The Van Wart Family: Finn turns T H R E E!

My baby is three! I don't know how I feel about time... did the time go by quickly? Yes. Does it feel like he's always been here? Yes. Time flew... it didn't fly... I don't know.

What I do know is I don't have a baby anymore. I haven't NOT had a baby or very young toddler in 10 years. This is strange. It's bittersweet everyday. I can't see itty bitty pictures without just wanting to melt, and at the same time, this new season for our family is super sweet.

So. This guy.

Finn is just awesome. He is so fun, so funny, so sweet, so stubborn... we eat this kid up. I think he has some typical youngest child qualities... he is a HAM. If one of his brothers thinks what he is doing is funny, it fuels his fire! He LOVES to make them laugh. Jack especially thinks everything Finn does and says is HILARIOUS. Once Jack starts laughing, we all start laughing, and then you have 5 people sitting around giving all their attention to a 3 year old.

Does Finn get a lot of attention? You could say that.

He's developed quite the relationship with his big sis, Bella. Those two. They love each other, she tries to baby him, he wants her when he's in trouble... you get the picture. It's a work in progress, but we are teaching Bella what her sister role is and what it ISN'T. 😊

Finn is very independent though. He is capable of A LOT, and I think this comes from him constantly trying to keep up with his older brothers. Where they go, he wants to go. He will give it his best shot to not be left out of anything! He is very verbal, runs and climbs beyond his age, and is one tough cookie. If crying means missing out, he can brush off a boo-boo pretty quickly. 😉

He is SUPER sweet... full of hugs and kisses almost anytime you ask for them. When I say, "I love you, Finn" he always replies, "I love you too, Mom." It melts me. And then he just smiles at you until you run over to him and squeeze and kiss him.

He is also... wait for it... strong-willed! We went through a pretty rough six month patch with him where he found his will and decided to brow beat us with it. 😏 We had some pretty epic 'battles of the wills'... they were exhausting. It's interesting though... because he is our 4th child, and because we have some experience with strong willed children (cough Bella cough), I was not intimidated by his fiercely strong will. That's not to say, it wasn't hard to train him during this period. But I knew what to do and how to be consistent with him. Our battles were long and exhausting, but I remained calm knowing that I would win. I had to win. And by win, I mean, I would patiently hold my ground until he gave up his fit and obeyed.

He is SO much better. He's older and wiser knowing exactly what to expect if he decides to challenge us with his strong will. The strong-willed child is such a delicate little thing... be brave and tough and be a leader.... also, obey me always! 😀

We love this little guy so much. Some of his favorite things are his family, dinosaurs, waffles, cheeseburgers, swimming, cousins, sword fighting, and jumping on the trampoline.