Six Years Old

My sweet Eden-
Today you turn six!  You now need two hands to show how old you are!  I remember the day you were born and it feels like it was just yesterday!  Never in my wildest dreams could I have ever imagined what a beautiful girl you would be six years later!  You are smart, caring, loving, shy and funny and I can't imagine what I would do without you!  Here are some things I want to remember about you as you turn another year older:

-You continue to be tall and thin.  You are by far the tallest girl in your kindergarten class and you are taller than most of the boys too!  You weigh about 46 pounds and wear size 6 clothes and size 12/13 shoes.

-You are a very picky eater.  You hate trying new foods and would rather go to bed hungry than take a bite of something new.  You can be very stubborn when it comes to eating and it often drives me crazy!  I was hoping by this point you would be a little better about trying new foods but it seems like you are actually getting worse.  Some things that you will always eat are chicken nuggets, manicotti, any type of beans (especially pinto beans and refried beans), cheese quesadillas, bean burritos, black olives, cashews and applesauce.  There are no vegetables that you will eat and applesauce (and an occasional banana) is pretty much the only fruit you will eat.  Maybe this year will be the year you break out of your shell and start trying new things!

-You are doing so well in kindergarten!  Your reading continues to improve and get better every day!  I think you are reading on a level 12 (mid-first grade level) right now. Your speech continues to improve too.  You go to speech therapy only one day a week and I think you will probably be dismissed from speech this year!  You have transitioned into school better than daddy and I ever thought you would and have made so many new friends.  Some of the friends you talk about are Tai and Lorelei.  You love Mrs. Pritchard and love going to school every day!

-You still love to play with the bucket of hot wheel cars.  You pick it over almost everything else in the playroom.  You also love to play pretend with Parker and Eden.  Family and Ninja Turtles are your favorite things to pretend.  You occasionally play with your dolls and have started playing with Barbies a little bit.  You have also shown an interest in Legos recently.

-Although you have made a lot of progress, you are still painfully shy and do not like to have any attention brought upon you.  If there is any chance that someone will look at you, there is no way that you will participate.  You also get very anxious about things when you don't know what to expect.  We have found that role playing and acting out unfamiliar situations with you before they happen can lessen your anxiety, but you still get very nervous and sometimes will not participate even with the role playing.

-Your beautiful, curly hair continues to be the bane of your existence!  You want straight hair more than anything in the world and you ask me every.single.day when you are going to start growing straight hair.  Aunt MerMer recently straightened your hair for you and you spent two days in absolute heaven.  You even cried when I made you take a bath because you knew your curly hair would come back.  I hope you learn to embrace your hair soon.  If you don't, I have a feeling you might be spending all of your allowance on straightening products when you get older.

-You are so loving!  You tell me several times a day how much you love me and often shower me with hugs and kisses!  I never get tired of hearing "I love you Mommy"! You are also very sensitive and get your feelings hurt very easily.

-Your favorite things to watch on TV right now are Ninja Turtles and Rabbids. 

-When asked what you want to be when you grow up, your current response is an eye doctor during the day and a singer girl at night, which makes us laugh because you can't carry a tune in a bucket!

It has been so much fun to watch you grow and change over the past six months!  You have really matured in so many areas, especially since starting kindergarten.  You are a delight to parent and I love being your mommy!  I pray that the upcoming year has wonderful things ahead for you!

I love you to the moon and back, Mommy