Dear Pophins/The Pope/Menace/Widge,
You turned two yesterday, an event that just seems unreal in many ways. This last year seems to have flown by, which is unsurprising how busy our lives have become with you becoming a full grown toddler, instead of the definite baby that you were last year. Looking back at the pictures from this last year, I can't believe just how much you've changed, from your crazy curly hair to being able to walk (and dance, and run) and starting to talk.
The biggest change is obviously your ability to get around. This time last year, you were only just learning to crawl, and watching you trying to invade your brother's personal space when you couldn't get there in time was cute. However, now you've learned to walk, your life is so much easier, and it's much more tricky for Jake to get out of your way (to be fair, most of the time, he loves your attention and he's teaching you all sorts of useful friendship skills).
You absolutely love to dance, and while you might not have the words for it, you know the sign for music and have quickly got the idea of using the thumbnails on Youtube to pick your favorite songs. Both your mom and I are eager to see where this love of music takes you, as you have very distinctive tastes (at the moment, it's Korean boy band - your mom's fault!) and you are very clear when you want to have a different song on. However, when it's your jam, you run around the house with your hands in the air and the biggest smile on your face. We're signing you up for dance classes in September, so we'll see where that takes you.
It's been delightful watching your personality come out over this year. With us as your family, it's not surprising that you're a bit of a goofball, and it's charming to watch you gurning away over the dinner table, putting on your brother's shoes (you do this a lot!) or playing hide and seek with me in the rear view mirror. You have the most expressive eyebrows which you use to create the most wonderfully cute and funny faces. The problem that we're finding is that you can put on the cutest smiles that make it very hard to say no to you. We will, have no fear, but you're already learning how to charm people to get you what you want.
While you don't have many words at the moment (but they're coming; oh boy are they coming!), you definitely score highly in the being helpful department. Sometimes this is really useful, such as in the mornings when you'll get your shoes together and try to climb into your car sear for me. Sometimes you get in your own way, such as when you insist that mommy is wearing the wrong clothes and must change, or you try and feed yourself water from a cup and spill most of it on the table. We will always encourage your independence, however, and I feel that "me do it" will be one of your first sentences.
Above all, I just love being your daddy. I get to pick you up every day from daycare, and you run towards me with open arms, waiting for me to swing you up in the air so you can touch the ceiling and babble to me about your day. I get to get you up each morning and experience the glory of your morning hair, which is as wide as it is tall, and while you look super cute with your hair tied back, or even better in bunches (daddy's favorite!), there is something adorable about your hair in its natural state. I get to sit and read books on your bed (we had to take the rail off the side as you worked out how to climb out) , and you sit on my lap, absolutely absorbed by the words and the pictures. And the best part of all is that your birthday will always come at the start of the summer vacation, and I can't wait to spend it goofing around with you.
Love you Goober.
Daddy
Friday, 23 June 2017
Monday, 22 May 2017
Jake at 5
Dear Jakey Bear,
Today marks your 5th birthday, and also a whole year of your life spent in America. What a massive year it has been for all of us, but you have taken to your new life here like a duck to water. I think part of it is your love for Nana and Papa's house (and the tractor, and the dogs, and the constant supply of food and juice they have going there), where we lived for the first 6 months of this adventure. It was such a great move from a small house in rainy Leeds where you had to share your room with your sister to having your own room, plenty of space to play and then a whole summer's worth of outdoor play and swimming in the lake.
I love how much of an outdoor kid you remain. As winter recedes and the days get warmer, more often than not you ask to go out on your four wheeler or scooter in our front yard when we get home, and when presented with the choice of going home and relaxing or heading to the park after school last week, I was delighted when you chose the latter. Even though you're only 5, I can't wait to show you all of the outdoor fun that your new country has to offer you, including adventures in our brand new canoe!
The big change that we've seen in you this year is how you've grown socially. When we decided to move to America, we wanted to give you an extra year of play and time to learn how to be around other kids more, and boy have you learned that well! We had your birthday party yesterday and it was delightful to watch you disappear in the bouncy castle with your buddies, playing fun games and being right in the thick of the friendships. A lot of kids love to hang out with you because you are a sweet and friendly kid, and it made my heart swell with pride that it was your voice that I heard telling everyone not to fight and to play nicely with each other. Please be that voice of reason and calmness with your friends as you grow older.
Yours was also the voice that I heard telling your friends to be careful around your sister, and yours were the arms that gave her a massive hug later that day. I know at times you get frustrated by Sophie, mainly because she loves you more than anything and just wants to be near you (and to play with your toys all the time!), but you are also the kindest big brother there is to her. You are so careful to be quiet around her room when she's sleeping, and you pull her around in her wagon, much to her squealing delight. Even though she can't talk yet, you have great fun squawking at her across the table and in the back seat of the car, and as soon as she gets some more words, she'll become even more fun as a play mate.
We do so many fun things together, from T-ball to art to tickle fights to racing around outside, but my favorite activity is, and I think always will be, sharing stories with you. You have such a fantastic concentration for books, and whether its a doggie story or a fact book all about trucks or dinosaurs, you make reading to you so much fun with your comments and observations. You're also starting to learn to read a few words, and it's adorable watching you pick out letters and words that you know. I don't know if you know that we know you spend a good half hour after we kiss and hug you good night reading your books and playing with your blocks in bed - we will never stop you from doing this as it's one of the cutest things you do.
This year promises to be another big one. You start Kindergarten in the fall, and while I know that Mrs Gina has done an amazing job of getting you ready for school and that you're a big confident kid, there's a small part of me that worries for you going into a school that goes all the way up to 8th grade. I know you'll be fine, and you'll make friends and learn so many fun and interesting things, and we will do everything we can, as we always do, to make your life a success.
Lots of love as always,
Daddy
Today marks your 5th birthday, and also a whole year of your life spent in America. What a massive year it has been for all of us, but you have taken to your new life here like a duck to water. I think part of it is your love for Nana and Papa's house (and the tractor, and the dogs, and the constant supply of food and juice they have going there), where we lived for the first 6 months of this adventure. It was such a great move from a small house in rainy Leeds where you had to share your room with your sister to having your own room, plenty of space to play and then a whole summer's worth of outdoor play and swimming in the lake.
I love how much of an outdoor kid you remain. As winter recedes and the days get warmer, more often than not you ask to go out on your four wheeler or scooter in our front yard when we get home, and when presented with the choice of going home and relaxing or heading to the park after school last week, I was delighted when you chose the latter. Even though you're only 5, I can't wait to show you all of the outdoor fun that your new country has to offer you, including adventures in our brand new canoe!
The big change that we've seen in you this year is how you've grown socially. When we decided to move to America, we wanted to give you an extra year of play and time to learn how to be around other kids more, and boy have you learned that well! We had your birthday party yesterday and it was delightful to watch you disappear in the bouncy castle with your buddies, playing fun games and being right in the thick of the friendships. A lot of kids love to hang out with you because you are a sweet and friendly kid, and it made my heart swell with pride that it was your voice that I heard telling everyone not to fight and to play nicely with each other. Please be that voice of reason and calmness with your friends as you grow older.
Yours was also the voice that I heard telling your friends to be careful around your sister, and yours were the arms that gave her a massive hug later that day. I know at times you get frustrated by Sophie, mainly because she loves you more than anything and just wants to be near you (and to play with your toys all the time!), but you are also the kindest big brother there is to her. You are so careful to be quiet around her room when she's sleeping, and you pull her around in her wagon, much to her squealing delight. Even though she can't talk yet, you have great fun squawking at her across the table and in the back seat of the car, and as soon as she gets some more words, she'll become even more fun as a play mate.
We do so many fun things together, from T-ball to art to tickle fights to racing around outside, but my favorite activity is, and I think always will be, sharing stories with you. You have such a fantastic concentration for books, and whether its a doggie story or a fact book all about trucks or dinosaurs, you make reading to you so much fun with your comments and observations. You're also starting to learn to read a few words, and it's adorable watching you pick out letters and words that you know. I don't know if you know that we know you spend a good half hour after we kiss and hug you good night reading your books and playing with your blocks in bed - we will never stop you from doing this as it's one of the cutest things you do.
This year promises to be another big one. You start Kindergarten in the fall, and while I know that Mrs Gina has done an amazing job of getting you ready for school and that you're a big confident kid, there's a small part of me that worries for you going into a school that goes all the way up to 8th grade. I know you'll be fine, and you'll make friends and learn so many fun and interesting things, and we will do everything we can, as we always do, to make your life a success.
Lots of love as always,
Daddy
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