Brody is Three!

My little stud Brody turned three years old on Monday the 15th. It seems like yesterday that we were bringing him home from the hospital. He has grown up so much in the past year...he really is a little boy now. When I look at him I don't see my little baby anymore, I see a handsome little guy who seems so grown up now.

He's doing things lately that I would think about him doing once he got older. Jayson and I would say to each other, "Won't it be fun when Brody is old enough to do this?" And now he's doing all of those things. We got him a Lightning McQueen bike for his birthday and that was just one of those things that we thought how cool it would be for him to be old enough to do. He was so cute "riding" his bike with his little helmet...once again, he looked so grown up.

That cute little face/smile melts my heart. He was so dang cute riding his bike. For his birthday, we had a small get together with grandparents and two of my sisters and Jayson's sister. It was small compared to last year, (I didn't go all out like with his monster party last year), but it was perfect. He wanted ramen noodles for his birthday dinner, so I decided to make everyone else my infamous burgers. I combine ground beef and ground chuck to make the patties, then I make a mixture of brown sugar and chili powder and rub it on bacon and cook it in the oven. The bacon is so unbelievably good! So, on top of the burgers are sharp cheddar, the brown sugar/chili powder bacon, caramelized onions, butter lettuce, tomato, mayo, ketchup and mustard. Very delicious! I also made sweet potato fries with my secret spice mixture. It was so good, and hopefully one day Brody will like meat so he can enjoy them too.

Brody chose a car cake for his birthday. I made a car out of cupcakes and of course made it his favorite color: red. I made it the night before his birthday once he was in bed and when he saw it in the fridge the morning of his birthday he wanted it for breakfast. He was having such a hard time waiting until his party. I love seeing him so excited about something.

He was also so excited about getting presents...and of course he got spoiled. Besides the bike he got from us, Jayson's sister Heather got him a Lightning McQueen helmet, and some new cars from Cars 2. My parents/sisters got him a shark, (something he's wanted forever and that we haven't been able to find), and a workbench with tons of tools...he loves it! Jayson's parents got him an awesome shake and go race track that has been keeping him busy also.

He had such a fun birthday, and I loved to see him so happy. He is such a special little boy and he brings so much joy into my life, (and some headaches here and there...but what else are little boys for?). He loves to make people laugh and he is such a great big brother to Ryker. His favorite thing to do is run...and he can run fast. I love that he has a favorite color now and that everything he wants is red. His favorite animal is an elephant....he loves to pretend to be a baby one and for me to be the mama. He can count to 15 and knows his whole alphabet and all of the basic shapes. It's so crazy to me how fast he catches onto things and what a great memory he has. He loves to read books and loves anything Dr. Suess or Curious George. He says to me all the time that Ryker can't do things like him, but that he'll be able to once he's big like him. So cute. He has so much energy and can get really angry, but at the same time he has such a big heart and makes everyone around him happy. Even though I'm a little sad that he's not a baby anymore, I'm so happy to see him grow up and become an amazing little person. Plus...he's still my baby, and he will be even when he's grown with his own children. I love you, Brody! Happy 3rd Birthday!