My Littlest Little Guy

Dear Mason,

I've been putting this off for quite some time. What can I say? You keep me busy. I've been trying to think of exactly how to capture you at this age. How do I describe the "no!" that is uniquely yours? How do I describe the look on your face (and mine for that matter) when you try to pour milk in your cereal bowl? How can I tell you about the excited dance you do when we go for a ride? How can I tell you about what it's like to try to take you grocery shopping (not my idea of fun, if you're wondering)? How can I tell you about all the ways you make us laugh? It's just not possible!

You started out as such a tiny little baby, and now you're growing into such a handsome little guy. I can hardly believe that you're 3 now. You can't believe it either because when someone asks you how old you are, you still say 2 at first while you're holding up all your fingers.

You absolutley love to be outside. You try to follow my rule of "no shirt, no shorts, no shoes... no sunshine" but sometimes you just can't wait. You don't mind having the sun shine where it, well.... shouldn't. Sometimes you bend the rules a smidgeon and head outside wearing Dylan's shirt, Logan's shorts, and Daddy's shoes. I need to be more specific with my rule making, don't I?

You've recently taken it upon yourself to be our Bathroom Attendant. You follow us into the bathroom, grab your little step stool and sit down right next to us. You'll find us a magazine (even if it's only a short visit) and turn the pages for us when you think we should be done. Courtesy flushes are your specialty. Thanks for keeping us company, little buddy. We can't stand to be away from you for too long.

You love to help us around the house. You love to help unload the dishwasher and mop the kitchen floor. You're always up for vacuuming, or anything that involves a spray bottle. It's like Christmas every week when Daddy mows the lawn and you get to hitch a ride with him. And when he breaks out the tiller too? Oh, it's like heaven on earth. Your face was probably sore from smiling so much.

You're such a good brother. You call Dylan "Dilla" and somehow Logan turned into "Nicka". You can never plant enough kisses on Jocey. I love getting kisses from you too. You grab my face with both hands and like to look right into my eyes. If the smooch isn't juicy enough, you give me another one. You're just yummy. Oh, and no girlfriends until you're 27.

Mason, we're so proud of the progress you've made with your speech. You're still not talking a whole lot, but you've come such a long way. You love to watch Signing Time everyday, and you're learning so much. I love it when things click for you. The other day Daddy was cooking breakfast and your eyes lit up because you knew the sign for "cook". Smarty pants. I can't believe you get to start preschool soon!

We love you so much, Mason!