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Thursday, June 14, 2012

I Am Proud

To My Daughter:


In your four years of life, you have given me lots to be proud of.  Today, your last day of preschool for the year, I am proud again.

I am proud that you did not cry when I said good-bye to you on your first day of school.

I am proud that, when you did cry every morning after that, you pulled yourself together by the time your feet hit your classroom door.

I am proud that when I ask you why you cry when we say good-bye, you say "Because I misted you, Mami."

I am proud that on the first Monday of your life with a little baby brother at home, you did not want to go to school.

I am proud that you went.

I am proud that you made friends -- with girls and with boys.

I am proud that you think your friends are the funniest people in the world.

I am proud that you've realized how much you love to laugh.

I am proud that every bracelet and necklace you accessorized with always made it home at the end of the day.

I am proud that you learned how to swing by yourself.

I am proud that you learned to write your name.

I am proud that you learned what your imagination is, and that it lets you do things like make a hair salon in a wagon, a castle at the top of a slide, and a fairy land in the sand.

I am proud that you love to hug your teachers.

I am proud that you know how sing "Allouette" in French and "It's Raining, It's Pouring" in sign language.

I am proud that when I asked you "What did you do at school today?" you always answered "I don't remember"...but then you remembered and told me all about it.

I am proud that when a new girl started in your classroom in the middle of the year, you greeted her with a hug and took her by the hand into circle time.

I am proud that you spent the day in a room with a pet hamster, even though you don't like animals.

I am proud that you spent so much time on the playground and in the woods, even though you don't like insects.

I am proud that you worried about the kids who were out sick one day.

I am proud that when you were out sick for four days, on the fifth day you told me "It's time for me to go back to school.  I can do it."

I am proud that you realized when someone was having a sad time, and it made you sad, too.

I am proud that when I ask you who you like to play with, you say "Everyone."

I am proud that sometimes when I came to pick you up, you were doing a puzzle by yourself.

I am proud that sometimes when I came to pick you up, you were playing chase with a gang of friends.

I am proud that you taught yourself to play "Mary Had A Little Lamb" on the piano.

I am proud that you are proud of yourself when you sound out a word.

I am proud that every time we drive by your school, you gleefully shout out "There's my school!"

I am proud that you love to introduce your brother to everyone, every morning during drop-off.

I am proud that you loved the day your dad spent the morning at school with you.

I am proud that sometimes, you ate the lunch I packed for you.

I am proud that when you started staying at school for the full day after I went back to work, you pretended not to notice.

I am proud that you did so many things without me, things that I will never know about, and you still make me feel like I'm an important part of your life.

I am proud that at the end of the day, I'm the one that gets to take you home.

xo



6 comments:

  1. Goodness! All of this just sums up how awesome EMD truly is! Pretty spectacular 4 year old! LOVE!

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  2. Love it! Brought flashbacks of 14 & 15 years ago, when Haley & Britney respectively graduated from Dublin Community Preschool. Twelve days ago we cheered on Haley as she received her High School diploma, which we had just done for Britney the previous year. Those are all unforgettable milestones that fly by, yet make us so proud of our babies' (and they will forever be our babies!) achievements. I am looking forward to undergraduate graduations, graduate schools, first jobs, weddings, grandchildren... as I will eternally be proud of my kids for reaching those milestones in their lives... and so will YOU! Cherish them!!!

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  3. "I am proud that at the end of the day, I'm the one that gets to take you home." - That did it for me. When she reads this 5, 10, 15 and 20 years from now it will always make her smile to know that she had a special Mommy.

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