Dearest Baby E,

When I asked you what your favorite number was today you held up three fingers, stared at your hand, smiled, and added another finger. Four. Four is your new favorite number.

You’ve always lived life to the beat of your own drum. After you were born and we were still in the hospital you had a scrunched up little face and eyes that never opened. When we brought you home, you opened your eyes, looked back and forth between me and daddy with a look of confusion, as if we were just now meeting.

From that moment you have kept us on our toes. You have this incredibly unique personality that sets you apart from other kids your age. You have strong opinions about everything and a set way that life should be lived. You can create magic out of nothing, seeing your favorite stories and characters in the mundane of everyday life. See that broom? It’s not a broom. It’s Moana. What about those keys? Also Moana. In fact, if you look hard enough… anything can be turned into Moana. (I’ll be honest though kid, it’s not flattering to be laying on the floor and being recruited to play the part of Moana’s boat!)

Your favorite toys include a broom named “Dirts,” a troll doll named “Creepy,” any small lego or stone that can be turned into the Heart of Tefiti, a Rapunzel doll that is a bathtub staple, an old wig you like to wear backwards so that you have awesome hair, and any small balls you can collect as “core memories” (Inside Out.) You also like to collect feathers and try to sneak them into the bathtub so you can see how they act underwater.

You are a pretty picky eater, but you love pancakes, Papa Johns Pizza, pumpkin seeds, black olives, and pistachios. You like to say you enjoy cake, but in all honesty, you only eat the frosting. You absolutely hate all things bread, but you’ve recently acquired a taste for cooked mushrooms.

Speaking of mushrooms, you are obsessed. You have an eye for picking out the smallest fungi while walking though the forest. Your favorite book is the large fungi identification book we get from the library. You love to flip through it and look at all the beautiful pictures.

Your favorite place to go is the pool, though you don’t actually want to swim. You just want to sit on the steps and play with toys. Your favorite movies are Moana, Robin (Neighbor) Hood, and Inside Out. Sometimes you like to have Super Tim Speed, and run around the house as an awesome superhero that drives a red van.

While you may be incredibly creative and hilarious, you are also very shy. Meeting new people is difficult for you, but once you warm up to them (which can take months), you love them completely.

You really are an amazing kid and I am so glad to be your mommy. Watching you grow up is an adventure and I know your persistent personality will do you well as an adult. I love that you know your own mind and hold your own with your older siblings. You are a blessing to our family and your antics make us laugh. You are loving, creative, fun, silly, incredibly smart, very handsome, and we love you more than you will ever know.

Happy4th  Birthday, my sweet!

Love you! Mommy