My boy is THREE today!

At the end of a week full of national tragedy and despair, we have much to be grateful for and a wonderful reason to celebrate. 
Our little boy is three today. 

He was born around 10am on April 19th, 2010. His birth was dreamy. It really was. Nothing like my first birth with Max. It was a c-section, but the procedure went smoothly and recovery was way better. I wanted him to be named Gabriel James, but Matt wanted him to be Gabriel Matthew. (Daddy won that battle.) We felt so happy, and Max was such a proud big brother. Our first months with him were quiet and sweet. Matt was home since he had been laid off, so I got plenty of rest and lots of one-on-one time with our newborn. Looking back, that was God's perfect timing, because life was about to get shaken.

The day after Gabriel turned five months old, my dad died suddenly. And then two months later I was pregnant (SURPRISE!!!!) again. So I feel like his babyhood flew by, and honestly, I don't remember a whole lot of his first year. I was weighed down with a debilitating grief, and the worries of having another baby so soon after. But he was loved. I know that. And he walked at nine months. I know that. And I also know that he was surrounded by family that made sure he was nurtured and loved, even when his mama didn't have much to give. God's grace covered that time period, and He has restored what the locusts have eaten, that's for sure. Our days that have followed that season have been rich with happy memories, abundant blessings, provision and restoration. Gabriel's a trooper. He fits in with this family.

My three-year-old

He loves tools, how things are built and the mechanics of how things work. He is fascinated by pipes and always asks what is in them, where they are going, if they are hot, etc. He loves cooking and dressing his dinner plate up with as much color and texture as possible. He doesn't ever eat it all, but we wouldn't be surprised if he was the one taking after his late boppa and his uncles Gil and David. All chefs. He loves to watch Pingu, Rescue Bots and Wreck It Ralph. If I let him paint more often or play with playdough more than once a month, those would probably be his favorite past times as well.  He is shy about dancing, but loves it.

He loves clothes. And changing his outfit every ten minutes. He is particular about what he wears, and insists that tags are cut out of everything. His favorite shoes are his cowboy boots. And he loves wearing "army pants" (which are either camo, or just khaki colored pants with lots of pockets.) His room is regularly littered with every item of clothing that he owns. He loves accessories... hats, sun glasses, gloves, backpacks, purses, wallets.

He is our responsible, wise, mature, sweet, sensitive, nurturing, strong-willed, dramatic boy. He feels things deeply, and his heart is tender. A lot of the time when he says sorry, he means it. He will even sometimes bring it up an hour later, saying again that he is really sorry. But, he is three, so a lot of the time he says in the sassiest voice possible (with arms aggressively crossed) that he is "THOOOOOO-RRY!" (with his thlight lithp) and turns right around and sticks his drooly tongue out. Stinker. He loves Jesus and loves to pray. His swear words consist of  "WOW MOM!" and "I don't LIKE you."

His best friends are Max, Eli, Marcus, Jakey, Sage and yesterday he added our neighbor Amy M. to the list.

Life is good with our Gabriel. Can't imagine my world 

with out him.

aw, isn't that just special?

turning 1!

Gabe was a big brother at 16 months.

this day I felt he needed a unibrow.

Right after we moved in to our house, Gabe turned 2.

I'll love you forever 

I'll like you for always 

as long as I'm living 

my baby you'll be.

Happy Birthday Gabey-yooooo.