Dear Anna,
You turned three today and I’m still in shock. As I walked into your room this morning to
start your morning routine, it hit me hard that this time three years ago, I
was still very pregnant. You were born
in the evening after a long labor (worth it, but LONG) and needed help with
every facet of life right after birth, but today you’re a pre-schooler with
very independent ideas about life and how you’re going to live it.
You’re getting so grown up, figuratively and literally; you’re TALL and
tower over most of your classmates and skipped right over 3T summer clothes and
went straight into 4T. You’re also
skinny, so although the length is usually spot-on, we’re stuck with leggings
and bike shorts, and I’ll be interested to see how your percentiles shake out
at your three-year well-check next week.
Speaking of clothing, you’ve developed very specific parameters for what
you want to wear, and what you don’t, and you’re not afraid to tell us, namely me
as I’m the one that helps you get dressed each day. What’s different now is that you can tell me
why, and although it doesn’t always makes sense to me, you have a plan. You love anything that makes you feel like a
princess and it’s even better if there’s writing about being a princess or a
tiara on the shirt. Except when it’s
laundry day and that shirt isn’t clean.
Then there’s a lot of bartering that takes place.
It’s so much fun to have conversations with you and you’re vocabulary
and ability to rationalize are growing and changing each day. Just this past weekend we walked past a dog
that had a jacket on; you thought about it for a few minutes, and then
proceeded to tell your Dad and I that “dogs don’t need coats, they are dogs,
only people need coats, and it’s silly that the dog back there was wearing a
coat.” 100% agree, sister. And, we were all glad we were out of ear shot
of that dog and its owner. You’d told us
at dinner before that encounter that you “really like pink cupcakes because they
tickle my tummy.” You’re also in a phase
where you are kind of asking permission, but also asking if you “can” do
something before you do it, “can I go in the living room and play?” I love it and know that you’ll be out of it
just as soon as I type it out. You can
also reason with that conversation and have learned about red meaning stop and
green meaning go when it comes to stoplights.
We have quite the conversation around that each day and I was
reprimanded for several minutes when I drove through a yellow light after your
birthday party. Don’t worry, I’ll always
remember that “yellow means that you slow down, Mommy!”
Speaking of cupcakes, we’ve been celebrating your birthday since last
Saturday when we held your first party with friends. I reserved a local park shelter and tried to
keep it casual and easy, and it was, for the most part, once the 40+ attendees
arrived, thunderstorms cleared out, and everyone was running around and
playing. It was the first time you’d
seen any of your friends outside of school and everyone was a little shy at
first, but it wasn’t long before you were running around and having a
ball. We also had several children from
the neighbourhood, some other friends, and all of your family there. You were so happy that my heart almost burst,
it was the perfect party for you. You’re
at an age where you are really interacting with friends when you play and we
say that during a playdate you had with your friend Ella a few weeks ago. I orchestrated several activities including
cookie decorating, a picnic lunch, trip to the lake and hopscotch, but you
ladies took my lead and ran with it.
Talking to each other, encouraging, hugging, and there was a lot of
giggling.
Today is your birthday and I took the day off work so that we could
have a special celebration. We started
by heading to dance class at school, went for a haircut (and obligatory cookie
afterwards), stopped by the nail salon for your first manicure, ate a special
lunch at home, and then went to see Frozen in the movie theater. I don’t know who was happier, me or you. We ended the day with dinner at Red Robin, where they sang to you, and then headed home to open presents.
You’re still shy, but are getting braver and love being the center of
attention when it involves your birthday or an audience that you know. You loved being sung to at dinner the night
before your party at Schoolhouse Restaurant, at your party, at home afterwards
when opening presents, all day on your actual birthday. And, you really came out of your shell when your
Paw Paw gave you a dancing chicken, you’d turn that little guy on and dance
your heart out for everyone still at our house, it was hilarious, even if the
song he played made you want to pull your hair out after the tenth time.
I still can’t believe that three years ago I was holding you in my
arms, swaddled and comfy, with no idea what my life was going to be like. In a good way, of course. You've changed everything about how I live, but you've also given me the biggest reason to live and keep my life in a
perspective that I didn't ever know existed.
You’re my daughter, my best friend, one of my greatest loves, and the
reason that nothing much else matters in this world if we are happy and
healthy as a family. On a day that’s
meant for making you feel special, I hope you know how special I feel each day
just to be your Mother.
Love,
Mom
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