Happy Third Birthday, Sweet Joshy-Boy

"I'm 3, and my clothes still fit me!"

That's what Joshua told his brother William on his birthday morning. Don't you just wonder what runs through a little one's head sometimes? How are they making sense of the world around them?

So sweet.

After many references to pirates in the past few months--we finally saw the Pirates of the Caribbean movies and Josh has watched some Dora the Explorer and Backyardigans with a pirate theme--we decided on a pirate birthday party. It was lots of fun to plan!



Josh went over to Grandma's house to spend a few days this summer. He and Grandma made a pirate flag to hang at the birthday party. "Aaaarrrrggggghhhhh!"



Here are some of the party people getting ready for the Treasure Hunt. We usually have a Fourth of July treasure hunt at our house, but this year it was too wet. We decided to save it for Joshua's birthday--which worked out just right after deciding to do the pirate theme.
Party People from right to left: Uncle Brian (Paul's brother), Papa B and Grandma Gilda (my dad and his wife), and Grandpa Atkinson (Paul's dad).



Now the search begins...
Grandma (Judy) and I looked on as the kids followed the picture clues to the treasure.



Aaahhh! Treasure! GG (Paul's grandma) and Marilyn (Judy's cousin) look on as the kids divide out their booty! If you ask me, the chocolate coins and the little Hershey gold bars were the most valuable. I think Josh liked the paper money and the bubbles.



Then it's time for the presents!



And some money to spend all on his own...



And last, but not least, cake time. Josh was so tired by this time that he ate just a little ice cream but no cake.




Joshua got his first "big boy bike" this year. It's a Tonka construction bike that we found at Wal-Mart. He was so excited! He had a tough time learning to pedal--he's always ridden everything by walking his feet along.



Here he is sitting at the new school desk that Grandma and Grandpa gave him. He loves this desk--he sits at it all the time. He keeps all of his school supplies in it and does his "schoolwork" there.



I love birthdays! Not just because of all the excitement in planning and then the festivities the day of, but because it reminds me what a blessing that person is. Joshua wanted to hear stories of the day he was born. He was an emergency C-section because of a prolapsed cord. We talked about how quickly he was born and how many people helped to see that he was born safely. Paul and I gave Joshua the Bible verse Joshua 1:9 as he was being examined and cleaned up a little.

"Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go."