Dear Kaylee,
You are 8 years old today. 8 short years and yet it feels like a lifetime. How could it be that just a little over 8 years ago I talked to you in my belly and you were still a complete mystery to me? Just 8 short years ago I had no idea who you were, the shade of blue yours eyes would be, the sound your laugh would have, the feel of your silken hair. It feels at times I have known you all my life. What was life like before you arrived? I hardly remember it at all.
Watching you grow into this "big" kid has been such an amazing experience. So what are you like now that you are 8 years old?
You love your cats with a fiery passion. Your whole life revolves around cats. You have memorized every cat breed, you have cat facts for days and you can't walk by an outdoor cat without trying to coax it over and wanting to adopt it.
You love to read as much as you love your cats. You would gladly read every waking hour of the day. You love Calvin and Hobbes and the Warriors series. You recently sat down with Harry Potter and read more than half the book in one sitting. I often have to force you to put your book down to do something...anything else. You would gladly spend 24/7 reading.
You are learning to cook. You know basic breakfast foods like scrambled eggs, over easy eggs and pancakes. You aren't a fan of baking, but you can follow a recipe without my help. For some reason, you don't enjoy it much and would rather I do the baking and you do the eating. You recently told me that you wanted to learn to cook steak next so that is on our summer to do list.
Space has become a current interest and you have found yourself immersed in space books, gazing through your new telescope and looking at the NASA website. I find this topic pretty interesting too (more so than cats) and so it is fun for me to learn alongside you.
We threw you a surprise car drive by birthday party and gave you a long awaited telescope for your birthday. At night when we put you to bed you said, "Mom, I have no words for how thankful I am for my birthday celebration." And the 24 hours after your birthday you kept thanking me over and over for your party and making your birthday special. And then a few nights later you told your dad, "I am such a lucky kid. I know there are lots of kids that would love a telescope and I am so lucky to have one. Thank you."
Sometimes when you were in your "terrible 2" phase and you would find joy in pinching your sweet one year old cousin, or would shout "No!" at me I worried that maybe you would grow up to be unkind. Of course, I knew it was age appropriate behavior, but a part of me still worried.
The worries of you growing up to be unkind or selfish no longer linger. You are compassionate, grateful, and without a doubt so very kind. I love seeing you turn into a person that anyone would be thankful to call their friend.
I am excited to see you continue to grow and develop into a bigger kid, teen, and adult.
Love,
Mom
