she's 3

and hilarious.
and smart.
and beautiful.
and spunky.
and sweet.
and difficult.
and passionate.
and determined.
and one.of.a.kind.

oh my goodness do we ever love her!
our biggest surprise that we had no clue we needed.
3 years ago today we welcomed ayla into this world.
8lb 12 oz of dark-haired spunk.
i could see it in her eyes from day one.
they just sparkled.

she was a biter.
she was a hitter.
she was a screamer.
never one to be "redirected".
she challenged our parenting from about 6 months on.
she was not about to let us believe we had it figured out.
i remember at one point paul looked at me and said, "i think we really need to get help. we have no idea how to handle this."
and it was true.
it is still true.

today she is quick to get angry, but even quicker to forgive and forget.
she's been known to say, "mommy, you're mean."
and literally 10 seconds later follow with, "mommy, i love you."
she still leaves me baffled on a daily basis. :)
we love that about her.

so today she is three and my heart nearly bursts everytime i look at her or squeeze her or hear her throw out something witty.
she's been "2 1/2" since about november 20, 2009.
she's been waiting for this day for months.
we cannot wait to celebrate ayla.
all that she is and all that she's becoming.

we love you ayla with everything that we are.
we pray that god continues to reveal himself to us in new and different ways through you.
you are our surprise blessing and we cannot imagine life without you.
happy birthday ayla lyn. happy happy birthday.
you are three.
finally. :)

today i interviewed ayla.
i will leave you with her responses.
(she might be the only 3 year-old i've ever known who genuinely gave appropriate responses. hysterical.)

favorite:
color: pink
food: "mac-n-cheese"
book: chicka chicka boom boom
drink: nilk
game: dora memory
sports team: hawkeyes!! (yes, we fully believe in brainwashing)
thing to do outdoors: camp and make marshmallows
animal: puppies
candy: m-n-ms
cartoon: analise (barbie as the princess and the pauper)
thing to do with mom: pack (oh my...we need to get this move FINISHED)
thing to do with dad: drive and play outside
thing to do with brigg: play
thing to do with lani: play
thing to do with willow: pet her
song: butterflies fly away (yes...as in miley cyrus...party in the usa)

what do you want for your birthday? presents and a trampoline
how old are you? 2 1/2
how old is mom? 3 (ok...not ALL answers were appropriate)
who is your best friend? noah and evan (they lived next to us for 4 wks before we moved out of oakland house. weird!)
if you could go on vacation anywhere, where would you go? church

sweet, funny, energetic ayla...we love you.