Category:
Where to begin? I am amazed by you every day. In just the last week it seems as if you’ve grown by leaps and bounds and I’m so amazingly happy to see it … and yet, it breaks my heart knowing that you’re growing up so fast.
At your birthday party one of your friend’s mom’s asked me if the time had just flown by. It has. I remember the day you were born so vividly. I remember being so nervous running up and down the stairs to pack up the car that I almost tripped. I remember mommy wanting to wait and see if the contractions would stop. I remember complaining about how my back was killing me and getting death stares from mommy and Aunt Melanie as mommy was in labor. I remember how quickly you were born.
I remember it all as if it just happened and then I look and see this person, an honest to God person, standing in front of me. A person that walks and talks and asks questions and is starting to understand consequences. A little person that likes to read and hike and play with her doll house. You’re only three and you’re all ready so grown up!
When I think about how fast you’re growing up, I stop and remind myself to enjoy the journey that you’re on and that I get to participate in for a while. Because although you’re going to grow up way faster than I’d like, I’m going to enjoy the ride as much as I can.
I love you with all of my heart. Happy Birthday!
Love,
Daddy
What a month! Four baseball games and a trip to the fair. We’ve also gone from what was going to be the most kick-butt science party ever to a Cinderella inspired party. Oh well … I guess I can have a science party instead.
One of my favorite things we did this month was “Abby’s Big Show“. You’re quite the performer when no one is watching. It’s a good thing I have a video camera and know how to be discrete with it.
Mostly this month has been a lot of doing stuff outdoors while the weather’s still nice. I’m amazed when we sit down and eat dinner and I look across the table and see you sitting there, eating your dinner (sometimes anyway) with a spoon and fork just like a big girl. I’m not ready for you to be 3 just yet, and I’ve still got a couple of weeks until it’s official, but you’re just such a big girl. And you’re just too cool to hang out with. Although I don’t really like it when you tell me “No way!” it also makes me laugh a little inside because it’s just so YOU. You can be such a little firecracker and I adore every minute of it … even when it exasperates me.
I love you very much,
Daddy
I have no idea where to start with this letter. It’s the first letter of the new year, and the first letter of the new administration. While I won’t talk politics here, as it isn’t the right place (this blog is about YOU after all) I can’t not talk about the historic nature of what is going on right now.
Nearly 2 million people showed up to watch Barack Obama be sworn in as the 44th president of the United States and countless millions of people watched it from around the world. I watched it from a classroom at work with my colleagues on an old 19 inch CRT TV that got it’s signal via antenna. The picture was a little grainy, and the sound never really seemed to sync up with the image. You watched it at home with Mommy and even colored a picture to commemorate the event.
I hope that the world you will grow up in will be better because of this election. I hope that the collective we of the country have made a good choice for you (and children like you). I hope our family is better off in 4 years than we are today. I hope for many these and many other things, but I also realize that hope isn’t enough. If I want you to grow up in a better world I need to help make it a better place. I don’t know how I’m going to do that, but I’m going to try. Every day.
I love you,
Daddy
We’re well through most of your third holiday season, and this one has been my favorite to date. You are so much more aware of what’s going on, and the people that are visiting you and that you’re visiting. It’s been so freaking cool to see how you played with Taytum and Sisi and Cassaday during Christmas number 1 and how much fun you’ve had with everything.
My favorite part about the holiday season has been the lights. I’ve written before about how cool it is to go out and look at lights with you, but I don’t know that I can adequetly describe how cool it really is. The joy and excitement you get out of finding a penguin, or Santa Clown is so undeniably pure. You like the lights for their own sake, and that’s why going and looking at them with you is so awesome. It doesn’t matter that we’ve seen the same Santa on a motor cycle at 15 different houses, or that one down the street 15 times, you LOVE it the same each and every time, and that is why I am having so much fun with you this year.
I think I’m liking this holiday season because it will be the first one that you might remember, which means that the things we do now we’ll be able to talk about later, and I’m really excited about being able to do that.
On a non-holiday related note, you’ve gotten SO good at telling me about your day when I get home from work at night. It’s so much fun to hear you tell your stories and the excitement that you have while telling them. You’re so animated. It’s a riot!
Love you very much,
Daddy
What an eventful month it’s been. I know, I say that at the beginning of every letter, but I think it’s true!. The biggest thing, I think, is your transition from your ‘broken bed’ to a big girl bed, with big girl bedding (that you’ve already managed to color on!). We also have new neighbors that have a little girl your age and you two play really well in the back yard. I’ve only been able to see it once, but it was a lot of fun to watch.
With the introduction of the big girl bed you’ve taken to not sleeping through the night, although this is getting better (last night you didn’t wake up at all!). Mostly it involves you yelling out ‘Daddy!’ and waiting for me to come in and check on you. Sometimes you just need to be tucked in again, sometimes you need some water. Sometimes you just wrap your little arms around my neck and try to get me to lay in bed with you. I’m pretty tired (it is the middle of the night after all), so I’ll lay next to you for a couple of minutes while you hang on as tight as you can, afraid that I’m going to leave and never return.
Over the last month it seems like you’ve really taken to reading. You like to have ‘Good Night Moon’ read to you and ‘Who stole the cookie from the cookie jar’. There is also this book called “Make Van Gogh’s bed” with different impressionist paintings and little rhymes for each one. It’s really cute to watch you read it, and I hope to have some video of it soon!
Our friend Erin left for home in NYC this month, and although you don’t seem to know she’s gone, you really did have fun with her when she was out here. I’m really worried about the next time we want to leave the door open to let the ‘Air in’ and you think that Erin is coming over.
The other big news was that I started my new job this month. Now, this is only related to ‘us’ in that I now have a more rigid schedule so I don’t make it home until about 5:30 (which is up to an hour later than I used to). So, that is hard to get used to, but I’m really enjoying the time that we do have together, reading books, and playing.
See, it was an exciting month!
Love you with all my heard,
Daddy
