Dear 4 Year Old Kyndall

My Sweet Kyndall....

 

I can hardly believe you are about to be FOUR years old.  It wasn't that long ago that I was swaddling you up and letting you sleep on my chest.  You were a teeny tiny bundle at just 6 pounds, 5 ounces when I first held you on that September day.  Now you're 32 pounds and 39 inches of total girliness with a personality that's bigger than you are.

 

I'm writing this letter a little early because as you know, Mommy is pretty sick and I could be called away at any time to "go get my new liver" as you would say.  I hope to be here to celebrate your birthday in a few weeks, but if not I'm sure you will understand why.  You're very aware of what's going on and you're sensitive to the importance of what will soon take place.  There will be many other birthdays to come and if I miss this one, I promise to never miss another! 

 

I know I say this in every birthday letter that I write, but I just love the age you are right now.  You are so much fun to be around and you keep everyone laughing constantly!  Your personality just shines and you spread joy everywhere you go, simply by being yourself.  You are independent yet you still want Mommy and Daddy around.  You are confident but humble.  You are friendly and outgoing and you never meet a stranger.  You are sensitive but strong willed.  You are beautiful beyond your years yet you still maintain your child-like innocence with your high pitched voice and your tiny stature.  You are just PERFECT and I wish I could bottle you up and keep you exactly as you are right now, forever. 

 

Over the past year you've experienced many new things.  You've completed your first year of ballet class and performed in your very first recital.  You've learned to swim and how to dress yourself.  You've made new friends and said goodbye to others, including your very best friend Caroline.  You've experienced the sadness of death with the passing of your Great Grandaddy, and also the joy of new life with the birth of your very first cousin, Wyatt.  You've moved into a new house and began sleeping in a "big girl" bed all by yourself.  You've had your first haircut and had your first visit to the dentist.  You attended your first Vacation Bible School and had your first sleep over.  It's been a great year with many milestones and many memories made.

 

At (almost) four years old, you have very strong opinions about things including what you like and do not like to eat. You are still extremely picky, but I'm happy to say you've expanded your options somewhat over the past few months.  You still refuse to eat any meat, other than an occasional fish stick.  Your favorites include cheese, (grilled cheese, cheese quesadilla, mac and cheese, mayo and cheese sandwiches) yogurt, fruit of almost any kind (watermelon, strawberries, kiwi, grapes, bananas, apples, oranges), bagels with cream cheese, peanut butter toast, pop tarts, waffles, pancakes with syrup, mashed potatoes, french fries, cheese pizza, gummy fruit snacks, popcorn, cereal with milk, dill and sweet pickles and any kind of sweets.  You love going to Sam's and getting a giant soft pretzel and dipping it in yellow mustard.  Your newest likes which we've worked very hard to achieve are broccoli, cucumbers and cherry tomatoes....all dipped in ranch dressing of course. You prefer chocolate milk over white milk and juice of any kind, but orange is probably your favorite.  You also enjoy cherry Icees which you get quite frequently since Mommy is so addicted to the Coke ones.

 

You usually go to bed around 9:00 or 9:30 and you sleep all night long until at least 9:00 in the morning.  This works well for us, as Mommy is still not much of a morning person!  You attend Englewood Parents' Day Out two days a week which has proven to be a wonderful experience for you.  You are such a social child and you thrive when you're around other kids and when you're stimulated academically as well.  In my opinion  you are very smart for a four year old and many people assume you're much older than you are, just based on your vocabulary and your social skills.  You have recently memorized the entire pledge of allegiance, which is something that most kids don't learn until they start elementary school.  You can successfully count to 20 on your own and you can go beyond that with a little help.  You recognize letters of the alphabet and we are working on writing your name. 

 

I have a feeling you're going to excel in the arts because your creativity and artistic abilities are simply amazing.  When most kids your age would prefer to be playing with baby dolls, you are most happy when you're sitting at your art table coloring, drawing, cutting and gluing your latest creations.  I am blown away by how well you manage to stay in the lines when using a coloring book and your attention to detail is almost humorous.  You are also very much of a perfectionist when it comes to your artwork and often become frustrated when something doesn't turn out just perfect, the way you intended it to.  You love glitter, pipe cleaners, stickers and markers.  You insist on proudly displaying your creations on your bulletin board or on the refrigerator for all to see.  I'm still not sure whether you'll be left handed or right handed.  It seems that you go back and forth between the two, especially when holding crayons or pencils.  You also love making things out of play dough as well as painting.  If given the choice between a trip to the craft store and a trip to the toy store, chances are you'll choose the craft store.  You just love using your creative abilities and I adore that about you!

 

Recently you've taken up a new love for all things My Little Pony related.  Your favorite pony is Rainbow Dash, but you also love Pinkie Pie, Twilight Sparkle, Apple Jack and Fluttershy.  Because of your love for Rainbow Dash, you are now infatuated with all things "rainbow".  In fact, we are having a rainbow themed 4th birthday party because that's what you asked for.  Just a few months ago you could not get enough of "Elsa" from the movie Frozen.  You insisted that we refer to you as Elsa and you danced around the house wearing a long cape and singing "Let it Go" at the top of your lungs.  Though you still adore Elsa, Olaf and all of the other Frozen characters, Rainbow Dash is now your number one love. 

 

You make friends everywhere you go because you are just so friendly and so approachable.  You are always smiling and giggling and your happiness is infectious.  You are a true southern lady and always say "thank you" when complimented.  (We are still working on the "yes ma'am" and "yes sir" part) Most often people remark about your beautiful blonde hair and your sparkling blue eyes.  Maybe it's because you're mine, but I think you're the most gorgeous girl in the whole world.  I love your dainty little parts and your petite stature.  You love wearing dresses and thankfully you still allow me to adorn your pretty little head with big giant bows.  You love to have your nails painted and your hair curled. 

 

Your very best friend is Caroline Raley but she moved to Texas two weeks ago.  We still talk to her as often as possible and we've even used Face Time to allow you to see each other.  Your other close friends are Riley, Micah and Haiden.  They are all church friends as well, so you are able to see them pretty often.  You're still the youngest of all your friends but I think you do a pretty good job of keeping up with those older girls! 

 

You are very curious and you're not satisfied with a simple answer.  You want to know how things work and why.  You are into the details of everything.  For example, you recently noticed the pipes under our kitchen sink. You asked me what they were and I told you.  But that wasn't enough--you wanted to know exactly how the work, where the water comes from, how it gets hot and cold and where the pipes go.  You did the same thing when you noticed the electrical poles along the highway not too long ago.  You wanted to know what those cables were and where they went.  You asked questions that I didn't even know how to answer!  Just this morning you asked me why the sun keeps going up and down every day and why the moon only comes out at night.  You have also been known to ask me what stars are made out of and why we can't touch them.  Sometimes I wonder if you might grow up to be an engineer because you love figuring out how things work.  I can see the wheels turning in your little head as you look at something simple that most 4 year olds wouldn't even care about and you try to analyze it and find out how why it does what it does.  You're just too smart!

 

You are currently wearing mostly 4T clothes but you can also still wear a lot of 3T things.  You still have a pretty big foot like your Mama, wearing a size 10 shoe.  You have all of your primary teeth, 20 total.  You weigh 32 pounds and are about 39 inches tall. 

 

You are a Daddy's girl but also your Mama's mini-me.  You enjoy spending time helping Daddy in the yard, going to play golf with him and keeping up the tradition of your Saturday morning breakfast dates at Perkins.  You are usually more well behaved when Daddy is around, but I suppose that's typical.  You get such pleasure out of helping me out around the house---whether it's dusting, mopping, doing laundry or even cleaning the toilets---you want to help with it all.  You are also very organized and neat, just like me.  Your play room is usually in perfect order and you don't like it when I move things without asking you first.  You definitely display some OCD tendencies (again, like your Mama) such as lining up your stuffed animals in a certain "order" in your bed each night and not wanting your food to touch or get mixed together on your plate.  You also can't stand it if I move your creations around on the fridge and you always always notice when I take something down and retire it to the keepsake box.  You nearly have a come apart when your hands get sticky or your face gets messy while eating.  You keep us laughing with your persnickety ways!

 

You love Skyping with Grammy, G-Daddy, Nonie and Poppie and you frequently ask when we're going to see them again.  You are crazy over your new baby cousin, Wyatt and have recently taken an interest in babies.  You have lots of questions, such as why babies want warm milk instead of cold milk and why Wyatt doesn't eat food.  Just this week you've begun asking me lots of questions about your belly button and why it's there.  I tried explaining it in simple terms but I think it just thoroughly confused you. 

 

I sat down and asked you some questions today and I got a kick out of your answers.  I will ask you these same questions every year around this time and I'm anxious to see how your responses will change as you grow older.

 



1.  What is your favorite color?  Pink

2.  What is your favorite toy?  My Little Ponies

3.  What is your favorite fruit?  Strawberries

4.  What is your favorite show?  My Little Ponies

5.  What is your favorite thing to eat for lunch?  Grilled cheese

6.  What is your favorite outfit to wear?  Pony t-shirts

7.  What is your favorite game to play?  When Daddy hides and chases me

8.  What is your favorite snack?  Popsicles

9.  What is your favorite animal?  Ponies

10.  What is your favorite song?  The Happy song ("Happy" by Pharrell Williams)

11.  What is your favorite book?  Frozen books

12.  Who is your best friend?  Caroline

13.  What is your favorite restaurant?  Snappy Tomatoes

14.  What is your favorite thing to do outside?  Pick flowers and smell them

15.  What is your favorite drink?  Mommy juice (water with crystal light flavoring)

16.  What is your favorite holiday?  Christmas

17.  What do you take with you to bed?  Ponies and my flashlight

18.  What do you like to eat for breakfast?  Poptarts with rainbow sprinkles

19.  What do you want to eat for your birthday dinner?  A cake

20.  What do you want to be when you grow up?  I want to go to work and make money like Daddy

21.  What is your favorite place to go? School

22.  What is your favorite thing to do with Mommy?  Get Icees

23.  What is your favorite thing to do with Daddy?  Eat breakfast at Perkins and then play golf

24.  What is your favorite thing about yourself?  My long hair like Elsa

25.  If you could go anywhere in the world, where would you go?  Disney World and Wild Adventures

 

 

Kyndall, You are the apple of our eye, our pride and joy and our greatest accomplishment.  You are loved and adored beyond words and you will always be our baby girl, no matter how many birthdays you celebrate.  We are so thankful that the Lord chose us to be your parents.  Our lives have been made complete by having you in them and we can't even remember or imagine life before you came along.  My prayer for you is that you will continue to be the sweet, funny, happy and care free little girl that you are today and that you go into the world spreading joy to all who you encounter.  I pray that the love of Jesus will radiate through you and that you will change this world for the better.  Keep your fearless and headstrong personality and you are sure to go places and do BIG things!  Use the gifts that you have been given and never doubt yourself.  You are fearfully and wonderfully made and you are beautiful both inside and out.  Please remember that when the world tries to tell you differently.  Above all, know that you are loved more than you can ever imagine! 

 

Happy 4th birthday, my sweet Kyndall Anne!!