Harper's 3rd Birthday Interview

Today is Harper's big day, as of 5:15 a.m., but the celebration has been going on for about 24 hours, now. It is my personal opinion that birthdays for kids are such a big deal - especially once they 'get' it - that there's no way all the fun can/should be packed into one day. Also, there's the matter of nap time. An entire 2 or 3 hours of precious hooting/hollering time lost to sleep. That will not do.

So we decorated a vanilla cake last night and tonight we'll have a chocolate.

Haters gonna hate.

Anyway, I love the interview idea. I'm going to ask the same questions every year on her birthday. However, she was particularly amenable yesterday and anyone with a 2/3 y/o knows you don't scoff at a good toddler mood. . .

Me:  Harper, since tomorrow is your birthday, I'm going to interview you.

Harper: Huh? Surprise!

How old are you? I'm two years old.

Right. Tomorrow, you'll be three years old.

Yeah. I'm three years old.

Who is your best friend? I don't know. 

What is your favorite thing to do? Nope. Not yet.

What's your favorite color? Purple...Pink!

What's your favorite food? Pink cake!

What is your favorite thing to do with your family? 1,2,3 families! Harper counts them all! ((ok..))

What is your favorite toy? Henry's squishy ball.

What do you want to be when you grow up? dinosaur hunter

What makes you happy? smiling

What makes you sad? happy

What is your favorite TV show? Bubble Guppies

What is your favorite book? 1 color for A,B,C Books or big heavy blue book (Berenstain Bears compilation) I have no idea about the former. I'm pretty sure it means coloring books with words. ..but these are totally not her favorite. Berenstain, yes. Huge fav.

((pause for first lengthy potty emergency/disaster..the details of which I do not care to retain))

Continued bath-side:

What do you like to learn about? Uhh.. Harper doesn't know. Pictures. Mommy, find the missing pictures to go in the hat tree. ((?))

What is the best part of your birthday? Pink cake!! Sooo ("so" is her new conjunction of choice and begins almost every sentence with it)...next, we decorate a crown!

Where do you like to go? The car!! 

             Where do you like to go in the car? The red light stops the car. Daddy in the car! Let's go get 
him!

What is your favorite treat? Chocolate!

What do you think about at night before you fall asleep? Bed.

What famous person would you like to meet? Grandma!

What do you want for your birthday? Candles and some eggs!

What's your favorite thing about your birthday? Huh. The cake.

Momma, more questions?


Before I can think of one. . . .

BONUS ALERT.

Harper begins making up her own. I type furiously.

What do in car? Mommy, Henry, Daddy, Harper.

What's Harper's brother's name? Henry!

Are you a boy or a girl? Girl! I'm a girl, Mom!

What does Harper do? Spinning in a pink dress.

What's the best color? Pink. 


Happy Birthday, sweet girl.

Happy Birthday, Momma!

I've heard just about enough.

This camel's back is getting weak. 

In three weeks, we're moving back to our hometown. 

I am a whirling dervish of packing and sorting and throwing away the last four years of our life. 

I can not wait to get back to Fayetteville, North Carolina.

Did you just raise an eyebrow?

It is home to Fort Bragg - you know.. where the men and women who protect your freedom work and train and live and have families.  You may have heard of it. 

You may have a story of a night you spent there. 

And if you did, or your grandma's cat's hamster's turtle's llama spent a night there, as sure as you have a mouth to spew it from, I'm sure you have an opinion.

But what, on Earth, makes you think it's a good idea to insult the city where I was born? Where my family, and my husband's family, have chosen to live for generations?

Maybe it would be a better idea for you to ask me about it, instead. 

And another thing:

Those of you who are from Fayetteville and moved off someplace and have gotten too big for your britches and run it down every chance you get? ..You're from there, too. For shame.