Letter Month Thirty-Six
Dear Sarah Graves,
Here we are celebrating your third year and I feel like it was only
yesterday that you were placed on my chest to hold in my arms for the first
time. My how the time goes so
quickly. You have been looking forward
to your birthday for months! You have
talked about your party and your cakes and whom you would invite over and
over! I am so glad for you that it is
finally here!
Meeting your brother is probably the biggest thing that has happened to
you! You have been a loving big sister from
the start. You want to help change
Charlie’s diaper and bring him a toy.
You rarely get jealous of all the attention he needs from momma. After all, you still get a lot of attention
yourself! Charlie is now starting to
smile at you and laugh at how silly you can be.
I sure hope you two are good buddies.
We made another trip to the beach before the warm days ended and you had
a blast. Your favorite people were there
with you and you very much enjoyed the water and the sand. “Cooking” soup on the beach was one of your
favorite things to do. We also made a
trip to Baton Rouge for Charlie’s baptism and celebrated Thanksgiving with our
family there. You really liked being
with your cousins!
If our life had a soundtrack, Caillou would be it right now. You enjoy the show about that little
four-year-old boy so much. He has
provided examples for some good social learning and taught you to express your
feelings, too. He has also shown you
some not so good habits like getting out of bed at night. He has definitely replaced Elmo among your
favorite things to watch.
You are still a pretty good sleeper, but it is getting a little more
difficult. You discovered that you can
get out of your bed and your room at will.
Some evenings you get up over and over to tell me that you can’t sleep
when you haven’t been in bed for more than five seconds. Leaving your lamp on so that you can read in
bed seems to help you lay down and give yourself a chance to relax and go to
sleep. You still take a nap in the afternoon
usually for two to three hours. We have
to wake you up sometimes just so you don’t sleep all day and get off schedule,
and other days you sleep for just a bit and are ready to go again. I am so glad that you still nap because we
all need that down time!
You are still a picky eater, but you are growing so we don’t stress too
much. You go through phases of loving
one food and then you move to something new.
For a while it was grits, then ice cream, then frozen fish sticks (they
had to be cold), then yogurt, and lately it has been peanut butter. In December I started sending your lunch to
school because you didn’t eat the food provided and that has helped our
evenings go much smoother. Making your
lunch is a challenge, but it usually includes a muffin or pasta, an applesauce,
a granola bar or gluten free crackers or freeze dried apples. Your school doesn’t allow peanuts, so a big
part of your acceptable foods is gone for your school lunch. You still don’t eat meat, but curiously you
like crispy bacon and you don’t eat vegetables, but you do like mashed sweet
potatoes. You have definite ideas about
everything and will not be coaxed into eating something you don’t want.You have potty power! Sometime in October it really clicked for you and you have been mostly accident free during the day since. You feel really proud of yourself for going on the potty and we couldn’t be happier for you. We haven’t stressed about staying dry while you’re sleeping; that part will come in its own time. I’m just happy we have the potty power when you’re awake!
At the beginning of September you started having a cough that just
wouldn’t stop and your doctor finally started you on breathing treatments,
which helped. We have spent a lot of
time doing breathing treatments and going to the doctor, but you finally seem
to be on medicine that keeps the asthma from flaring up. You were a real trooper and sat with your
mask on for the breathing treatments like a big girl. We went for allergy testing, but thankfully
you don’t have any severe allergies.
This fall you started taking ballet lessons and we continue to go to
Music Together with Ms. Jennifer. I
think you enjoy them both, but you would definitely prefer to stay home and
play house with Kate. Kate is a year old
now and you continue to love playing with her.
She, lovie, and binkie go most everywhere with us, but we do make you
leave your paci in your bed most of the time.
You are quite attached to it and don’t seem to notice that other kids
your age are not sucking on a paci. I
figure you will give it up soon enough, at least before college!
You are quite a talker and are very honest. If someone is eating something that does not
smell appealing to you, you don’t shy away from telling them it is stinky. You say funny things and use mannerisms and
head movements while you are talking that make you look like an adult. You also like to sing and really got into
“Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer”. You
sometimes sing songs from Music Together and “Wheels on the Bus” is one of your
all time favorites. School has taught
you some new music like Raffi’s “Baby Beluga” and “Mr. Sun”. It works out well that I like to sing too,
but you often tell me to stop singing and let you sing by yourself!
You have a generous spirit about you and although you are rambunctious,
you can also be very tender and loving. You have learned a simple blessing before we eat and you will even say it on your own. You say you’re sorry and I believe you honestly mean it. You are also doing better at telling me what
you are feeling rather than just crying and being angry. We have worked a lot on telling your friends
that you need space rather than hitting them when they crowd you. Your teachers say that you are making
progress on this. I see all of this as
progress for a little girl who is just learning.
Love,
Momma
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