Amelia
What an amazing couple of months we have had together as a family since your last letter! As far as big changes go, moving to our new home and your starting Kindergarten pretty much top the list. You simply adore your teacher and that has been a huge relief for me. At first, making new friends seemed like it was going to be a challenge for you but that has relatively quickly turned out not to be the case. Every few days now you are coming home and telling me about new friends you've made. It makes my Mama heart so happy! After 3 or 4 days of school I broke down and let you ride the bus after choking sobs and crying, begging me to let you. We've had some bus ups and downs... like when the bus was over 30 minutes late bringing you home the very first day or just last week when it didn't stop at our house and I had to literally drive after it.... as you've watched kids kiss and confided in me.... and had friends sit by you and friends ignore you. You aren't a baby anymore that is for certain and watching you navigate your way through these various situations has impressed me with the way you've handled them. I am working while you're at school on some days but my absolute favorite is when I get to be home when you get off the bus. We have a snack, read together, sit awhile, sometimes cook or craft or play. I love it and look forward to the days I get to be home with you, snuggled on the couch for a few quiet minutes after school. I can tell you missed me and the feeling is mutual!
You are in several extra curricular activities and last week I asked you which was your favorite. I was rewarded with guessing correctly when you emphatically stated that swim lessons was where your heart is. I suppose anyone watching you during swim could have figured that out within a few minutes, however! Your exuberance for swim is positively endearing. While you aren't really swimming on your own yet, it is so so close. Right within reach, to be sure. In addition to your weekly lesson, Papa takes you to the YMCA pool about once a week and you swim there for a couple of hours, jumping in and climbing out non-stop. With a little push, you dive to the bottom for rings. Papa has been telling me about all the fun you two have and so I went swimming with you last week. It was a true joy and the excitement I saw in you over my being there helped dull my discomfort over the temperature of the water haha! This last swim lesson you were especially wiggly for some reason. The instructor had to keep asking you to face forward and keep your bottom seated. You had been turning to look at me, to give me one of your mischievous and darling smiles and after yet another correction from the instructor I had to laugh out loud as you sat perfectly straight, forward facing and then tipped your head all the way back in order to see me and grin wildly at me! The memory still makes me laugh!
You are still enamored with tigers and wildcats in general so when picture day came along and you asked to wear your black and white tiger dress, what could I say but yes? It is not exactly a "timeless" outfit but it so perfectly fits you right now and I love to see you happy. You told me you gave your "best smile" hahaha so I have been in great anticipation of what your school pictures will look like :)
About a week into school I was putting you to bed one night when you suddenly remembered something you had wanted very badly to tell me about. You said, "Mom. I had The Most Amazing lunch today" (you waved your hands in this arc like a rainbow) "they were like these little sandwiches. Yeah Mom. They called it a 'wrap'. Incredible!". You went on to contemplate if they have dairy or not, which you decided you couldn't tell and that you'd ask the lunch lady (you are always looking out for me and asking everyone if everything has dairy in it, it's totally adorable) for me. The next day you actually remembered and told me the lunch lady said no it does not have dairy but that she didn't give you the recipe which cracked me up even more. I have been wanting to go to your school to find out about this mysterious lunch ever since! Your first field trip is coming up and it's to a pumpkin farm I'm so excited for you. I used to love going on field trips in Elementary school! I made sure not to have other plans that day and I had it on my calendar to volunteer. Even better, though, is that Dad will be off that day as well and we will both go with you- what a treat!
I want to make sure and record that this week you came home completely beaming one day. You told me you went all the way across the monkey bars- something that you've been working on for a long time. I am so proud of you! A part of my heart is sad I wasn't there to cheer you on but I also love how excited you were to come home and share the feeling of accomplishment you had with me. Between dance class, swim lessons, and every day playing hard you have gotten quite strong!
I can really tell we are teetering on the edge of truly leaving behind the little girl and having you grow up just a little more and enter into the next phase. I still rock you before bed and any approaches to the subject of putting the rocking chair away are quickly dismissed. Yet last night while Dad and I were outside cleaning up after gardening, you got into the bowl I had melted chocolate in to dip strawberries earlier in the day. As you stood there, your entire face covered in chocolate from your chin to your nose, all around your mouth, almost your entire hands, even under your nails, you vehemently kept your mouth shut and would not tell us what you had done. Even when Dad said he'd wash your mouth out with soap if you didn't tell the truth did you say nothing. I couldn't believe how you dug your heels in. Only when we brought you to the bathroom and showed you your reflection did you start to give in. I only mention this to demonstrate how you are certainly becoming more aware of your choices and how to use that power of choice.
Lately you've developed an interest in money. You've started to notice how I don't purchase things for you on a whim and that I don't indulge in buying off the tempting racks surrounding us in the check out line. While I've tried to teach you the value of money, it has proven a difficult concept for you. This was highlighted as you found a penny on the ground in the store parking lot and excitedly exclaimed that you could now buy that doll you'd seen a few days ago. Dad and I had been trying to think of ways you could earn money since we hadn't decided on the whole allowance concept and we settled on can deposits. They can be either a nickel or a dime per can or bottle. We had quite a few as we've been drinking a lot of flavored sparkling water lately and then you raided grandma and grandpas house as well. All in all you came out pretty good at just over $11. You put each can into the machine yourself and did the work to ask people for cans and go turn in the deposit receipt the machine prints out. We were really proud of you and you were thrilled to earn some money! It has given us an opportunity to talk about tithing and short and long term savings.
Living in our new home has been a joy. We have cows for neighbors and you delight in seeing them and watching the babies grow. I love to watch you get out in the dirt and play as I always hoped you would. What fun you will have growing up on this property! Soon your play set will be put back together and I can hardly wait for you to be out there every day using your imagination and having such a wonderful time.
I love you my sweetheart, my darling. Every day you crack me up with the crazy things you say (like turning to Dad last week and in a flat voice suddenly saying, "do you like dead bunnies?" What?! hahaha), the crazy things you do (like play outside in your swim suit and boots), your silly ideas and easy laugh.
Oxoxoxox
Mommy
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