4 birthday!

Dear 4 Year Old Zoe,

Wow, I just typed that. Weird.

How are you FOUR? HOW, I ask?

It feels like just a few months ago I had a little tiny cry that I weaned you at a little over 2. And only a few months ago that you learned to walk. Holding up your arms like a little ape.

Time flies, kid. You don't think so now but holy shit time flies. You'll see.

The 4 year old you is delightful. You're not as defiant as you were at 3.5 and you're sassier than you were at 2. You're spunky and sweet and hilarious and so much fun to be around. The other day you told your dad he smelled like armpits and then smiled at him with your sweet little cherubic face - as if you'd just told him he'd won father of the year. Atta girl.

You have learned to write your name (still have a little bit of trouble with the Z - sometimes it looks like ...well, not exactly a Z) and you can write out words if I help with spelling. It's amazing. One day you could suddenly do it. Funny how that works.

Your 4 birthday, as you called it, was SO much fun. You were so into it this year and we celebrated the crap out of it. Three big, huge celebrations for your birthday. We decided to forego the "kids party" after last year's Chuck E. Cheese debacle and opted to take you and Gabby to the mall to do lunch, Build A Bear, carousel rides and ice cream. You guys had a BLAST.

For your family party, we had Grandpa David, Grandpa Russell, Grandma Jackie, Aunt Jill, Uncle Mark, Sophie, Dominic, Jack and Josie and we did a Hello Kitty pinata, pizza and pumpkin pie. Pumpkin pie is your new favorite dessert and you requested it in lieu of cake. 

Since your birthday was on a Tuesday, both of the OTHER celebrations took place on the weekend so we celebrated AGAIN on your real birthday. You took cinnamon bread to school (your choice) and we had lasagne for dinner and cupcakes for dessert. You only ate the frosting. 

We are having so much fun. We're all going bananas with excitement over Christmas (everyone's coming here this year). You have a preschool Christmas program on Thursday in which you'll be singing Christmas songs - only you can never seem to remember which ones. 

I love you so much, my peanut. These last four years have been the best of my life. I am so lucky. 

Love, 

Mama

Zoe B, teenager

Dear Zoe,

I think I am getting a REALLY good feel for what life will be like when you are a teenager. At a little shy of 3, you are already rolling your eyes at me, sighing in disgust, and have gone in the bedroom and slammed the door. LOUD. You even talk on your princess cell phone and say things like, "No, Kendall, I DON'T want to go to your sleepover."

I have to say, I find it hilarious. I have to try HARD not to laugh when you throw a big fit and you say, "I'M MAD! LOOK AT MY FACE!" Because you're just so cute and funny no matter what you're doing.




Now that you're about to "turn into 3" (as you say), you are really zero-ing in on the upcoming dates of Halloween and your birthday. Here's a conversation we have at least once a week these days:

Zoe: "Mama, there's that pink house I am going to get for my birthday!" (a family up the street has a pink playhouse in their driveway and you are in LOVE with it)
Me: "When is your birthday?"
Zoe: "On Becember 6th and I'm going to turn into 3. And Jack is 7 and Josie is 11 and what's your number, Mom?"
Me: "34."
Zoe: "...and what's Dada's?"
Me: "38."
Zoe: "Oh. Well I'm going to get that pink house for my birthday."

You are going to be Snow White for Halloween. You were CONVINCED you wanted to be Cinderella but the costume we ordered was too big and you couldn't walk in it. There wasn't a smaller size so I asked you what we should do. I was ready for you to MELT because you had been talking about being Cinderella for about a month. But you just said, "I'm going to be Snow White!" Way to roll with it, kid! And I think you're going to be the best, cutest Snow White ever. Grandma Patty is fixing up the costume as we speak and she's going to mail it to us any day now.

Trick or Treat SMELL MY FEET is something you think is awesome and say constantly. I hope you actually say that at people's doors because that would RULE.

Like I mentioned earlier, you are starting to really act like a teenager/3 year old (who knew those two age groups display such similar behavior? Probably everyone but me). You have big fits now if things aren't going JUST the way you want them to or I don't let you do everything yourself, OR if I don't do what you tell me to do. I can sympathize, kid, it's hard. I still try all the time at 34 to make people do what I want. Only I've (somehow) figured out how not to throw myself on the ground every time I don't succeed. Maybe that's what you should focus on.




You are still, of course, absolutely smitten with your brother and sister. On the weekend in the morning, you wake up and rush downstairs and say to Jack,"Dude. Let's play Mario." You seem to be finally big enough to do what they do (although I don't know how you could possibly play Super Mario Galaxy, I can't even play that game) and you LOVE it.

I can't CAN'T believe that you're going to be 3 in a little over a month. One might think I don't understand how time works, and I guess I don't. Though I can't at all remember my life without you in it, I also still think of you as my little baby girl and can't accept that you're growing up so fast. Please stay little a bit longer, my sweet. PLEASE.

I love you,
Mama

Happy Birthday, Zoe B!

You're 2 years old, I can't believe it.

Here you are two years ago...


...and one year ago...


...and now! Crazy!



Last night we had your birthday party. We had your grandparents over (minus G'ma Patty, the Michigan Grandma who was busy in the snow up there), a bunch of friends and their kids. You were totally into it - we'd celebrated my birthday last month and I guess you took notes because you knew just what to do. You clapped along as we sang Happy Birthday and you blew your candles out like you'd been doing for at least a decade. I'm glad you're getting the message that birthdays are a big deal. We celebrate the crap out of birthdays in this family, kid.






One of your favorite presents was a box of plastic princess shoes (for the love of God!) from your friend Gabby. They have inspired you to take up tap dancing. See below. [*requires sound*]



In November we took a short little trip to Omaha, Nebraska. I never in my life thought I'd type that sentence. But I wanted a little weekend trip that would get us out of town but without having to go to far and people kept saying Omaha was great, so I decided to give it a try. Who knows, the midwest is full of surprises. And crazy religious people. But that's beside the point.

The zoo in Omaha was actually really pretty incredible. The weather was an astounding 60 degrees and sunny and you were really excited to see all of the animals - your favorite being a tiny little gorilla baby who was being held by one of the zookeepers. He was even wearing a baby diaper. You were VERY intrigued.



You are talking up a storm and you're very articulate. Today Jack came up to your Dad and said, "Zoe can almost say dictionary!"

The other day you were sitting at the table with your little rubber stamps and ink pad and you couldn't get the monkey the right way up and you said, "Oh shoot! What the heck?!?" You have also started saying, "What the?!?" and if someone corrects you (you said Happy Halloween-days instead of Happy Holidays, for example), you say, "Oh, Happy Holidays, that's right!" I knew once you started talking you'd bring the awesome. And boy, do you ever.

And...best of all, you have started to say "I love you, Mama" without me even MAKING you do it! Or even asking nicely. It is the best thing on EARTH. The absolute BEST THING.

I love you, Beanie. You'll never understand how much. Maybe when you have a child of your own...but I doubt it. Because I love you more than anyone has EVER loved anyone or ever will. So take that.

Mama

6 months old!

Zoe is 6 months old today! Where does the time go?