A Little Note to My Grace Ellen

Sweet girl.

Precious treasure of mine.

You have made me LOVE three and a half years old.

Sure there is stubbornness.  There are lots of tears and incessant talking.

But there is also so much wonder, sweetness, and beautiful curiosity.

You are fantastically articulate, but still say adorable things like, “rainbrella” (umbrella) “mush-mellow” (marshmallow) “ew-meal” (oatmeal) “tew-neel” (toenail) and “frust-a-dated” (frustrated).

I cannot bring myself to correct you because I melt into a puddle of mush when you say each one of them like that.

You were NOT a cuddly baby, but you have become such a cuddly girl!  You know how much daddy and I love hugs, kisses, and snuggles so I’m sure you work it to your advantage sometimes, but we love it no matter what.

You and Avery are starting to really appreciate each other which warms my heart.  You get truly disappointed when she goes down for nap and you’ve gotten so good at sharing with her and playing together.  Whenever I run down to the basement to switch a load of laundry, you proudly announce that you’re going to “watch over Avery” while I’m gone.

You love doing grown-up things, and you practically beg to help me unload the dishwasher and sort laundry.  Doing those everyday tasks with you makes them so much more enjoyable for me.

You’ve started to ask me deep questions about birth, death, and heaven.  Our conversations challenge my socks off.  You really want to understand it all even though it’s so far over your head.  The weight of teaching you these important things is sometimes frightening, but I pray that God gives me wisdom to lead you in the right direction.

Everyday is brighter because you’re in it.  I love you to the moon and back.

My Gracie Boo Bear.