It just so happens that Miss Chief was born precisely on our first anniversary, so it's just a coincidence that we're currently at Walt Disney World as she turns four years old. We're really here to celebrate our fifth anniversary and re-live our honeymoon- albeit a slightly different feel than our honeymoon, what with two kids in tow. But oh my goodness, she is, in fact, four years old now. It's like I blinked and a whole year passed by. Let's see how she's grown over that year.
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| making this whole big sister thing official in December |
Growing taaaaaaaaall! She's got her some long, skinny legs and has pretty much lost all her baby fat, so if you're not paying attention, you could mistake her for a teenager- especially when she's being sassy ;) She's pretty solidly in a size 5 now, and we shop in the kids section where she's an XS. Size 4 t-shirts still fit so her closet is full of tops; she could probably go a whole month without wearing the same shirt more than once.
Eating much more sophisticated flavors than I was as a four-year-old. Living in this area, we have an incredible variety of restaurants to choose from, and she's got a "usual" dish for every cuisine- Indian, Chinese, Italian, Mexican, Japanese, Greek...
Talking with quite the mature vocabulary. She learns a new word at school probably once a week and is good about incorporating it into conversations as often as she can. They also teach a light smattering of Spanish at her daycare, so she can count to ten and tell you the words for all the colors. Lately, she starts almost all of her sentences with "Hey, you know-" and then she'll share a little a little anecdote about her day or a fact she learned in school or give her spin on a joke from one of her TV shows. She has a hard time waiting her turn in a conversation- especially if Mr Geek and I are talking about something among ourselves, she'll interrupt with whatever thought popped into her head, so we're trying to help her work on that. I do love the long, thoughtful conversations we have on the drive home if I pick her and her brother up from daycare- when she's slightly tired, she's really rather insightful.
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| preschool glamour shots, because imagining her as a 13-year-old is what I need right now |
Making facial expressions that are all her own. She's got her daddy's sense of humor and her mommy's bossy streak, but her little grumpy face or her "y'all are
so not cool" side-eye are completely hers.
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| letting out her inner diva at her first dance recital |
Listening to songs from her favorite Disney movies- especially
Moana, which I think she can recite in its entirety. She's also sort of obsessed with the show
The Lion Guard and loves listening to the theme song, since they use it for warm up in her dance class. She'll sing to her baby brother if he's upset- normally either the ABC's or Twinkle, Twinkle, but sometimes she makes up her own silly song and he'll stop crying and watch her dance around like a fool.
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| falling in love with her baby brother |
Sleeping so much better than she was a year ago. She'll even take the occasional nap at daycare! (Never at home. Naps are for quitters.) She loves that we get to include her baby brother in bedtime prayers, and extra hugs and kisses with him is really the only thing she does to procrastinate going to sleep. This summer, we upgraded to a king sized bed, and handed down our queen mattress to her. About a month ago, she was having mild nightmares, and we'd wake up to find her snuggled in between us. But mostly, she like to take advantage of having her own large bed- large enough for Mommy or Daddy to sit with her even after prayers have been said. We really have no excuse for not staying and cuddling, so most nights, someone does, until she falls asleep. She can make even the biggest bed feel small, though- by sleeping entirely horizontal, and filling every spare square inch with stuffed animals.
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| getting ready to go to the theater |
Loving her baby brother, much more than she ever thought she would; the responsibilities of being a big sister; picking out her own outfits; pretty much the entire Nick Jr lineup; finding her sight words on signs and menus and in books; sounding out words to figure out how to spell them; her red tricycle; ballet class; collecting stickers; trying out the filters on Instagram stories.
Hating when Mommy and Daddy are at work and we can't all be together; the suggestion that maybe it might be time for bed, even thought the actual bedtime routine isn't all that bad; not being able to choose her own outfit; pretty much any activity that requires sitting still and/or being quiet; having mealtime conversation cut off so that she can, you know, eat.
Where has the time gone?
Much love,
The Geeks
