Happy Birthday to My 6-Year-Old!

Dear Miles,

Today you are 6. Happy Birthday! In just a few days you will graduate from kindergarten, if you can believe that. That means I’ll be the mom of a FIRST GRADER soon. Crazy! They say moms forget these things, but I can still remember the day you were born. The thing I remember most is your big, wide brown eyes staring at your dad and me the moment we first met you. You still have those big brown eyes, but now you have a lot more hair.

Speaking of crazy, it’s been a whirlwind week around here with your brother splitting his head open, your last T-ball game, all kinds of school events… I almost didn’t write this today because I’m tired from baking 2 dozen cupcakes for your class. You wanted baseball cupcakes so I decorated them with white frosting and red licorice for the laces. You wanted me to make the girls’ baseballs pink, but I drew the line there.

I haven’t been writing as much about you as you’ve gotten older, partly because I’m worried about embarrassing you. You are a real grownup kid now. You might get upset if I brought up the time you burst into tears one night, out of the blue, because you suddenly understood what “extinct” meant. You were sobbing: “You mean dinosaurs are never, EVER coming back?” It was heartbreaking.

It’s hard to explain exactly how you’re different this year, but you are. It’s not just losing your first tooth. It has more to do with how you talk and act like a bigger kid. For instance, you are eager to talk to your grandparents on the phone now, whereas before you would shout “Hi!” and then run away. Now, you talk their ears off, about kindergarten, swimming, your iPod, all kinds of things. And you’ll say, “Ben, my friend from school” instead of assuming everyone knows who Ben is, like your little brother would. You provide context.

Angry Birds Space

You have learned so much at school this year it’s incredible. You learned about the environment, about bugs, weather, geography, nutrition, and how food is grown. You visited a fire station, a farm, and the zoo. You know what mammals are and what a chrysalis is and how to add and subtract. You know the biggest planet and the smallest one. You can read and write, even if you do often write your letters backwards and spell words phonetically. Your teacher says that’s normal. And you are an amazing artist. I love to look at your artwork and listen to the stories you tell about the pictures you draw.

One of the things I love best about you is your imagination. The other day you were playing with your brother’s train set – which could be considered a “baby toy” – but you created this whole forest scene with a moose and a campsite and everything.

I also love that you’re not stingy with the hugs and kisses for me or your dad. He thinks you’re a Daddy’s boy, but last night you called me into your room for an extra hug and kiss before bed. I said, “Goodnight, birthday boy” and you corrected me: “ALMOST birthday boy, Mommy.” Right. Why rush it? Here’s to another year, my wonderful boy!

All my love,
Mom