A Birthday Letter to the Sweetest Soul I know

Oh my sweet, sweet boy! What a year it's been. It just doesn't seem like a whole year ago we were celebrating at your tractor themed party and it absolutely doesn't seem like 3 years ago you made me a mother. Time has flown by so fast, but somehow, at the same time, three years ago seems like a different life. This past year was kinda an overload for you. Just 2.5 short weeks after you turned 2, your life changed forever, even though, at the time, you didn't realize it. Life wanted to stop for mommy but you made sure that didn't happen. When you were born, when I held you at 4 in the morning, and we made that connection, I knew right then that I would love you and go to the ends of the planet for you. What I didn't know is how much you would help me. How much you would love me. How far you would go for me. How much you would heal me.

I promise to only to steal part of this letter to tell you thank you, to tell you how proud I am of you, to tell you how amazing you are, to tell you I love you more today, than I ever have. Kaleb, you actually are the reason I wake up every morning. You are the reason mommy gets out of bed every day. You are my world. You have shown me what real love is. You've dried so many of my tears with your crazy shenanigans, with your scrunchy smile and with the corner of your blankie. You've showed me that talking to Jesus can be just as simple as saying, "I need Jesus to make my sad go away." You've reached out and held my hand at night to remind me, even when I thought I didn't want you in my bed, you reminded me we were "best fwiends" and you "rweawwy need to sweep in Mommy's bed." Your ability to live in the moment reminds me that tomorrow isn't promised and I should be living in the hear and now, with you. You have a heart of gold. There is so much forgiveness in that little old soul, I'm amazed at it constantly. Many times mommy makes mommy-mistakes, but every time I apologize, your cute little blonde self just says, "dats okay, no do it again."

At 3 years old, you've already been through more than you should have. Mommy can't change the past but I can make sure your future is the best it can be. After the love and strength you have shown me, after all you have taught me, it's the least I can do. Thank you Kaleb William, thank you for being my son. Thank you for picking me.

So now that your mommy is a big ball of emotional mess, let me just continue on my proud-mommy bandwagon. You've changed SO much in this last year. Holy crap. You've got to be the most observant kid I know. Last July, Aunt Denise and I took you on a much needed beach trip. We stayed at a La Quinta that was literally right on the beach. You had loads of fun on that beach trip but the thing you remember the most is what the La Quinta Hotel sign looked like. Everywhere we go, even a year later, you're always pointing out all the La Quinta Hotels you can see from the road. You already know your way home from almost all the places we go to on a regular basis, like school, church, grannas, ect. If I make an unusual turn you're already pointing out, "dis not da road to Kawub's house". There is no tricking you what-so-ever! You started a new school this year and we both LOVE it! It was a little rocky in the beginning but thanks to awesome teachers and your new BFF, Sutton, you "rweawwy wike schoo." You've learned more than I thought possible, including how to count in Spanish and how to stand in line. Many, many crafts have been brought home, including my very first handmade Mother's Day present which included a picture of a cat. Mommy loved that. Your eating is still on the picky side but you've made leaps and bounds with it. I'm never sure what you will or won't like on each day. One day you love tostadas, the next day you "can't wike that." The most important thing though, we share our love for queso and guac. Many nights those two dips were the only thing that brought a smile to our bad day. Here are some facts you might want to know but they are more for mommy to remember.

You were potty trained by April 2014
You still can't pronounce the letter "L" and always replace it with a "W" (which btw, I happen to adore)
You love love love to annoy Molly and yes, 90% of the time, you're still calling her Bawlly...errr something like that. I guess it sounds more like Baw-wee.
You have my over-expressive eyebrows, no doubt.
Bless your little transportation-lovin' soul. You live and breathe transportation toys. Planes and Trains have taken over our home. And you can mimic the exact noise, each of them make.
You are well aware of what a selfie is.
You've been sleeping in my bed since about August of 2013. I don't see that changing anytime soon.
You are terrified of bugs.
You claim green as being "your color".
You're super OCD about a lot of things but mostly about getting your hands dirty. You get this from your dad, 100%
Even though you don't like to get your hands dirty, you love being outside. You are true to your little boy soul when it comes to being outdoors.
You are a music/dance lover. Have been since day 1. You get this from yo momma!
You don't have an artistic bone in your body. At least not when it comes to drawing or coloring. But you can glue like a boss.
You nicknamed yourself, "Kob" about a year ago and that's still what you say when you introduce yourself.
When I ask you what your whole name is, you say, "Kay-wub Amidon William Amidon".
You need me to sit in the bathroom with you when you poop so we can have conversations. Your dad did this and drove me crazy.
This was the first year you understood the concept of all the holidays and it was so much fun!
We spent the majority of the winter in the ER/doctors office. You had the flu and bronchitis multiple times. It was so rough. Mommy hates the winter.
You're very interested in the moon and clouds. You ask about something related to the sky almost every day.
You love working with Uncle Allen and Papaw on tractors in the shop. You always come home and say, "I need rest, I worked too hard."
You can count to 13 in Spanish but in English only to 10...then you skip to 17.
Woody and Buzz "White" Year seem to make your world go 'round.
Your current favorite foods are: queso, meatballs, bananas, yogurt, pizza, anything dipped in ranch, guac, chick fil a, hot dogs, and sweet tea.
Ironically, you refuse to eat anything with cheese on it because you "can't wike cheese". Mommy never ever makes the mistake of calling queso, cheese dip because clearly, that's not cheese.
You're still requiring a blankie. I have about 6 of the same blankie that I switch out every other day and you aren't fond of the "cwean bwankie", you want the dirty one.
Probably your favorite pasttime is spending time with your grandparents because they all pretty much spoil you with their undivided attention.