Three-year-old birthday parties are pretty special, I gotta say. At one year, babies are too young to really understand what's going on. At two, I think that they're still pretty clueless. But by three, the world makes sense and they have a full grasp of this special day that's just for them. Nico definitely knew that when he woke up at dawn yesterday and bounded into our bedroom asking where his cake was. Next he rushed to put on a shirt I made with his favorite red sports car on the front. He kept glancing down at the real car in his hand and the one on his shirt and asking, "How did it get here?".  

To celebrate, we met some friends at the local park after school and stomped foam rockets, hit some t-ball, chased some ducks, and got soaking wet in the sprinklers. It was such a pleasure to see Nico be the object of so much attention and affection. So often I feel as though he is constantly trying to keep up with his brother and his friends. That evening was all about him and his little posse. Homemade cupcakes got eaten, presents were opened on the spot, and as the sun went down on a scorching hot day, my three-year-old walked home a very happy little boy.