On Your 4th Birthday

Dear Olivia,

This letter comes a few weeks after you turned four. I wanted the chance to sit down and write your letter before your actual birthday, but of course I didn’t have time to “sit down.” Lately you have wanted to snuggle at night, and I have a hard time telling you no. I love when we lay together, saying prayers, talking about the day, and snuggling. You and I both fall asleep quickly and all the things I had wanted to do after you and Gracelyn went to bed are left for another day.

It’s hard to believe you are four. Four seems so old. You aren’t a toddler any more that’s for sure. On the day of your birthday party you learned to ride a bike! You can make your own bed, set the table, get yourself dressed—you do all these things that “big kids” do.

This past year has been full of changes as we moved to a new house and welcomed your sister to the world and you have handled it all with grace and maturity. You were so excited about becoming a big sister, even though you realized that meant that no longer did you have all of Mama and Daddy’s attention. Most of the time, you are okay with that. You love your sister so much, and she adores you. She smiles and lights up when she hears your voice. She is the only person who can wake you up in the morning who doesn’t make you mad. You love to tell your teachers at carpool that you are a big sister. You introduce Gracelyn to strangers we meet in stores. They always ask if you are a good big sister and I say of course, because it is true. On the rare occasion you “hurt” your sister and she cries, we can tell it bothers you and notice how you quickly find ways to make it up to her and make her laugh.

We have loved watching you find joy in trying new things. You wanted to take gymnastics and work hard each week gaining confidence on the balance beam. You are so flexible. All of us are amazed at how you pull your legs up so high on the bar and do flips. You say gymnastics day is your favorite day of the week. You also enjoy ballet. I enjoy reminiscing on my dance days and dancing with you. You concentrate so hard on each of the ballet poses. You always make us so proud by how hard you try. When we started swim lessons this winter you cried through most of the first lesson, but when we were done you told me you wanted to go back and swim some more.  Each lesson we watched you improve, swimming further, keeping your head in the water longer, and even jumping in the pool. Now you can’t wait to get in the pool each week for your lesson and you are swimming with such confidence!

At four years old some of your favorite things to do are ride your bike, play with your Frozen and Sofia princesses and the castles, color (you say you want to be an artist), listen and dance to music from Frozen, watch Doc McStuffins, go to preschool with your friends, and play “kid.” This past year you introduced us to “Lizzie and John.” These imaginary friends are “old” at 6 years of age. Lizzie and John come and go, mostly making an appearance when we have breaks in school or other times you don’t get to see your friends. We never told you they were imaginary, but you told us that these “friends are imaginary, not real.”  Your favorite food is anything sweet, you love cake and cookies and everything else we have to give you in moderation. Your favorite fruits are strawberries, blueberries, and cherries. You recently discovered you loved broccolini so we give it to you almost every night so you eat some green vegetables. You tried sushi this year and loved it and you enjoy eating lobster, crab legs, and oysters!

Our trip to Disney World was a highlight for our family this past year. You lite up when you met the princesses, especially when you paraded around the ballroom holding Snow White’s hand! Some parts of the trip overwhelmed you and we discovered you didn’t like rides in the dark, but you still talk about the trip fondly and ask us almost every week when we can go back.

This next year as a 4-year-old I hope you laugh lots, play hard, and try new things. Mama and Daddy are proud of the kind, caring, fun, and loving child you are and wish you nothing but happiness, good health, and fun as a 4-year-old.

Love,

Mama

A blast from the past-Olivia's 3 year old letter and 2 year old letter