And our little girl turns THREE!

First baby made three, now she's turned three!!!  And certainly not a baby anymore.  Really more like 3 going on 13- whew!  It has been quite a year.  We still love her beyond words, of course, but that little streak of feistyness that we caught glimpses of in her 2nd year sure developed full-blown this past year!  It's amazing how the same little person can at one moment bring so much joy, then in the next moment so much frustration...

But, we shall focus on the joyous moments for now, as we celebrated this little lady who is both a bit of a fire cracker, and a lot of sunshine :) Below are some pics from the birthday party and the actual birthday.

Our sweet girl had her big party a little early this year as Nana & Pop-Pop were up to both celebrate her and support her mama with my recital on the 14th.  Shortly after they arrived that Saturday, Maelee was ready to tear into one of the big gifts...

A castle!

She loved it :)

Then, later that afternoon, we headed to the beautiful Bryant Park in midtown to celebrate NYC style with several of her closest friends. Including the many animals of the carousel...

Animals on poles so why not snacks on sticks?!

Having a blast

Make a wish!

With pals Chloe & Marissa

And pals Peyton & Perri

Cupcakes and carousel rides- such a fun time celebrating our girl!

Slideshow of the birthday party:

Enjoying the delicious cupcake cake-pop favor afterward

Special pancakes made together with daddy on the birthday morning

Smitten with her "Doraemon" kitty purse from Uncle Dan in Japan!

Enjoying mini cupcake snacks at her "class" with more good pals

(yes, sporting a birthday crown!)

Loving her new put-together-take-apart airplane from Aunt Kim!

Excited for the new kitchen!

Ending the day with pizza and cupcakes with close friends - the cupcakes barely made the stroller ride! :)

But Maelee didn't mind :)

 Great end to a great day!

And finally, admiring her new Tahitian black pearl form Mee-Maw & Grandpa's recent trip

Slideshow of more 3rd birthday fun:

All in all, I think our girl enjoyed the celebrations! A "year in review" post to come eventually :)