A is for Almost Four

This little girl who four years ago right now was still comfortably hanging out inside me, mocking any pretense of a due date, is now suddenly not a baby, and not a toddler, but a kid. See?

Well, I shouldn't say suddenly. Anneliese has seemed... old (?) for some time now. Articulate, outgoing, tall enough to tower over the other kids in her class. I have been asked more often in the last few months if she and Nathan are twins than any other time so far in their lives. (Still hard for me to remember she is actually closer to Charlotte's age than Nathan's. Weird.)

Anyway, she is growing up. And instead of feeling all sappy and sad about the passage of time, I am sitting here feeling soaring happy thoughts about her. The exhausting horrible season of defiance and toddler frustration is really and truly over. She still has naughty maddening days, because hello, she's three, and they are just days. And in the middle of that she is downright delightful.

She loves dress-up and dancing and she sings pretty much constantly. To the radio, in church, when someone else is singing, when she knows the words and when she doesn't. The girl knows how to make a joyful noise.

She is bright and speaks well, but hasn't quite shaken the toddler habit of not getting words quiiiite right: Firefighters are fighter-fighters. Backpacks are still pack-packs. Our current season is falling.

She has been looking forward to her birthday for months. Mostly since Nathan's and Charlotte's at the end of the summer, but also kind of since her last birthday. She really loves birthdays. Like really really loves them. More than anyone I have ever known except her Aunt Ashley. She told me last week in the grocery store, in her most serious voice, I am just so excited for my birthday I can't even believe it. And then proceeded to sing her way through the rest of our errands, I love birthdays, I love birthdays, in some made-up tune because that's just... what she does. Sometimes I forget to appreciate how adorable she is because I am so used to it.

Also, clearly, she remains the best shopping buddy I have ever given birth to.

She isn't doing much (any) reading or writing yet, but she is starting to recognize letters. With every A she encounters, she proudly proclaims A is for me! Yes, they are. Every single A for you, baby girl.

So, yeah. She is pretty great these days. Still sometimes a pain in the butt, but a pain made of glitter rainbows, so we will take it.

And while I don't feel terribly sad about the passing of time as she hits another year older, I am, predictably, full of sweet and sappy thoughts about her birth and newborn days. A daughter! I had wanted a daughter so badly! And then I had one, I had her! My daughter! And four years later she is this awesome funny silly bright little person, and she is our person, our Beanie, our Anneliese, and good grief do we love her.