You turned 5 yesterday. 5!
It was a day filled with celebration but it also made me sad because you are growing up. Soon you’ll be walking through the doors to your Kindergarten class. Bye, bye preschool. Hello, independence.
You’ve always been independent – always doing things differently. You never went for the pink items – straight to gold.
You now dress yourself and pour your own drinks. Gone are the days you ask me to pour milk in your cereal bowl. Now I hear my name when you want to show me a family picture you’ve painted with “mom, dad, love” written across the top. You made my heart so proud when you spelled your name all on your own in Build-A-Bear. I was so proud. My little baby is growing up – made me realize what a big girl you are. A special, special girl.
I always hoped that I would have a little girl who was confident, outgoing, and full of love and affection. I got exactly what I wanted in you. You are tough. You have no fear and I hope that you continue to be brave. But always remember that mom and dad will always be here when you need us.
You went kayaking with daddy the day before your birthday. You were so excited! I can tell you that you made your daddy so, so proud because you weren’t scared. In fact, you asked daddy when you would go again. You are daddy’s little girl for sure! Not afraid to get dirty. You tell him all the time that you want to go fishing with him. He can’t wait to teach you. He sees you growing up too. He tells you all the time that you can do anything!
You are strong, bossy, loving, silly, brave, independent, stubborn, kind and just so tough!
You do take some time to warm up to people which means most of the time you stay close to me. You still hold on to my leg when I drop you off in school but once you are there – you are happy. You can be reserved at times. I rather you observe and assess a situation before jumping in. Once you get to know people you are silly and so chatty!
You love sweets especially candy! It definitely is a challenge to show you that candy is ok in moderation. You also love ice cream. You can go for froyo every day if we let you. You love black beans and white rice. You are skeptical of anything with tomatoes or any veggie-like food. You also love mac n’ cheese. You asked for a Coconut cake for your birthday. Not chocolate or vanilla – Coconut! You are one-of-a-kind, my sweet girl.
I can’t pretend that we don’t have our challenges because boy we do! You are strong-willed and if things don’t go your way – forget it! Everyone will suffer. You make it known when you are unhappy about something and you want it fixed stat! But I learned a secret – all you need is a good mother to daughter or daughter to daddy talk to calm you down. A good long hug helps too!
Daddy and I think you’ll be a little famous artist. You love to paint especially watercolor. Your favorite thing to paint is flowers, rainbows, the sky, clouds, and family pictures. You love watching shows like Power Rangers, Project MC2, and all the Disney channel shows. You enjoy rollerblading with friends and just playing outside. Swimming in the pool or beach is a favorite, also. My little mermaid. You are always asking to do something fun. You cannot sleep without your American Girl Bitty Baby doll. You love that baby doll so much. I find absolutely adorable that you find comfort is a sweet little doll. You also love styling your dolls hair and putting pretend makeup.
You got into sports this year and you played on your first soccer team! You wanted to play soccer you told us, so we put you in soccer. The minute we got to meet your team and coaches – you were so shy. You are far from shy – it took some warming up (and by warming up I mean the entire season) but you played. You told us that you didn’t want to play anymore but we encouraged you because you were part of a team. A team that needed you. You were the smallest and youngest one on the team. You scored your very first goal on your second game! You continued to tell us that you did not want to play. We told you that you needed to finish the season. We were so proud when you got your first trophy and you were beaming with excitement. Your Titi Nica asked you if ou wanted to play soccer again and to our surprise, you said, “yes”. Maybe it just took a trophy or maybe you grew to love the game. We will make sure to help you be the best soccer player you can be!
I know that you will grow up to be amazing. I will do my job as your mom to steer you in the right direction. I look forward to seeing new friendships grow when you start Kindergarten. I look forward to many, many soccer games. I look forward to seeing your art skills grow.
Love always and forever,
Mom & Dad