Happy Birthday – The Big 5

Katherine, my birthday girl, my big girl…  you are 5 years old today! I am smiling as I am writing this for you, because I am so proud of you for the person you are becoming. My caring girl, my smart girl, my pretty girl and of course my curious girl. If there is anything to be questioned, you will be there to ask the question. I have lost count how many “why” questions I answer in any given day, but I love it that your questions often make me pause because you ask about a problem I had never thought of.

Santa had brought you a big toy Ferris wheel, and it has 7 little cabins. Part of the toy is a ticket booth where the little toy figures can buy their little toy tickets. The only problem with it? There are only 6 tickets that came with it… that made no sense to you (and after you mentioned it, daddy and I had to agree… and we’ll now have to ask the toy maker). In the meantime you solved the problem – you simply made an extra ticket; and while you were at it you also made some toy money so they little toy people can pay for their toy tickets.

Today was your special day and when you woke up you exclaimed that today was all about you! It was your day, and I feel grateful that I put everything else aside today to spend your special day with you – it became a special day for me too. We made cupcakes from scratch together for your birthday party and I have to say you’re becoming quite a little baker! We had lots of fun decorating them (originally we had planned on blue sprinkles for the blue cups and pink sprinkles for the pink cups, but you had a much better idea in mixing both colours because “it looks like a lot more fun” – and you were right).

In the afternoon you had a very special birthday party with your friends, a Frozen Minnie Mouse party. You couldn’t decide on either, because you like both Frozen and Minnie Mouse, so from that came the big idea to combine both (I am grateful for the master party decorator at the indoor playground – who knew that Queen Elsa and Olaf love wearing mouse ears…). I love seeing that sparkle in your eyes when big ideas become reality… you truly believe that anything is possible. Keep dreaming big!

On the drive home after your party tonight, the conversation became more serious. You were telling me that today was all about you and I told you, yes it was, it was your special day and I really enjoyed spending the day with you. You paused for a moment and told me that you wanted the day to be about me too, it should be special for me too. I couldn’t stop smiling as I was replying to you that it was very special because we got to spend it together.

You are teaching me that days aren’t special because of a special date in the calendar, but because we make them special, with who we are and what we do. You are still little, but already you’re making difference – with every thoughtful question you ask, with every idea you have, with every smile and every hug you share. I feel so blessed to have you in my life; words cannot express the joy you have given me. I love you always and forever.

The Little Moments

Katherine, I treasure the time we spend together… watching you grow up is my greatest joy.

Sometimes there are things that happen that feel like big moments that make me so proud of you – like this morning when you were spelling “petshop” (your choice of word, not mine!) with stickers on a Minnie Mouse sticker collage you were making and you only needed help with 2 letters in the sequence as you were spelling it out.

But more often than that, it’s the little things that happen that just make me smile.

Last night for example… when we had a little accident with our Sodastream machine with which we make sparkling water. You always fizz up the water with the machine – after daddy loads the bottle, he lifts you up so you can reach the button to “make” the water… well last night somehow the bottle wasn’t properly clicked in and as soon as you pushed the start button all three of us froze in a split second as we realized that instead of the carbonation going into the water, it pushed the water out of the top which started to spray everywhere across the counter. Daddy and I dashed for kitchen towels and as we turned around we watched you quietly reach for the roll of paper towels and clean the front of the counter as water was running down. Those are the moments that make me proud of you.

You live your life with confidence and joy, which comes out in everything you do. We were at the grocery store today and you picked out a roll of Christmas wrapping paper we wanted to buy (you took your time looking through ALL the different choices before picking the green one with the reindeer) and at first you were proudly carrying it through the store. A couple of isles over you stopped and asked to climb into the cart. After you settled in, you explained to me that the shopping cart was now the boat and the roll of wrapping paper was the oar. As we walked up and down the isles you were rowing as you were quietly singing “row, row, row your boat, gently down the stream…” and when I stopped too long to get the things on our shopping list, you urged me to move as the crocodiles were getting closer. As people were watching you, you smiled at them proudly which promptly got them to smile back.

You are teaching me that the little things we do make a difference. You make our world a little better place every day with what you do and who you are - with every time you lend a hand to help someone, with every smile you share with someone; and with every plastic bag you’ll randomly pick up in a parking lot and carry to a waste bin (because as you were telling us that it’s not good for a car to drive over it). These are the moments that make me very proud of you. I love you always and forever.

Your New Bike

Katherine, you recently got to try out a bicycle at a friend’s house and you loved it!! You started dreaming of your own bike – it should be pink and have a Minnie Mouse on it, or Hello Kitty, or Little Ponies, or… or… - but it must be pink and have a little basket in the front!

The bike you have had up to know has served you well - and while not pink, it has taught you the basic skills of how to use a bike. A balance bike, it doesn’t have any pedals and in all fairness you have been outgrowing it a bit (and growing is something you’ve been doing at lighting speed lately!)

So your daddy and I have decided the time has come for a “big girl” bike with pedals (and training wheels!)… and today was the day to go shopping for your new bike.

After visiting a few stores and not finding quite what we were looking for (safety first – no, the bike with no hand break was not an option!) we walked into the bike section of a store and there it was – a white and pink Hello Kitty bike with pink rims, a pink seat, a pink bag on the front – and pink and silver streamers on the sides of the handle bar! “I love it” was your first reaction, followed by a not so convincing “it’s wobbly” (as you got on it and the training wheels shifted side to side, helping you stay on it). But you were determined and after a little frustration, some “push me, push me” requests you were pedaling up and down the aisle in the store by yourself. We found your bike!

The lady at the cash register couldn’t stop smiling as she saw your proud face and excitement when we were paying for your new ride - and all plans for the rest of the afternoon went on hold as we had to get home quickly because you were ready to ride!

Daddy got your new and my (not so new) bike ready for us to begin our first adventure… because riding in the driveway just wouldn’t do. Your excitement made more than up for the learning curve (ok, we had both had a little moment where we almost turned back around after about 5 minutes of being out, but we quickly got over that) – and in no time at all you were riding your bike in the neighbourhood. We had so much fun and your training wheels kept you (mostly) upright.

You are teaching me that with learning anything new there will be little bumps – in this case quite literally… bigger bumps on the path got your bike to tip twice on our outing and catapulted you from the bike to the ground. Both times you hurt yourself a little (nothing serious, but I’m sure it must have been unpleasant), and both times you cried for a moment, but then you dusted yourself off and got back on the bike and we continued on. I am proud of you for not getting discouraged and not giving up. As we were riding along, I realized that we were on the same path we used to take when I was pushing you in the stroller when you were really little… and today we were riding side by side on our bikes. How far you have come… I love you always and forever.

Independent Moments

Katherine, the days and months are flying by – you have completed your first year of pre-school and we’re having much fun this summer!

It’s such a joy to watch you grow and become more and more independent. Yes, there is that little part of me that just wants to keep my arms wrapped around you forever to keep you safe, but I know it’s your time to explore the world more and more on your own.

You are becoming more adventurous and you’re also becoming more confident when you’re doing things by yourself.

From charging up the ladder when we’re picking cherries in the backyard, and waving from the top with a big smile on your face as you are reaching for the cherries as high as you can… to telling me “I know, I really know…” when I am trying to show you how to do something – you are thoughtful, but confident in all you do.

Last week you went to a gymnastics camp a couple of mornings and we had many talks about you staying there all by yourself. You had been there before for classes and other things, but never just by yourself. You asked me a lot of “what if” questions and we found a lot of answers and when I dropped you off, you were a little tentative for a couple of moments. But then you made up your mind that you had covered all your “what if’s” and gave me a hug and a kiss (as we always do when we say good-bye) and went to your group. Once you say your good-byes, you move forward – you don’t look back, you don’t waiver in your decision. That’s when I know you’ll be ok. When I picked you up later, you had such a proud smile on your face and your eyes were sparking – you did it… all by yourself!

You are teaching me that it’s my job to let you go… a little bit at a time. Yesterday you asked me if I will still love you when you grow up and I told you that I will never ever stop loving you. You always put your little arms as far apart as you can and ask me if I love you “this much” and I always put my longer arms as far apart as I can and answer you “I love you this much!”. And that is my promise to you: I love you always and forever.

Swimming… Your Way

Katherine, it’s Spring Break and I have booked swimming lessons for you. You have done swimming lessons before, but you never seemed to have great fun doing them. The first year we did them, you were less than impressed when the instructor asked me to turn you on your back and float you in the water. Last year, you were no longer engaging in the class after you saw the instructor pull another child in the class through the pool with his head under water for a short distance (there was no way you would let that happen to you). So for the past year you have gotten by quite well with little swim wings that helped you stay above water when we were at a pool or on vacation – and you have even practiced the techniques you learned in your classes… like blowing bubbles under water.

With summer getting closer, a few weeks ago we talked about swimming and you mentioned you can “almost” swim. Taking my window of opportunity, I suggested taking another class which was met with a thoughtful pause from you after which you replied that you don’t want your head dunked under water. I can relate to that – I don’t like it either, but I knew mentioning that wouldn’t help my argument.  So instead I asked you how we could solve that – and you had obviously thought about this before, because without hesitation your answer was “goggles”.

So here we are today at your first day of lessons and on the drive to the class you reminded me that you don’t want your head dunked under water. We talked about it and I suggested that you could tell the teacher when we arrived. You did (and the head instructor made sure to tell your instructor) and we also arranged for us to go over to the goggle display where you were able to select a pair yourself that we would purchase for you.

What a difference that made! Knowing no one would ask you to go under water without your permission and having your goggles firmly on your head made the class fun for you. You even put your face under water a few times by yourself and when it came time to jump into the water from the edge of the pool you went in with a big splash (and climbed out and did it again!)

You are teaching me that it’s important for all of us that our voice is being heard. Today your little hand was holding mine so tight and it took all your courage to speak up to an adult you didn’t really know. Your opinion was respected – you are still little, but your thoughts and feelings are just as important. Today I saw you stand up for yourself. I am very proud of you. I love you always and forever.

Happy Birthday

Katherine – Happy, happy 4^th Birthday!!!!

It’s hard to believe you are already 4 years old today. People always tell me to be mindful of those early years we have with a child, they pass so quickly. You have grown from a toddler into a young girl – especially these last few months you have become more assertive, confident and independent. Your world is growing with preschool and friends and you are embracing all of it.

I am in awe watching you learn life skills.  I am constantly reminded that it’s your daddy’s and my job to teach you, and also model the right behaviour for you. Things we take for granted, like crossing the road: we are teaching you to stop, look left-right-left and when it’s safe, start walking. You have caught me more than a few times where I looked in passing instead of really stopping at the edge of the sidewalk. There is nothing like a little girl yelling “STOP”, followed by a stern “you did not look” comment. Point taken! Rules are there to be followed, right?

But I also still love those moments when it’s just you and me time – when we snuggle together, play together and read together. I have to admit, I’m not ready to give up those moments quite yet and I’m hoping as you grow older they’ll shift into moments where we have meaningful conversations, share some laughs and simply spend quality time together.

My birthday girl, you are teaching me that time doesn’t stand still. Things change… always. But I know the best is yet to come for you as you grow up and grow into anything you want to be. As little as you still are, you already are a kind, bright and caring person and while the future is still an unwritten story, what I know in my heart is that you’ll have an impact on this world. I love you always and forever.

Your First Day at Preschool

Katherine, today was a milestone day! Your first day of preschool.

This day has been coming for a long time and we talked about you staying without daddy and me at preschool (for less than 3 hours). We have prepared, bought your backpack and snack pack and all the little items you needed to get ready. Today was the big day – a new chapter in your life is starting.

We were packing your back pack and snack pack together earlier today and I realized in that moment you were ready for your new adventure. And I also realized my little girl is growing up. Your world of independence grows and you are making good decisions for yourself.

Dropping you off at preschool was exciting… until it came to the moment where we actually dropped you off and left. There were tears (yes, I admit, not only from you!), but you quickly forgot all about it once we left and when it was time you pick you up, you greeted us with a big smile!

Your backpack is the shape of a butterfly and just before we were leaving the house you said “look, it’s flying its wings”.  How fitting, as you are spreading your wings today.

Here is my wish for you:

May you always be curious about the world,
And never stop asking questions.
May you always enjoy your journey,
And never stop dancing in the rain.
May you always be kind to those that you meet,
And never stop being true to yourself.
May you always have a caring heart,
And never stop believing that anything is possible.
May you always know you are loved more than words can ever express.

I love you always and forever.