Letters to Maddie Bear: March, 2014

Dear Madeline,
Happy half birthday, Maddie Bear! This morning I told you that you are now three -and-a-half years old. You rushed downstairs to share the news with Dada and Vivienne. "Yeah, Vivi," you bragged," I'm three and a half!" Quite the milestone.
Now that we're together basically every second of every day, we get on one another's nerves from time to time. And you are so very, very three, my darling, that it's easy to get bogged down in the negatives.
Yet, when I step back and really see you in all your kiddish glory, I am so proud. You're such a good kid. You're polite. You're smart. You're funny. You're sensitive. You try your best to please us, and you're patient. (Most of the time.) I couldn't ask for anything better than you.

You like to tell me what you know. You told me where snakes live the other afternoon before moving on to the habitats of birds and squirrels. This morning you asked me if I knew what happens when the sun goes down.
"The sky turns pink, Mumma," you informed me. "And it's called a sunset."
You've had nightmares almost every night for the past two weeks. It started with a dream that there were worms in your bed. Since then, every night you wake up crying. You say you're scared of the dark and don't want to stay in your room. It's very sad. We're doing our best to let you know that you're safe and that Mumma and Dada are there.
You've been a bit more clingy during the day as well. You don't like it when I leave the room. You thought there was a monster in the kitchen yesterday, but it was just Dada's jacket. Every piece of lint or fuzz looks like a spider to you. You do not like spiders. I hope this phase passes quickly.

You continue to be a good big sister most of the time. I caught you singing a lullaby to Vivi when she was crying in her crib as I got dressed the other morning. I've sung you Beautiful Boy (except I change the lyrics to "beautiful girl") by John Lennon since you were a baby, and I was pleased to find you passing the tradition on to your little sister.

On the other hand, you have the bad habit of gritting your teeth when you speak to Vivienne. So even though you're saying, "Hello, sweet girl," it comes across as angry and aggressive. It's actually kinda funny because you think you're being gentle.

You also try to get her in trouble sometimes by telling us she hit you or poked you. I always say that her hand didn't hit you; your cheek hit her hand. And yesterday you called her, "poopy Vivienne." Sigh. So it begins.
Still, I try to impress upon you the importance of being kind to your baby sister, and I think you get it. We had a mouse in the house a few weeks ago, and you talked afterward of protecting Vivienne from it. You try to comfort her when she's sad.
Your new favorite place is the library. We go twice a week because you like it so much. You play with the toys, use the computer, and read lots of books. It's a nice way to use up an afternoon until it gets warm out.
Dada has been playing songs for you on YouTube. Now you sing "Everything is Awesome" and "Happy" all day long. Otherwise you're singing "Let it Go." It amazes me how quickly you learn song lyrics. And watching you shake your booty is pretty hilarious too.

I can't believe that you're so big and grownup! Tear...sniff...snort.
Love, Mumma