out.)
4. A wet bed isn't the end of the world. (#3 has a wet bed every morning... of course, she sleeps between 12-13 hours a night. With my other 2, I worried... not so much #3. She usually gets 'Oh, Everlee... )
5. #3 thinks she's just as big as the older 2. (#1 can climb the door frames. She's very proud about that. #3 wants to SO bad, but can't. That leads to some tears... )
6. My oldest 2 love playing with her toys more than theirs... which can cause some problems. (especially at church... )
7. "But she gets too... " says my oldest 2 (Yes, but she's a baby... you're not. Truth be told, you were probably not allowed to do it when you were... but I've mellowed. Sorry about that.)
8. My oldest 2 are great big sisters. (They take a lot of playful abuse from #3... mainly she loves to sit on them. But they let her with a smile. They don't like to be away from her.)
9. Bruises aren't that bad. (#3 falls a lot. She has a heartshaped bruise on her leg. I think it's kinda cool. With my other 2, I kept trying to keep them from falling. Poor #3, I just tell her to get up and keep going... unless she's really hurt of course.)
10. They grow up so fast. (Everybody tells you they do... but you don't believe it. Sure mine are still young, but it stills feels like to me that #1 should be #3's age. It's strange that I'm going to have a second grader.)
My oldest 2 are 18 months apart so that *kinda* explains why I had to be a bit different with them... I mean I couldn't bathe a messy 2 year old with a crying 6 month old that needed something. You might could/can, but I couldn't.
No matter what I've learned, I love my girls more than anything. They are immortalized forever-- by the gray hairs on my poor 31 year old head :)
(It occurs to me that I don't have a picture of all 3 of them and me! Really?!)
Much Love,
