G-a-r-r-e-t-t

First bath...first smile...first tooth...first step...first haircut...first word...first trip to the zoo...

The first few years of our lives are full of many, well, "firsts".  Most of them are celebrated in one way or another, privately or publicly.  (We have yet to take Garrett to the ER for the first time, but trust me, there won't be any celebrating going on if that happens.)  Some firsts we have time to prepare for, and others sneak up on us when there's no camera within reach to capture them.

Our children's firsts become somewhat scarce after they've had two or three birthdays.  That doesn't mean there's little to look forward to, however.  While I occasionally find myself wishing my preschooler (What?  When did that happen?!) could be a sack-o'-potatoes-sized baby again, he says something or does something or creates something that brings me right back to this moment, this time in his life that will go by just as quickly as (or quicker than) his first three years have gone.

These thoughts are brought to you by...

...this, Garrett's latest first.

Happy 110th birthday, Dr. Seuss!

Yesterday, Garrett and I joined several other kids and parents at our local library to celebrate what would have been Dr. Seuss' 110th birthday. 

Garrett & Thing 1/Thing 2

The party began with the children's librarian, Cara, reading "Mr. Brown Can Moo!  Can You?" to everyone.  A puppet show followed, and then we made our own puppet, pieced together some giant puzzles on the floor, tried to pin The Hat on The Cat, and enjoyed some cookies and punch.  (And what outing with a 3-year-old would be complete without that 3-year-old attempting to open the emergency exit while his mother colored and cut out the parts for the puppet he wanted to make?)

My earliest memories of Dr. Seuss involved the tradition in our family of reading "How The Grinch Stole Christmas!" at Christmas time and the copy my Grandparents Horton had of...wait for it..."Horton Hears A Who!".  Fast forward to 2010 when some of my wonderful friends threw me a Dr. Seuss-themed baby shower.  My friend, Shelby, sent me "Oh, Baby, the Places You'll Go!" to read to my pregnant belly, and I passed it along to my cousin, Alice, to ready to her pregnant belly.  Garrett's book collection includes several board books that I intend to hang onto and read to his children some day.  There are still so many that we haven't discovered yet! 

And just for fun...

If you were one of Dr. Seuss' characters, which one would you be?