Five

Dear Hazel,

Five years ago you were a tiny, mewling lump of milk and gurgle. I could never have predicted that a few long and short years later, you would become the smart, sassy, prim, plucky, persnickety, perfectly Hazel-ish you that you are today. Five years old.

Kindergarten is helping nurture the side of you that loves to learn, and is driven to succeed. Going to full-time school, by yourself, all day, every day, has been a huge confidence-booster for you, and a challenge you have met head on. You are at the top of your class - a strong reader, a keen observer, always on task and agreeable. Your teachers love you, and tell you so. You take pride in the logic and reason and schedule of your days. You beam with pride and confidence as you march out of the classroom to meet me at pick-up time, and when I ask you how your day was, your answer is always the same:

"GREAT!"

Your dad and I had a hunch that kindergarten would be good for your soul, be we couldn't be sure until we sent you. So we all took the plunge together, and dove heads first into this thing called school - and none of us, not even you, could be more pleased with how you've taken to it. We are so proud of you. But what's even better is that you are proud of yourself. You are taking pride in accomplishing some pretty monumental achievements - like being dropped off every day. Not easy for you. Like learning how to read. Like trusting yourself, and solving your own problems, and all the while, becoming more and more confident that you can handle what comes your way.

It is a daily joy and privilege to watch you consciously take root in yourself - to watch you come to the realization, time and again, that you are who you are, you like what you like, and that is what it is. You may not be like everyone else, but you are you. Full stop. And absolutely nothing can shake your belief in that one pure, simple fact.

You are a force of nature. You are a hurricane of personality. You are FIVE.

While you still retain many of the characteristics that you had even as a tiny baby - sensitive to sounds and smells, shy and a little quiet, a Mama's girl - your willingness to try and be new things is at an all-time high. An excellent example of your newfound adventurousness: you chose avocado rolls, miso soup, and brown rice tea as your birthday lunch. The fact that you chose boxed mac n' cheese, hot dogs and strawberries for your birthday dinner is a shining example of the wonderful dichotomy that is 5. That is you! Everyone who knows you is impressed daily by your wit and shine (you included). You are a silly little spark plug of a girl, a golden egg, a leggy blonde bookworm with a quiet, old soul and every time I see you, with your knobbly knees, your huge brown eyes and your flapper hair, my heart just about bursts with love and excitement.

Happy 5th Birthday to you, Hazel, and many more. Dad, Violet and I love you so much. We love who you are now, and we can not wait to see who you will be next! You are FIVE! FIVE years old!!

Amazing.

Love,
Mama

To Violet, On Her 2nd Birthday

Dear Violet,

Today you are two! TWO!!

When someone asks you how old you are, you hold up five fingers and shout "two!" Then you whisper, "I eat marshmallows!" That's all you want for your birthday: Marshmallows. And I can't wait to give them to you.

The day you were born, it was sunny and gorgeous, just like today. I told you that two years ago to the day, you

came out of Mama's belly, a tiny, black-haired little squiggle. And you said, "Noooo - I not a squiggle! I Violet!"

And we laughed about that.
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It is two days past your actual birthday now, Sunday evening. We had all our friends, plus grandparents, uncles, and aunties over for a celebration. You ate your weight in marshmallows. You were a kind and flirty hostess, and you had a great time.

I want to thank you for being so sweet-natured, Violet. Your even-keeled temperament and generous disposition are by far your best qualities (and you have a lot wonderful qualities) - they stand out, even to strangers. Thank you for welcoming all your friends and family into our house with a smile, and sharing all of your new birthday toys without even getting a chance to play with them. Thank you for letting Hazel help you with the wrapping paper. Thank you for being you.

The last few months have been a time of great change - before our eyes, you have become a bonafide kid. You speak in 10 and 12 word sentences now, run like the wind, and have no fear. No fear. You stomp around the house singing "OOOOhhhhh, the life of a pirate for me!" and are happy to play Captain Hook to Hazel's Peter Pan. You read quietly in the corner. You sleep peacefully with your beloved polka dot blankie jammed in your nose , and when you wake up, you beam like the sun. You want to swing "supah high!" at the park. You want to go to preschool with Hazel. You are in love with Wallie. You count to 20 and you sing your ABCs. You love Diego and the Little Einsteins. You love to help me make dinner. You finger paint like a badass. I am amazed by all the things you can do.

It's hard not to think of you as my baby, even though you went so far as to potty train yourself last week, just to prove your independence. "I no want weah dipuh," you announced, after using the potty for the first time on Thursday. So you just... stopped peeing in a diaper. And by Friday, we were taking you around town with no diaper, and no accidents. Who does that?!? We've pumped about a pound of marshmallows in you to as "incentive," but you don't need them. Cuz you're awesome.

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It is now Monday night. Three days have passed since your birthday, and I am just now getting around to writing about it. I'm sorry, Vi. Sometimes things slip through the cracks, and you don't get the attention I'd like to give you - even on this blog. But I love you so very, very much, and feel so blessed and lucky to have a daughter like you - so peaceful and funny and smart and sassy. I am grateful for you, and unconditional the love you've brought to our family, especially your love for your big sister. You care for Hazel in a way that is miraculous to me, and I thank you for that, Violet. It means more to me than you will ever know. Seeing you imitate her, be patient with her, hang on her every word, and share your treasures with her, melts my heart. Seeing you two girls scheme and giggle and shriek makes me think that I must be doing something right.

Happy Birthday, Violet, and many more to come. Dada, Hazel and I love you so very much; more than you love marshmallows! And that's a lot.

Love,
Mama