Goodbye 2... Hello 3 Years Old!

Isn't it amazing how fast kids grow? Years seem to fly by. Since this is Sariah's last birthday as a "only child," we wanted to spend some extra time with her. Doug took Monday & Tuesday off of work so we could have some family time.

First we celebrated Sariah's last day being 2. Mondays we have story time in the morning anyway, so we got up and went over to Pancake Cafe for breakfast. Sariah enjoyed the whip cream, powder sugar & strawberries off her Micky Cake, but she only had a couple of bites of actual pancake. Daddy attended story time with her while Mommy spent some time talking with the other moms. They made these cool owl masks.
After lunch, we went over to the cheap theatre to see Pixar's Up. It was the first time Sariah's been in a movie theatre (not counting the time Doug and I took her with us to see a movie when she was a baby, & she slept through it.) She did really good! She was, admittedly, more interested in the projector than the movie, but she watched most of it. We shared a huge bucket of popcorn.
I didn't have high expectations for the movie, since I didn't really know much about it, but I loved it! I seriously laughed & cried several times, and I think it'll rank as one of my more favorite Pixar movies. I've already bought it for Sariah's Christmas stocking.
We were all exhausted by Monday evening, so Sariah helped me bake her cake, we had a short FHE & headed to bed.

Tuesday my baby turned 3! As soon as she got up, she was asking for cake for breakfast. She had been anticipating birthday cake for weeks. I'm pretty sure it was the most exciting part for her. I did get her to eat a bowl of chex & milk instead of cake, only because we hadn't decorated it. After breakfast we did just that. I kind of get stressed out when I'm decorating a cake, and it was awkward having an audience, but I think it turned out okay.

After the cake was decorated, we headed out to the Children's Museum. Doug and I had never been to a Children's Museum before, so I'm not sure what we expected. Sariah had a great time, though! Best off, admission was free that day, so we didn't have to pay the $15 I though we would (I did make a donation though.) We kind of followed Sariah's lead through the museum & let her do her thing. We took at least 100 pictures, and they're all posted on my facebook if you want to see them. (If we're not facebook friends & you'd like to be, let me know, my security settings are super high, so I'd probably have to find you.)
Doug insisted on dressing Sariah up at almost every station. She enjoyed it, so it was okay.
She actually built this brick "arch" thing by herself, I was pretty impressed.

This "boat" was called the dream machine & I think it was Sariah's favorite spot, we spent a lot of time here.
The kids could "fish" off the side. She got pretty good at it!
Look, its Doug the dinosaur!
Here you could pretend to milk cows, I think Sariah would make a pretty cute cow milker.

It was well worth the trip, even if the museum is downtown, & I hate downtown! After the museum, we headed home, had lunch (Sariah finally got a small bit of cake with her lunch.) Then we opened presents. Sariah got a pretty good haul again this year.
A book from Grandma Diana & Poppee James.
Sariah loved this outfit from Grandpa Steve & Jackie.
She also played her Candy Land game from Doug's parents afterwards, but I hear from Daddy that she cheated a little. She really loves the My Little Pony that Grandma bought her, too. She used the money that her Great-Grandparents gave her to buy 2 more today. She likes to brush their hair. Ponies also travel well to scary places like the doctor's office.
Later that evening we went out to Outback Steakhouse for birthday dinner since we had a coupon for a free Awesome Blossom. Sariah enjoyed some birthday Mac & Cheese. Then we headed home after a long day. Here she is in her new Curious George pajamas that I made her. The pajamas are huge on her, but she can grow into them.
We were exhausted after several days of family fun, but it was totally worth it. I love having a 3 year old! She's been so much fun & so good today at both my & her doctor's appointment. In case you're wondering, she 30 lbs & 35 inches. She's perfect & healthy in every way. We are looking forward to her portraits tomorrow! Happy Birthday big girl!