Amori is 3!

she's 3 - can you believe it? i can't.

i still manage to say "two and a half" when strangers ask me how old she is.

this year's theme was the Paper Bag Princess - one of her favorite books by Robert Munsch. we saw the play earlier this year and she loved it even more. i personally like it since it's not the Disney princess happily-ever-after type, more if i-am-a-kickass-princess-and-i-don't-need-a-boy-to-live-happily-ever-after. LOL

we had it in a community center so the kids can have a lot of room to play... and clean up would be easier. much like her first birthday, we made her invitations, loot bags, and cake carry the theme.



luck was on my side when i found Cococake - an online cupcake store that made pretty fondant cakes too. i contacted Lyndsey the cupcake lady and asked her to make an 8" chocolate cake for Amori.





not only was it pretty, it was moist, not too sweet, and 100% edible. (we had a fondant cake at our wedding but the fondant wasn't soft and chewy like amori's cake.) it was well worth the splurge!

everyone went home with happy tummies - aldo and i made most of the spread and it was well worth the hard work... if we were in manila, we'd have cooks, yayas, and drivers dividing the tasks! LOL




at the end of the day, the birthday girl was one happy camper. she took home all her presents, tried them on or played with them, and ate a big chunk of the dragon. suffice to say, she lived happily ever after, too.




*******

Amori, at 3:

- has been in the preschool class of her montessori daycare since June 1. she loves it! she now talks like her 4-year old buddies... she's got a posse of little girls, and gets excited when they see each other at the daycare doors.

- talks in complete sentences and asks a lot more "why" questions. good thing her papa has the patience to explain things like why her run bike has no pedals.

- loves her coloring markers, my homemade play clay, her dollies, and "reading" her books (more like pretending to read and telling me a made-up story).

- knows how to sing "Oh Canada" (the canadian national anthem). she once asked me to sing with her and i said "but i'm not canadian yet, so i don't know the words!"... to which she gave me quite a puzzled look. but she sang it anyway. she even corrects her grandpa when he sings it wrong. LOL

- can ride a normal bike, and balance/run with her run bike. she's not afraid to fall either. she picks herself up and tries again.

- falls asleep on her own.. no rocking, pretend-sleeping, or crying... finally!

AND LAST BUT NOT LEAST...

- will be a big sister in early December! she is as excited as we are, and i'm pretty confident (or naive) that it will be an easy transition since she never gets jealous when i hold another person's baby. she kisses my tummy goodnight, and offers her baby sister/brother Goldfish crackers when she has a snack.