4.5

Dear Avery,

You were 4 1/2 years old yesterday!  We celebrated by driving home from Disney World.  I'm not sure if that was a true celebration, but the few days before certainly were.  We told you that you would be 6 when we went back to Disney, and that sounded so crazy in my ears.  Approaching 5 is hard enough.

You are still a pretty tiny thing but are proportionate and healthy.  I don't have recent height or weight measurements, but you wear size 4 clothes and a 9.5 shoe.

You have to be the most loving little girl on the planet.  You want to hug, kiss, and cuddle all day.  You constantly tell me that you love me, that you're my precious, and that we're best girls.  While you are a mommy's girl, you chose to do a lot of things with Daddy now, and I know that's because of you're time together with him in the mornings before school.  You love Sam too, sometimes a little more than he would prefer.  He loves you too, and you two are playing well together in imaginary games.  You love the rest of your family, friends, and teachers.  You are just truly full of love!

This is such a fun age, so it's hard to be sad that you're growing so quickly.  You are a great companion and are a great conversationalist.  Sometimes my head does spin at the rate you talk and ask questions, but it's so interesting to see how your brain is working.  You don't miss a beat and don't forget a thing.  You still have some words and ways of saying things that remind me that you're a little girl.  I don't correct you because the day will come when you'll say it all perfect and be all grown up.

You continue to be very concerned with your clothing choices, and that has now expanded to shoes and hair.  Sometimes we don't always agree, but I try to pick my battles.  Lately, you have been big into pony tails, sometimes with a bow clipped on top, wearing your pink hoodie and/or dance recital costume over clothes, and wearing a variety of shoes in the house.  Shoes are one of our biggest issues, because we don't wear outside shoes in the house.  I've allowed summer shoes to make you happy, since hopefully most of the dirt and germs on those are long gone.  You love to exclaim that an outfit or accessory will be perfect.

Right now you love Bitty, Toy Story, princesses, dancing, coloring and writing, watching movies, and pretending all sorts of lively things.  You like to play outside when the weather is nice and ride your bike or Gator.  Your favorite books are Fancy Nancy, Pete the Cat, and Llama Llama.

The biggest change that has taken place this year is that you started school.  You are in the 4-year-old class at our YMCA.  You have a tiny class and get to do a lot of things with the 3-year-old-class, which is even smaller.  You love school and are learning so much.  You didn't "know" a lot when you started school by some standards.  You knew colors, shapes, counting, and recognized about half of the alphabet.  Most importantly, and what we focused on at home, was that you knew to be a good girl, a caring friend, a listener, a lover of books, and a lover of learning.  We knew everything else would come at school, and we were right.  You're fine motor skills have improved immensely, you know letters and are learning sounds, and are just excited to be learning.  You constantly tell me what letters words start with, and if you don't know, you ask.  It is so wonderful to see you learning and growing all while playing and being loved.  Your teacher had wonderful things to say at our conference about your behavior at school and also your progress.  We visited a school and made our Kindergarten decision before Christmas.  We certainly don't want to rush Kindergarten, but it felt good to know you are going exactly where you need to be going, and now we have lots of time to work on that transition with you.

Speaking of transitions, you are like your mama and really like a routine.  We had some tears at the beginning of school and had some after Christmas.  Your teachers are fabulous about it, you recover quickly, and we know you are very happy at school.  You've also been sad lately about being left at Bible Zone, but keeping Giraffi with you seems to help.  I stay at dance so that's usually not an issue.  You are just a little girl who likes to know what to expect and likes to be with your family.  You came by it honestly.  You are getting ready to go through another transition as your friend Camden moves away next week.  We are so sad to see this family go.  Camden was your first true best friend.  I don't think you understand what it means for her to move away, but I'm sad to think of all the things you will not get to do with her.

Avery, you continue to be a ray of sunshine in our lives.  The amount of love, energy, and excitement you possess in your tiny body is amazing.  It is an overwhelming gift to be your parents.  The task of raising you to be the best young lady that you can be is a great one.  Thankfully we get to do it day by day with a lot of grace.  We are so thankful that you are ours.  We love you to bits and pieces!

Love,
Mommy and Daddy