Four!

Today Lily officially became a four-year-old.  All day she kept asking me - "am I four yet?"  Finally at dinner time I could tell her - "yes, honey you're four now".  Playing that little game with her made me wonder if I had forgotten what time she was born.  It seemed crazy to think I got to the hospital at 6AM, but she didn't make her entrance until twelve hours later!  On the way home from dinner she remarked from the back seat "I dont' FEEL like I'm four".  And boy can I echo that sentiment - how can our baby girl be FOUR?

Four years feels like such a long time - as in how can she be SO OLD?  Yet, at the same time it's such a blip in her life.  I know I hardly remember anything about being four.  How can it some so young and yet so old at that same time?

Our baby girl has changed a lot this year - and although she still enjoys being wrapped in a blanket post-bath so we can ooo and ahh over the "cute little baby" - she is very much a pre-schooler now.  She can write her name and a bunch of other things.  She can read some words here and there.  She asks us math questions formulated around allocating cookies.  She is independent, stubborn and mouthy.  She is her Dad, through and through, but with her Mom's quick temper.  She is fiercely inquisitive and is quickly driven to tears of frustration when she can't get an answer to a question quickly.  She likes figuring out how things work.

She is getting an education in comic book super heros from her Dad and has latched onto J'on J'onzz, the Martian Manhunter.  Her favorite music groups are the Somerville Sunsetters, They Might be Giants and the Monkees (in that order).   She does not like having her picture taken or wearing tutus.  She likes to wear bright colors and has organized her clothes into "special day" and non-special day categories.  The distinctions don't exactly align with how her Mom would like it.   She requested a short haircut, "like Quinn's".   Her favorite TV shows are Curious George and Between the Lions.  She loves doing puzzles and is pretty good at them.  She loves books.

She is sweet, playful and sharp as a tack.   She still likes to cuddle, but has informed me that I tell her that I love her "too many times".  She is growing up way too fast for my liking. She is angsty and has taken to telling us that she doesn't like us or that we're mean.  But she loves to make cards for us and runs to greet us at the door when either of us comes home with a big hug.  We put sweet dreams in her head every night before she goes to bed and we both sort of like it when she occasionally crawls into bed with us in the middle of the night.  She still likes to be carried and enjoys riding on my back while singing "Piggy-Back Rider" to the tune of Paperback Writer.

Happy Birthday Lily.  Thank you for another fantastic year of awesomeness.  We are so lucky.