Rosie's Fourth Birthday Letter

Sweet Rosebud,

I love you so much!! You had a Flower Pool Party today, but you were still such a princess in your fancy pink dress and your graceful poses.

Your year as a three? It slipped by so quickly. I want to slow you down and keep you little!

You love to draw and write. Getting to have your own desk her at home was a great thing for you. You're often there creating with your markers. You also really want to know how to read. I'd planned on teaching you a lot more this year - then I got sick for most of it. Still you figured out how to get the letters of you name in order. No more EROS, or ORES, you are officially ROSE. We made up a song:

This is just the name for me, R-O-S-E
I can write it, you can see, R-O-S-E
R-O-S-E, R-O-S-E
I'm as smart as I can be, R-O-S-E

You had me write out your entire name a few weeks ago- first, middle and last so that you could copy it. You really enjoy writing letters - you even wrote some on my van hood with part of your rock collection...

You are so loving and still such a good cuddler. So sweet and affectionate, my Rose.

You enjoyed your first year of ballet with Miss Louise and your little friends Kriya, Rachel, and Aeryn. You all were so cute! You have to dance to any music that's available. You even run to hide when friends or family come to the door and want me to put on music so that you can dance into the room to welcome them. And you've got some moves, girl. It amazes me how you seem to know creative steps for all different types of music that suits it perfectly.

You are still a picky eater. You would prefer to live on PBJ and chocolate milk. I think you've gotten a little sick of bananas. You do like a few other things like egg rolls, and Tostinos cheese pizza (no toppings for you - and most other brands are declared "too spicy"), but mostly you just "love sugar". What am I going to do with you?! Hopefully your love for cooking will be our ticket to a better diet.

But of course your favorite cook is Paula Deen. Not the healthiest choice, but she sure is great. You often beg to watch Paula Deen videos on the computer. And you'll sit and watch the same clips over and over you love her so much. And whenever I cook, you immediately start dragging a chair towards my location so that you can help. :^)

You cook outside a lot too. I sent your old play kitchen out beside the playhouse, so now you have yet another cooking venue. Lots of mud pies and grass soup.

You also love your dolls. Barbies, Polly Pockets, and your dollhouse have gotten lots of playtime. Two or three years ago, when we got the dollhouse, the pieces were always everywhere. I put the furniture away and when I got it out again this year it was amazing how much you'd changed. I would ask you to clean up the dollhouse, get your cheery, "yes ma'am", and walk in a few minutes later to find a dollhouse that looked like a picture from a catalogue - every piece of furniture precisely placed and dolls in chairs and beds. :^)

You love to get up early, even when you get to bed late, even when your room is dark, even when you didn't get enough sleep...

Oh, and did I mention that you then climb up on my bed and (due to your picky eating and hardly having eaten any supper the night previous) start telling me how you need food and a drink.

You really love everybody, and your new sister is no exception. You like to talk to her, greeting her with, "Bella, sweetheart. "

I love to listen to you talk. You still can't say y's sound. So lou (you) say a lot of really cute words like "les" (yes). You use a lot of w's for r's still too. It's especially cute because you're so smart. So hearing those little letter substitutions today while you recited "The New Colossus" by Emma Lazarus, just was too much. I've got to record that soon!

Here's the list you gave me of things you wanted for your birthday.

1. a flower cake (Check. Actually they were cupcakes, but you liked that better)
2. balloon flowers (We'd seen these on the Martha Stewart website. Gran tried. They weren't as easy as they looked.)
3. a flower flag (Don't know where that came from, but Gran found one to hang off her deck)
4. a rose flower present (Hmm, didn't know where to go with that one, but I think the giant tissue paper flowers must have worked for you instead)
5. a nice pink deck (You said this while looking out our deck doors, then explained that our deck was ugly and that I should tear it down and make you a nice new pink one)
6. more teddy bears than you have ever had (You have quite a few. Your favorites are three matching bears - a red one named "Jella", your first favorite bear - you give unique names like Lanalawala, a green one I named "Jello" ,and a purple one named Blueberry. Now you have a similar pink one, as yet unnamed.)
7. more clothes than we have ever had (You do love clothes, girl. Gramma got you covered - two new dresses and a two-piece outfit. And Aunt Barbara sent a pretty fairy shirt - all were met with approval.)
8. a little real bear that's nice that doesn't eat anybody (We'll save that for another year. :^)

But most importantly, Rose, you love Jesus. Near the beginning of your third year, you asked lots of questions about Jesus and heaven and when you were told that you must believe on Jesus to go to heaven, you said, "I believe". And you do. And you like to tell other people about Him. Even people in the grocery store. :^) You also love your Sunday School teacher Miss Melanie. Now you'll be heading off to the four year old class.

You're leaving the baby years behind, Miss Rose. I'm not allowed to call you "sweet baby" anymore. "Bella is lou baby, and I am a big girl." Yes you are, sweet girl, but you'll always be my baby. I love, love, love (said like Eloise of the Plaza Hotel) you, Rosie!

Love,

Mommy