How can it be...

Keagan is nearly THREE?!!?

 

Well, ok. He will be 3 in exactly one month. I still like to tell people he is "two and a half" because of my denial. Keagan is a difficult child to photograph...he just cannot sit still. And I try hard to just let him do his thing. This is why you rarely see many pictures of him these days...he is more of a blur than a subject in a picture. But I needed some pictures of him for his birthday invitation so we went outside and "played" and I snapped as many pictures as I could in a 10 minute time span. I am pretty happy with what I got and thought I would share them. And go ahead and tell you all about my three-year old.

 

Personality: Keagan is a very sweet little boy. He is snuggly, but only in spurts, and he loves to give hugs and kisses. But only on his terms. He thinks he can only love one person at a time, usually. So it is often that I tell him I love him, and he tells me "no. I love Finn. You love Daddy." I try and explain that I love him, and Finn, and Daddy...and he can love all of us, too. But that explanation is met with the same defiant statement. Yep, he is defiant. And he likes to push buttons and boundaries. As loving as he is, he is also ultra-sensitive and will cry at the drop of a pin. It is so dramatic. He will cry (and not sweet tears...loud boo-hoos) if you tell him to do something, ask him to tell you something, try and explain something, or even look at him cross...not to mention typical crying from reprimanding. We are strict parents so he doesn't get away with a lot, and unreasonable crying often lands him in his room and leads to more crying which either is ignored and/or dealt with by spanking. But as quickly as he can turn it on, he turns it off. And then Keagan becomes his funny, smart, silly self. He will do anything to make you laugh. While he is shy towards people he doesn't know, he loves to talk talk talk and he loves to sing and dance. The innocence of a child is beautiful and I wish he would never lose it. Though he can outgrow the crying anytime. ;)

Likes: Going for walks/runs. Playing outside. Watching Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, Thomas, Bubble Guppies (these are his favorites right now). "Playing trains" and he often says "play trains wiff me, mom!" so I oblige. To say he adores Thomas the Train is an understatement (obsessed is more like it). Counting, singing ABCs, praying, reading books. Church. School. His friends. His Bubby (what we call Finn). Crocs shoes (o.m.g. he is in love with these shoes). Juice. Fruit snacks. Laying in bed with mom and dad. Chapstick. Irritating Oscar.

Dislikes: Eating all his supper, or any meal for that matter. Being diverted or told No. Being away from his Bubby. Cleaning up. Being sprayed by the hand-held shower head. Going to bed (he is starting the typical stall-tactics...). Sharing.

Lately: Keagan is potty-trained both at night and daytime. He wears a pull-up at night but is now staying dry. He still has accidents but they are generally few and far between. He has been playing soccer (pics to come!) and he is now a climber on the playground which gives me a bit of a heart attack when I watch. He likes to give "knuckles" and this is the way we get him to break out of his shy moments. He talks daily about his upcoming birthday party and likes to show people on his fingers how old he will be. Though we haven't had his official 3 year check-up yet, I think he is about 29 pounds and 38" tall.

Keagan really is a beautiful child. I tell him this all the time. I fear for the day where he tells me to stop saying that. He is definitely hitting the "terrible threes" and it is exactly what people have told me about: three is harder than two!!! But even though he pushes my buttons I know that this too shall pass. And I am trying to love him through this and not hurry it along (though, honestly, I wish the attitude would take a chill-pill!). There are times when I have to remind myself that he is still a baby. I all-to-often let that fact escape my mind because I have a child younger than him and I subconsciously think that Keagan should "know better." But he is still learning. And when we sit down, breathe, and start again we do lots better. Keagan is a good boy, a loving brother, and has a really fun personality. I am still in denial that my first baby, the one we had a hard time getting, is nearly three. But, I think this denial is never leaving because my own mother just reminded me that she has a hard time believing her first baby already has babies of her own.