I love my time with Alela: I love newborns, I love breastfeeding, I love the tiny itty bitty cuteness, I love her! It is all going by way to fast. I want to press stop on the non-existent time button every single day. But I also know so many other exciting and fun times lie ahead. There is something beautiful about every age and phase. I loved and love exploring this with Isaya, who is now three years old. And having a new born in the house also made me realize how “easy” a three year old actually is. By this I mean in comparison to having a baby or a young toddler. So, if you are currently having a hard time with parenting – either because you are sleep deprived or your two year old is a bit of a handful, then you need to read this homage to a (my) three year old.

That Blessed Mom Life

I truly love mom life. I am one of those moms that uses the terms #blessed and #momlife in actual real life sentences. I love taking care of a newborn. But I also love having a three year old running around. Life with Isaya is so much fun. She is hilarious. She is enthusiastic. She is spirited. She is stubborn. She is energetic. She is smart. She is wonderful. She is everything a mom can ask for. But there are more reasons why life with a three year old is great. And that has to do with the fact that it all gets easier when they are three. Here is why.

A three year old…

• can tell you what is wrong. You don’t have to guess why and where there is discomfort, pain, anger or sadness. They can often even come up with a solution themselves!
• can understand a lot more. You can explain why certain things are not okay, possible, nice or appropriate. This helps a lot on a day to day basis!
• can do (most of) the undressing and dressing on its own, which makes it so much easier to get ready in the morning. As this means you have more time to get yourself ready as well a.k.a #makeuptime!
• can go to the bathroom by itself.
• can hold their pee for a while, so you can find a bathroom when you are on the go.
• can walk the stairs alone.
• can play independently for a longer period of time.
• usually sleeps through the night, which means you get more sleep too! Which means you get your brain back.
• starts to skip naps or stops napping all together, which opens your day up to more fun activities.
• loves arts & crafts, makes puzzles and plays a lot of games. I love that there is so much more you can do with a three year old. That variation is so much fun.

• loves to be read to and actually sits still through an entire story (or 1000 stories), so you can read all these fun books together.
• makes friends! This is so much fun!! It’s amazing to watch. And it also means I get to make mom friends, which is something I enjoy a lot [and never thought I would!].
• learns new words and skills every day, which is very exciting and funny.
• can wait. O my gosh, that is a game changer!
• can “help” you around the house or play independently while you clean/cook/fold laundry.
• gives you a 3 second “heads up” before they puke all over the bed, couch and/or you.
• can eat independently.
• is just more independent in general, but also still needs you. So you still get to be their everything, which is the best feeling in the world.
• is open to compromise.
• can be quite reasonable.
• is super funny. And also laughs at your lame jokes, which is #goals.
• the most precious gift a mother can ask for.