Today is Ellie’s 9th birthday. At the beginning of the year Ellie’s teacher told us to put on our thinking caps. All of the parents were to write a letter to/about their child for their birthdays and Mrs. Lockwood would read it to the class. Mrs. Lockwood didn’t give many directives, but Ellie sure did. ’NOTHING EMBARRASSING!’
Ellie loved what I wrote and I can only assume, that since she did not crawl under her desk and die, that there was nothing embarrassing. Here’s what I came up with…
Dear Ellie:
Happy Birthday kid! I have no idea how I am going to condense nine years into a letter, but I’m going to give it a shot.
You were born at Swedish Hospital in Seattle. I remember that I went into labor at 6 in the morning but you were pretty comfortable in my belly. By the time we got a babysitter for Jill and drove all the way into Seattle from Issaquah, you’d changed your mind. But I was determined to meet you on the 19th (your due date) so I told you dad ‘We are NOT going back across this bridge without a baby!’ Good thing you decided to come after all (at 8 that night) or I might have had to kidnap somebody else’s baby!
Many people would not know it just by looking at you (because you are so petite), but you were my biggest baby. You tipped the scales at nine pounds, nine ounces! You came out kicking and screaming with straight black hair and the chubbiest cheeks ever.
You have always been a fan of fashion. You learned how to walk when you were 12 months old and by 13 months old you had mastered walking in high heels. (I can’t even walk in high heels that well!) You’ve been choosing your own outfits since you were old enough to talk and you aren’t afraid to mix and match items to make a great look.
One of my favorite stories about you happened when you were about two years old. I put you down for a nap up in your room and then I went down to play with your older sister Jill. Jill wanted to play ‘bakery’ so she loudly asked me ‘Who wants a cookie?’ I guess you weren’t asleep yet because over the baby monitor we heard ‘I do!’
You are my quiet, introspective girlie, although I didn’t know that until you went to school. You are perfectly happy to chat my ear off and make yourself heard at home, but it wasn’t until your first year at preschool that I found out you were shy. Your teachers said they hadn’t heard more than two words from you all year! The beautiful thing about you, though, is you may be shy, but you are no pushover. You definitely let people know how you feel in your own way.
You love playing soccer, your are a good little skier and a great swimmer. You had a great time last summer biking and scootering and playing legos with the neighbors. Legos, are your new obsession and you can’t get enough of them. You are even having a lego birthday party!
I love watching you with your sisters. You guys are such a great unit. You always lookout for each other. When you were younger I would have to encourage you guys to play with other kids because your instinct was to go off and play with just the three of you. Speaking of sisters, you are often mistaken for a twin with your younger sister Kate. Not only do you look similar, but you have some twin behaviors too. If one of you falls out of bed the other one will cry. The other night Kate was crying in her sleep so you walked to her room, in YOUR sleep, and would not leave until we could quiet Kate. Neither one of you remember it, but even in your sleep you are looking out for your sisters!
You are amazingly artistic and creative. The way you approach an art project is fascinating to me because it is usually the opposite from me. If I am going to draw a tree I would start with the trunk, but you might start with the leaves and apples. You see things others just take for granted.
We are so blessed to have you in our life and your Dad and I eagerly look forward to watching our thoughtful, loving girlie grow into a thoughtful, loving woman.
We love you!
Mama
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