Dear Quinn,
You are changing so fast. The posts that I wrote just weeks ago no longer describe you. You are becoming extremely strong-willed, but I'm glad to see that you have a fighting spirit. It means that you will never let anybody push you around. I watch you at school standing your ground with your little friends. You sometimes dominate them, but you also treat them very kindly.
You have gone from playing independently at their sides to interacting with them, greeting them with hugs and waves, and calling them by their names. You have known them since you were three months old and they are your so-far lifelong friends.
I'm pleased to see that you are developing your social skills early. It's one of the things I tell myself when I miss you during the day. It's hard to remember that working is the best thing I can do for our family when I miss you so much. But we know that you are learning at school and that it is expanding your world apart from us. You surprise us all the time by knowing things we didn't teach you ourselves. We're proud of you for being so smart. But there are challenges to you being so advanced... The terrible twos have arrived six months early.
Like every kid before you, you have declared war on bedtime. Every night is an exhausting battle, and we each have both won and lost. There have been nights when we've skipped the bath, given up on dinner and given in to your tantrums. Your tantrums are legendary, and you seem to find humor in defying us. We know that you have only just begun. You were such a perfect baby, but it's up to you if you need to be a challenging toddler, a rambunctious kid, or a difficult teenager. We're in for all of it and we'll love you through everything.
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| Walking home from school like a big girl! |
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| Reading with Mommy... |
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| ...and all by yourself |
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| Going to school on a rainy morning |
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| Bus! |
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Captivated by The Sound of Music
Here you are hanging out with my cousins and some of their children a few weeks ago. These are your second cousins and second cousins once removed (I think?) on the Quinn side:
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| Helping Mommy's cousin Raven eat her hot dog |
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| Quinn and Princess Miranda |
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| A hug for cousin Claire |
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| Playing with the big kids! |
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| PJ and Quinn |
