Kalianna at Three

My last post got too long, so I decided to make this separate. I wanted to write about Kalianna at age 3, so I have it to remember. Kalianna does not stop talking! She pretends to be shy once in awhile, but most of the time she is super outgoing and friendly. She loves to ask people their names. She is also really good at giving a play-by-play of her day. Whether anyone is in the same room or not, she is always talking. She also has an amazing vocabulary. This isn't just because I'm her mom and think she's brilliant, people are constantly impressed with how well she speaks and how well she can hold a conversation with an adult. She also has a ridiculously amazing memory. We decided to put this to good use and started teaching her the articles of faith a few months ago. She has the first three completely memorized, and is working on the fourth. She learns things very quickly and never forgets anything that she is taught.

Kalianna loves to read! I'm sure this helps with her awesome vocabulary. She just loves books and can sit and absorb story after story for as long as the reader is willing. A few weeks ago we made a trip to the library for the first time and she was in heaven! I practically had to drag her away when it was time to go. Just a week after our visit, I was changing Maggie's diaper and she sat down on the floor and read one of her library books aloud to us. Word for word. Then later, when I was reading another one of them to her, I accidentally skipped a sentence and she called me out on it. "No Mommy, you forgot..." I told you her memory was amazing! It's like that with almost all of the books we own. She has them memorized and knows if you miss something. She also frequently reads to herself from memory.

She is very rambunctious (which 3-year-old isn't?) and is super active. She wants to play outside all the time! She has become a lot more interested in movies the last six months or so, but she still will rarely sit through an entire movie. She watches for maybe 30 minutes or so, and then starts to play while the movie continues. Her favorite movies right now are Lady and the Tramp, 101 Dalmatians, and Beethoven (do you see a pattern?). She is obsessed with dogs! She loves all animals, but is especially enthralled with dogs. She loves putting leashes on them or putting them in cages. I think she got this from watching Lady and the Tramp. And she always wants to take the dogs for a walk, or go to the pet store on Saturdays when they have all the dogs there for adoption. One of her chores is to feed the dogs every morning and evening. She loves it! We've actually used it as a consequence a couple times. If you can't do this, then you don't get to feed the dogs. It's become a privilege more than a chore.

She also has become very into friends lately. She always wants a friend over to play with! From the moment she wakes up until bedtime. Thankfully her best buddy lives next door! She is super social and always wants to be playing with other kids.

She is still my super good helper. She always wants to help people with everything! (which can be a problem when her friend is going potty and she wants to go in to "help" him. But that's another story) She helps around the house with whatever I'm doing, and she especially wants to help with Magdalyn. She wants to feed her and give her a bottle and hold her. Unfortunately, Maggie is getting pretty big and can do most things for herself.

Kalianna is still a great big sister, most of the time. She tries really hard! Sometimes it's hard to share, when Maggie is going for a favorite toy, but she is quick to give kisses and find a new toy if her sister starts crying.

She is starting to go potty completely by herself. She will get me when she's done to help wash her hands, since she can't turn the water on and off. And she loves to dress herself (she's been doing this for awhile). But she won't wear something unless she has picked it out. And if she doesn't like an item of clothing, she won't wear it. She is very picky about clothes. She still has some clothes she got for Christmas that she has never worn because she didn't pick them out and they aren't her style. Funny girl! Kalianna mostly wears dresses. She absolutely loves dresses and dressing up! She loves to come in the bathroom and do her makeup (lip gloss) with me. She's not a big fan of having her hair done, but she loves looking pretty. And she loves when Mommy shares some perfume with her.

Kalianna always makes us laugh! She loves being the center of attention and she will do anything to make people smile and laugh. She loves it! She is such a perfect combination of girly-girl and tom-boy. She loves the color pink and she absolutely loves to wear dresses (especially big ones that twirl when she spins), but she also loves to play outside and can hold her own when it comes to rough-housing with the boys.

Happy Birthday to my sweet Kalianna! The last three years have been the best of my life and I look forward to many more adventures to come!