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Friday, July 10, 2009

A Letter to Gwendolyn, on Her 3rd Birthday

7/10/2009

Gwendolyn, Gdub, GMills,

            Tomorrow you are turning 3 years old.  I cannot believe that my baby is… well, not my baby!  You are a little preschooler now.  You tell the funniest stories and say the silliest things.  Sometimes I just listen to you talk and laugh thinking about where your imagination leads you.  A few weeks ago I told you that you were silly.  You said “that’s not silly, Mom”.  I asked “Then what is silly?”  You thought about it and said “Banana Pants.”  Well, you were right, banana pants are silly.

            We are working on potty training, after a few failed attempts.  Right now, it seems like you just don’t care.  You feel no shame and no remorse if you have an accident.  Bribes are not working, threats go unnoticed.  I guess we just have to wait for you to be ready.  I am sure that in a few months this will be a distant memory, but right now it consumes a large part of our time with you. 

            You still sleep with baby bear, a soft baby doll, and a floppy frog.  Oh, and as many blankies as you can sneak into your bed.  The floppy frog, or “Froggie”, is often kicked out of the bed, you seem to have a love-hate relationship.  A kitty has recently joined the gang as well.  Your favorite show is still Dora the Explorer, followed by Diego.  In a few weeks we are going to see Dora Live, so I hope that you enjoy it.  You like to dress up like a princess and talk on your toy phone.  Just like Mommy, you often just listen and say “uh huh”, as though you are listening to Aunt Jenna tell a long story.  You like us to read books to you.  And you are loving when Daddy rough houses with you, but it makes me nervous.  You really love candy, and get all wide eyed and wild after eating it.  You love shoes, pretty shoes, and wearing dresses.  Going shoe shopping with you entails you trying on 50 pairs of shoes, all of them too small for you.

            Madeline & Jack adore you.  They follow you and try to climb on you, which you don’t appreciate.  Now that they are crawling you are getting annoyed that they are in your toys and try to touch you.  Yesterday on the way to school Daddy said you suddenly screamed and said that Madeline pulled your hair.  I’m sure it won’t be the last time that happens.  Generally, you are very, very sweet to your brother and sister.  You talk to them, bring them toys and tell us when they are doing something they shouldn’t.  Sometimes you get jealous, but haven’t acted on it yet.

            You are still pretty shy.  It takes you awhile to warm up to new people, kids, animals and places.  Sometimes you get so nervous you lick me!  It’s a little odd.  But on our recent trip to Michigan you warmed up to your cousins, Megan and Marissa, quickly after they started playing tag – you love to chase and be chased. 

            This Fourth of July you saw your first fireworks.  You and I went to the end of our street and we could see the fireworks show a mile away.  The look on your face when you saw the first one go up was awesome, you were amazed.  A few minutes later you were using the flashlight to look for monsters in the grass.  We also had our first family road trip to Michigan last month.  You would not let me sleep in the car and cried if I tried to close my eyes!  You loved staying with Nana and Grandpa.  They have dogs, cats and a little swimming pool.  You would start out the day in your bathing suit, but would always end up running around the yard naked by the end of the day.  We went to a family reunion; my Aunt Pat brought you a bathing suit.  You wouldn’t talk to her, or smile, or anything, but when she showed you the suit, you slowly started to play with the straps of your dress, then pulled the straps down, then took your dress off, followed by your diaper and shoes.  We all laughed at your innocent way of saying “yes, I want to wear that bathing suit!”  You also made a great friend of ‘Uncle Joe Koester, one of Nana and Grandpa’s friends.  Anyone who will take you to the beach and play in the sand with you is OK in your book. 

            You are still a Mommy’s Girl.  If you ever have a choice, or even when you don’t, about who is going to help you or do something for you, it is always MOMMY!  When you cry, you weep and say “I want my Mommy!” almost like I’m an object.  At night, after I tuck you in, you always grab my hand and ask me to stay.  It is so sweet.  But, when you are playing, you still love your Daddy. 

            So tomorrow is your special day.  I hope that you enjoy your party and your gifts.  I am excited to see the day through your eyes and have fun with you.  There will be many more birthdays to share with you, each different as you get older and wiser. 

            I love you very much, Gwendolyn Lottie.  You are my little girl.

Love - Mommy

1 comment:

Jenn Cox said...

made me tear up a little - damn you Mills!

Hope Gwen has wonderful party!