LL's 7th Birthday Letter from Mommy

Lorelai,

My sweet girl.  It is already your birthday again!  Listen, I told you last year that you weren't allowed to have any more birthdays after six, and here you are at another one!  Somehow, seven seems to have lost all traces of baby/little kid.  You are now officially a big kid!

You are just at such a fun age Lorelai.  We had a few months there in the middle of being six where I thought neither of us would make it through.  But we've all been working hard, and you have made it through the other side.  You are such a sweet, respectful, obedient (mostly!) girl.  I can not even begin to tell you how proud I am of you.  You are an amazing girl.

One place I am really proud of you - school.  You are not just doing well, you are exceeding.  You are flourishing.  You teacher has said that you are so sweet to all of your classmates, you never are mean to them, and you are always willing to help.  That makes my heart so happy to hear!  You are loving school and your friends.  You have gained so much independence this year!  I love to see you learning so much.  You have an amazing teacher and I can see you just soaking up everything that you're learning at school.

I am so proud of the friends that you are making.  You have picked several really sweet, good girls to surround yourself with.  That is such an important thing!!  I never worry about you at school, knowing that you're making good choices and surrounding yourself with friends that do the same.  I pray that you always surround yourself with girls that bring you up and make you better instead of girls who lead you down the wrong path.  

You also have really stepped up your game as a big sister.  While you and Cooper definitely have your moments, you are an amazing example to him.  You love him, play with him, and show him how to be an awesome big kid.  He loves and adores you so much.  He literally does anything you ask and just wants to spend time with you and play with you.  I hope that never changes!

You are still a lover of all things animals and outside.  If you could live outside with a million animals, I think you would.  We lost Bono this year, and you handled it so well.  You cried with us, but also seemed to know that he was just so old and sick.  I was very worried how your tender heart would handle it, but you did so well with it.  We still talk about him and how much we miss him all the time!

One of the biggest things that you've done this year that surprises me is your eating.  You have really stepped up your eating game!  This summer at the beach you tried calamari and loved it.  It seems like since then you have just branched out in your eating so much!  You've always been a good eater (as far as healthy foods go), but now you are more willing to give new foods a try.  Most nights, you completely clean your plate at dinner!  As Cooper is entering his picky-eating phase, I hope your good example helps steer him through!

Two things that I really want you to know: I love you and I am so proud of you.  I am proud to call you my daughter.  You are really becoming a sweet, empathetic, smart, caring, funny, and beautiful girl.  I am so proud of the girl that you are!  One day, when you have babies of your own, you will understand how deep my love for you runs.  You are my girl and you are my first.  You made me a Mommy and taught me about a love that I could never even dream of.  You are my best girl.

I can't wait to see amazing things this next year has in store for you!  I love you,

Mommy