Charlotte, I guess I should start out by saying HAPPY 4TH BIRTHDAY!!!! FOUR! Can you believe it? Normally these birthday things make me a little sad because it’s a reminder of the baby in you slipping away from me but I love the age four. Four is one of the best years. FOUR is sooo fun and I’ve seen a transformation in you in the last two months that I’m really proud of, I see a young lady who understands that her actions can effect others and realizes that you, YES YOU have the ability to hurt someone’s feelings and you seem to think before acting. I love it!

Let’s recap your year, shall we? You have had such a growth spurt this year! Sawyer loves to be the big kid but has mentioned that you are almost as tall as him.   At the doctors,  we found out that you are just four pounds lighter than Sawyer.   Crazy! Not only are you so much bigger than last year but you are have grown much stronger in the last year as well. You started gymnastics when you turned three and was moved up to this fast-track to competitive something (?) gymnastics class. You also took your first dance class and as long as you were twirling in a tutu, you were happy!  It’s so fun to see you advance in various ways. To see you do pushups, and try to do pull-ups and watch you swing like Tarzan on our rope swing is SO cool! You’ve been fearless since you were able to walk on your own. I remember you climbing onto the very top of the couch and flipping off of it when you were two. You would scale the shelves in the pantry. You would climb on anything and jump off of everything. You are a bit of a psychotic dare devil and the scaredy cat in me is in awe of you. I hope you never lose your sense of adventure!

You had a full year of preschool and loved every bit of it! Your biggest accomplishment this year (according to your teachers) was playing on your own to playing with others. We moved you from a more expensive day care to a preschool through the community center and though I was nervous, I could not be happier! The teachers were amazing, the kids were so sweet and adorable and the moms were all so great! Your preschool was a bit of a realization for me- I am frazzled. I am the frazzled mom. I’m sorry for being so crazy this year Char! Snacks were dropped off on the wrong days, notebooks were turned in late and despite my good intentions, I didn’t get one day of volunteer time in- GAH, that makes me feel terrible. But the smile on your face when I pick you up? You yelling “MOMMY!!!!” while running to me with arms stretched out for a hug would turn my craziest days around. You being in school means I would get most of my work done on Tuesday and Thursday mornings. Working so hard  and working until the very last second means I would show up  looking like the homeless lady; the one with messy hair, no makeup, bags under my eyes, SO EXHAUSTED and a baby on my hip. But none of that mattered to you. The teachers let you out of the classroom and you would run to me like I was the most beautiful princess you have ever seen, the princess that you have been waiting to play with all morning!  Gosh, I love you!

Three was a tough year for us. Phew, three is hard! You are so strong-willed, so spirited! You know what you want and what you don’t. For most of this year, you could care less about any discipline you faced as long as it meant getting what you wanted. You are also so smart, so fun, so crazy that I knew the tough part would pass. Parenting you this year has been such a delicate balance of letting you voice your opinion and showing you that I truly cared about how you felt while being your mommy and teaching you right from wrong. This year I tried hard to let you know that I say things not to make you mad but to keep you safe. I have had some of the hardest days of my mommy life this year but through the rough days I knew that this tough personality of your is really SUCH an amazing quality to have.  Saying all of that, you’ve become this amazing little lady, one who is still stubborn and spirited and also someone who learned that we can compromise and work together. You now know that getting along is WAY more fun than fighting and you work hard to figure out a way to get what you want without being mean about it- what a breakthrough!  I told you, I love age four!  I hope that you hold onto your stubborn pride with strong hands. That stubborn pride you have, while very stressful for me  to parent you in the last year, will hopefully be stronger than any peer pressure you will ever encounter.  I hope you hold onto it in college when you have to work your tail off while going to school and studying because LIFE ISN’T EASY and we need to fight hard for the things we want, love and believe in.  Achieving huge goals is seldom easy but you have the fight in you to achieve anything you can possibly dream up so dream big.  I hope it takes you to a career you adore, breaks any glass ceiling above and brings you happiness and  your own definition of success. I hope that you have your own opinions and aren’t afraid to voice them!  Your strong-willed personality will take you far and I can’t wait to see you fight the good fight!

Other fun things this year:

-You and Vivian have formed the coolest friendship. You really take care of her and she really looks up to you. I’ve always wanted a sister and I’m SO happy you two have each other.

-You can write your name!!! So the “e” might be upside down but it still counts!

-You had your first dance recital (adorable) and your first gymnastics show (so fun) and wore your “gold medals” EVERYWHERE!

-You love to sing and dance and act! You can memorize movie lines and act it out almost flawlessly.

-You can spell small words, almost count to 50, come up with rhyming words and water paint like mad!

-You LOVE going to the doctors and actually ask for shots. Who does that?!

Charlotte, I am amazingly proud of the girl you have become this last year. You call me your best friend and I hope we stay that way forever. You are bright, funny, sweet, crazy, fearless, talented and an all around ROCKIN’ little girl. How in the world did I get so lucky to be your mommy? I love you like crazy! Happy 4th Birthday my dear!