A few weeks ago, we went to Bridge Street to walk around on a Friday night, when the bands are out playing. Since Emily loves to dance, she just had to show off her moves.

Then, over Thanksgiving, Emily got together with her cousin Colin and had a good time playing at the park. I took some video and stitched together a couple of clips and still shots into this little movie.

I also have a goal to get Emily off of her Disney movie obsession. We have watched about half of My Fair Lady and she likes that so far, so I am going to let her watch the original movie version starring Rex Harrison. After we finish reading Heidi, I am going to show her the Shirley Temple version of the movie. This won’t break her of the Mouse, but it will expose her to other classic films that will not drive me nuts to watch.

Today you moved up into the ‘big kid’ class at daycare.  You put on your new school uniform and off we went.

We put your new ‘big kid’ backpack…your first reaction: “Mommy, what’s that smell?  It stinks!”  Then I explained to you about that ‘new backpack smell’.  I don’t think you believed me.

When we arrived at the daycare, it was packed.  Many parents were lingering as they dropped off their new Pre-K’ers.  We arrived just in time for a group photo.  As I looked at the group of kids, some of which you’d been with since you were an infant, I couldn’t believe how you all had grown.

Some kids were sitting around looking shell-shocked, others had tears running down their cheeks, and then there you were my bright, shining star, my Emily; sitting there with a big grin on your face, bouncing on your knees with excitement.

I hope you have a great first day of Pre-K.

My Dearest Emily,

Another year has passed, and I cannot help but sit back and contemplate all the things you have done in that time. Over the past year, I have watched you transform into a little girl. Gone is the toddler with unsteady feet and words. Instead, in her place is a child who is well articulated and steady. You have blossomed over this last year. You can count to 30, you are beginning to put letters together to spell words, and your vocabulary has increased dramatically. Never did I think that my 4-year old would look at me and say “That is correct, Mother”.

On your birthday, you asked to go to the Mac store to play Dora. The Mac store! You are more like your father every day.

You take great pride in picking out your own clothes.  You always have a counterargument ready when your mother tries to modify what you have picked out.  “But Mom, they both have flowers!  They match!”

You love all things pink and purple. You love wearing dresses and playing dress up. You love to sing and talk all day. You love fairies and princesses with abandon.

Your favorite shows are Dora and Jake and the Neverland Pirates.

You love drawing and cutting and all things art, even when you yourself are the canvas.

You are quite the mother hen in your class with all children smaller than you, regardless of their age.

You went to the dentist for the first time and had your first real birthday party with friends.

Your best friends are Tori, Taylor, and Mackenzie at daycare. Liza, Sonja, and Phoebe are never far from your mind though when not at school.

You love your teachers Mrs. Grant and Mrs. Ana at daycare. There is much wailing and gnashing of teeth should either of them dare to take a personal day. And you consistently call me Mrs. Ana at home, almost as much as you call me mom.

You call me Mother, M-o-m, Mama, and Mommy depending on your mood and if I’ve done anything to aggravate you. Sometimes it is accompanied with an eye roll or two.

This year we began hearing “You just don’t understand”, “It’s not fair”, and “Leave me alone! You’re aggravating me!”

You  made your first snow angel and had your first snowball fight.  You managed to dump tons of snow down Mommy’s back.

You had your first dance recital; it was 15 minutes long and you refused to wear your tap shoes. At the break, while all the other little girls were changing into their ballet shoes, you skipped around in circles becoming the star of the show.

You begged to be in ‘yogurt’ classes because your best friends were doing so. You seemed to really love yoga and continually ask if it is yoga day.

I look at you and am continually amazed at the little person you have become. Your personality has really bloomed and you have opinions about everything! You are stubborn and strong-willed, but you get that honest. My mom was right; the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.

Your beautiful curly red hair and blue-green eyes catch the attention of everyone around us. We can’t go anywhere without someone complimenting you on your hair and how cute you are. Then you smile and shyly hide your face. You don’t hesitate to let someone know you like their shoes or clothes. You even compliment women on their painted toe nails. I can already tell you are going to be the death of us when you are a teenager. But we wouldn’t trade it for the world.

You capture the hearts of all you meet, strangers and loved ones alike. We are very lucky to have you. And while we may get mad and cranky, as most parents are apt to do, remember this:  we’ll love you forever, we’ll like you for always, Aa long as we’re living our baby you’ll be.

…our baby, our little girl, our Emily.

Sunday afternoon, while she was supposed to be napping, she managed to “paint” her fingernails and toenails along with applying makeup to her three Barbie dolls. Monday afternoon, while she was supposed to be napping, she somehow managed to pull over the changing table that we use as a dresser in her room. Luckily, she did not pull it on top of her, but it did hit her on the way down. When I figured out what was going on and got up there to right the changing table (and trying to call down the screaming child), I noticed that she had taken a marker to her forehead and, strangely, to both of her feet. I never could really get a straight answer out of her as to what she was doing to pull the changing table down, but she had to have been climbing on it. This morning, Ashley and I made the mistake of, at 6am, telling her to go up to her room to play quietly instead of getting up with her immediately. Instead, she started drawing on her mini-easel with marker and, getting bored with that, drawing on the coffee table. Luckily, I was able to get most of the black magic marker out of the oak table, so no real harm done.

By lunch today, I braved the cold and lingering snow so that I could go in to the office and get 4 hours or so of peaceful work done without a running, questioning commentary on what I am doing.

If you haven’t had a chance to check out my new site, peruse my thoughts on having a Kindle and an Apple TV and how that is changing my media consumption.

When Did I get a Teenager?

• One of my top picks for Emily’s name was Massey — it would have been fitting given her red hair.
• Kids grow into sassy little teenagers sooner than you think — this picture nails Em’s attitude exactly.
• Apparently, the boy–girl divisions start around preschool. Last week, Em informed me that boys are yucky and since I am a boy, I am yucky too.
• Kids become devious sooner rather than later. After telling me that she didn’t love me and was not my friend, I informed Em that I only read good-night stories to my friends. She then quickly changed her mind and stated that I was her “best friend”. This lasted until I put her to bed, where she grinned and told me that I was yucky once more.

Today, we are having a little party for her at school. Then, tonight, we will let her choose what she wants for dinner tonight, let her have a piece of Dora cake, and let her open her presents from family. Tomorrow, we learn how to ride a bike

Yesterday morning, as I was brushing my teeth, Emily came into our room and seemingly noticed this figurine for the first time. What did she think it was? “Here is Daddy and here is Mommy!” Do you think that she may be saying that Ashley is a bit on the short side?

I asked Emily what she was doing and I got this response: “I see snakes.” I asked her where and she pointed at the pillow and then swung her arm around to point at a random place on the floor. “Oh no! Snakes!” she exclaimed. I decided to play along, so we spent the rest of the morning, until time to go, chasing around the house, hunting for snakes and catching them.

This evening, after we got home, I was sure that she had forgotten all about the snakes. However, after dinner, she suddenly turned to me and, in that cute little two year old voice, whispered “Daddy! Snakes!! I get two snakes, kay?”

The great snake hunt of 2009 was on again.

Occasionally we go out to eat for dinner. In this picture, we had gone to Red Robin. Emily carried on for 15 minutes wanting a balloon that they give away to the kids. Finally, we relented and got one for her. She went NUTS with it!

You can see some more pictures in the At Play album.