Happy Third Birthday, Callum!

Happy, happy birthday to my sweet boy! I know it's been said a hundred times, but try to find someone out there who disagrees: The days are long, but the years are so, so short. These last three years have flown by. They've been challenging. They've been exhausting. But, they have far been the best years of my life.

Here's a not-so-short recap of what Callum's been up to the last 365 days.

Callum: There's just no way to explain how much I love you. Simply put, you are the best. Here are a few things I never want to forget about three-year-old Callum.

You are not shy. In fact, you are the most outgoing person I think I've ever met. You say hi to everyone and are never scared in new situations. Most of the time, I'm so grateful for this. I can drop you off at new places, and easily leave without tears from you. You always seem to meet a friend or two at the park. Plus, you make strangers smile on a regular basis when you enthusuastically answer their 'Hi!'s. Your brave personality does not go without its challenges, though. It can be especially difficult in public places where you will just explore, and not look back to make sure I'm behind you.

According to you, your favorite color is green, your favorite food is strawberry milk, and your best friends are Bronte, Ollie, and Henry. But, you can't pick a favorite between Jax and George.

You comment constantly while anyone is driving. "Slow down. Which way are we going? Which way are we turning? Go faster!" Instead of saying "press the breaks," you say "Squeeze on the breaks!"

You are so, so sweet! You have the kindest, most caring personality.

Unless we're talking about the dogs. You have definitely gotten rougher with them over the past year. But, you still give them plenty of food, so they stick pretty close.

You've grown so much this year! You literally went from chunky toddler to little boy. And, you seem to be catching up a bit to your peers.

Newborn Callum. Be still my heart. Photo by Simple City.

You amaze me with your mess-making abilities.

You say "Holy Man!" when you are exasperated.

You want an audience for everything, even when you're going to the bathroom (which has to be one of my least favorite mom jobs).

Speaking of the bathroom, you've been potty trained for about two months now. It took some time to click, but once you got it, there was so turning back.

You are still way too attached to your nay nay (pacifier). I just keep telling myself you won't go to college with it.

You love to play hide-and-go-seek and tag. Whenever you hide, you just sit and laugh the whole time, so we know exactly where you are. Also, tag pretty much means you just want to be chased.

You could watch TV forever. (Don't worry. We definitely cut you off, which always results in a fit.) Your favorite shows are Dinotrux, Dinosaur Train, Thomas, and Paw Patrol.

You also love the movie "Land Before Time." You love it so much, that you like to run around and scream "Sharktooth!!"

Photo by Simple City.

I'm not quite through with the dinosaur theme. You "Roar!" at everything. Not only while you're playing, but also when you are upset with me or Dad. It's like you replace "No!" with "Rooooooooooar!"

You are so brave! Any time I think you're too little to do something, you prove me so wrong. You already told Dad you want to ride the roller coaster the next time we're at Bay Beach.

You do not sit well at restaurants. Taking you out to eat is a nightmare.

You can count to ten and sing the alphabet.

You love Bronte. You guys play together just about every single day. One of you will call for the other through the window or over the fence, and then the fun begins.

We've gotten in to the bad habit of laying with you until you fall asleep every night. And, most nights you wake up and crawl in to our bed. This definitely needs to be changed before your little brother arrives.

Speaking of siblings, you are going to be the best big brother around. I think you will be disappointed when you discover a newborn can't play trains with you, but you've already offered up your diaper-changing services. ;) The other day, you said that when the baby arrives, you're going to "tickle him, and share your toys with him, and play hide and seek with him."

You also think it's possible for a baby to grow in your stomach just by drinking an extra glass of milk. That discussion is definitely a few years off.

You've learned how to play "I Spy," but you just say, "I spy a red car!" So, you don't quite get it.

You would be naked all the time if we let you.

You always say, "How was your day at work?" when I get home from the office. It's the sweetest.

You always want to figure out how things work. When we were on the ferris wheel for your first time, all you could do was stare at the gears and try to discover what made it go.

Happy, happy birthday, Callum! Thanks for making every day brighter. I'm so lucky to be your mom. I can't wait to see what your third year has in store.