Stephen is 3

Birthday cupcake

Singing "happy birthday" in the car

Birthday toys

Happy Birthday dude!

On November 19, we began our drive to Florida.  So we celebrated Stephen's birthday on the road!  He requested a Thomas the Train cake.  That would have been difficult, so I made cupcakes and put Thomas the Train rings on them.  And eating cupcakes in the car was also tricky, but we did it!  Stephen opened a few gifts in the car.  The main present was a green scooter.  When asked what he wanted for his birthday he always answered, "a green scooter like the big boys have!"  We gave him the scooter once we arrived in Florida and he had fun riding around in the rental house.  

It is hard to believe Stephen is 3 already.  I remember when he was born and he had the genetic testing all newborns undergo.  The results came back positive for a serious illness and he had to be re-tested.  The lab messed up the first re-test so he needed another blood draw.  It took about a week for the test results and I was nervous.  It was a huge relief when the doctor called and said it was a false positive and he was completely healthy!

Stephen continues to grow.  He is now 38 pounds and 40 inches tall- topping out the growth chart.  He still has an egg allergy, but it is not life threatening.  Eggs and milk just upset his stomach.  I imagine this year he will do the egg challenge at the allergist to see if he is still allergic.  He eats pretty well, except vegetables.  I am not too worried as our other kids eventually ate them.  Stephen is still a mommy's boy.  It bothers Nate a little, but we know this phase will pass.  His language took off earlier this year.  He is in the stage of non-stop talking and asking questions.  Stephen potty-trained early and fast.  I don't think we can take any credit for that.  Ever since our China trip he has struggled sleeping thru the night.  The past couple weeks have improved, so hopefully that continues.  He still uses a pacifier in bed.  Taking away the pacifier is on our to do list in 2016.  None of our other kids used a pacifier, so I'm nervous about how poorly he will sleep when it is gone.

Stephen is adjusting to Lexi's presence.  Not being the youngest anymore and sharing Mom's attention was difficult for him.  Thankfully he and Lexi are playing together more and being silly.  Stephen has fun playing with Kai Peterson and it's nice that they can play outside without much supervision.  Stephen and Julia do some pretend play together and he loves attention from the older boys.

Stephen is our lovable little dude and we thank God for him!