A Belated Happy Birthday Clayton!

In all the confusion and mayhem and fun of the last few weeks this boy of mine turned 3. My mind is still reeling. How can this Clayton boy be 3 whole years old!?! He's rambunctious and crazy and silly and sweet.

For his birthday I made him a zebra. He is obsessed with zebras. He has two plastic ones from the Little People Noah's ark he received at Christmas, and he has another little plastic one he received from my mom. I had a hard time convincing him that this also was a zebra even though, "it's not little". It's growing on him.


For his birthday he also got a Black and Decker tool set from Grammy and Grandpa Dante and a plastic Chuck E. Cheese birthday crown from the neighbor girls. Which he wore all at once and fell asleep in.
This boy loves to run and he thinks he's the fastest. The Sunday we were up at my parents' house I was slightly overwhelmed and the kids were grumpy so I strapped them all into their carseats and was going to go for a drive. Right before I pulled out of the driveway my sister Beth called and I told her what I was doing:
" I'm strapping them in so they can't touch each other and I'm going for a drive so I don't beat them all, they are driving me nuts right now."

Shortly after I hung up the phone I hear Clayton's sweet little voice pipe up, "Why are you going to beat us all."

I replied, "Well, I wouldn't really beat you all, I was exaggerating for Aunt Beth because you guys are grumpy and driving me nuts."

Clayton, "I'm going to tell my dad you beat us."

"But I haven't so you wouldn't be telling the truth."

"But I'm faster than you, you couldn't beat me."

It's then that I realized he thought I was going to beat him in a race. I'm glad that's the only beating my children know!

He's not afraid to wear pink, even a pink tu-tu. I think he wears it quite well, only I hope it doesn't last.



He came out of his room the other night to tell me, "Ivan said you didn't make me a Birthday cake."

"You know bud, I don't think I did. I'm so sorry."

"Oh yes you did. You did yesterday." (Yesterday refers to anytime in the past. It's all yesterday.)

"Oh, I did. Okay then go back to bed."

"Okay."

And off he padded in his feet pajamas "with cars and trucks all over them!"

His use of the English language always cracks me up. He's quite articulate and sometimes Erik and I just look at each other and laugh, like yesterday when we were headed to Costco. We had just pulled out of a parking lot from one of our many stops on the way to Costco when we hear Clayton, "Excuse me, where are we going exactly?"

Sometimes I'm not sure but I do like that he's along for the ride. Happy Birthday little man!