Best Big Sis

Dear Lila,

Whenever I ask you what you want to play, you almost always reply, "Family!" You love to pretend that you're a mom and that I'm your baby (and my baby name is always "JoJo," like your friend Ellie's baby sister). If your brothers are playing with us, GuhGaw is the dad and DiDi is your son (you usually name him "Max"). When I am busy doing housework, I often hear you and DiDi playing family on your own and you guys are so adorable! You push a bunch of toys--like the dollhouse, car slide and baby piano--into a corner to build the walls of your house and sit inside your house and imagine that you're eating lunch or getting a checkup from the doctor. You speak very sweetly to DiDi and are such a good pretend mom to him.

And you continue to be such a good real big sis to him. At dinner tonight, DiDi lost his balance on a chair (he refuses to sit in his high chair now and insists on sitting on a regular chair like the rest of us) and hit his head on the floor. He is okay but it was a pretty scary fall and he cried very hard. A few seconds after he started crying, you also started wailing and I thought you had suddenly bit your tongue while eating. I hugged you and DiDi at the same time and asked you what happened, if you were hurt. Between sobs, you managed to say, "I'm so scared for DiDi!" You were so worried about your baby brother, which was one of the sweetest things I've ever seen. I'm so proud of you for being such a loving big sister!

Love,
Mom

The Best Baby

Dear Lila,

I love how much you love DiDi. You are so sweet toward him and it's so clear how much you care about him. You told me today, "Thank you for having the best baby." :-)

Love,
Mom

Summer Camp

Dear Lila,

You had your very first day of summer camp today! And to be honest, I was much more nervous than you were. GuhGaw has been to summer camp before but he went to the neighborhood one down the street from our house. He was only a 10-minute walk away and at a camp on a relatively small facility (one room, one playground area, one swimming pool). This year, Daddy and I decided to send you and him to a much bigger camp (30 acres complete with three swimming pools, five baseball fields, a sand volleyball court, a rock climbing wall and so much more) that is a 45-drive away in Long Island. I was nervous about you two being at a camp with hundreds of kids, about you riding a bus to camp and about you being so physically far away from me. But the camp sounds amazing (daily activities include martial arts, yoga, dance, basketball, science, drama and games, plus special events like magic shows, pony rides and field trips) and parents who have sent their kids there highly recommend it, so we are giving it a try this summer--and so far, so good!

You loved your first day! The camp bus picked you and GuhGaw up in front of our house at 8:30 this morning and when it dropped you off at 5pm, you guys were flushed, sweaty and beaming! You immediately began telling me about everything you did at camp and I have never heard you talk so excitedly or so much about anything! I listened to you for awhile and when I said I had to go upstairs for a minute, you said, "Wait, Mama! Can I tell you one more thing? No, wait, can I tell you two more things first?" At bedtime, you were still talking about camp and when I interrupted you, you said, almost sternly, "Mama, let me talk first."

I think it's safe to say that you're excited to go back tomorrow!

Love,
Mom

P.S. By the way, there were tears after you got on the bus this morning. Not from you, but from DiDi and me! I am not used to you being away for such a big chunk of the day and I missed you after you left. DiDi did, too, and burst into tears after your bus drove away and we went back inside the house. When we saw the bus pull up to our house in the afternoon, we both jumped up excitedly like dogs greeting their owners when they come home, haha!