Abigail at 4 Years

Sweet. That is the one word that describes you the most. Closely following are happy, optimistic, resilient and musical. Your face is so expressive--watching you open presents was so entertaining, as each gift was met with pure adoration, like when Warren played you a song on the piano for a gift. Look at your face here :) This year was a big year for you. You celebrated your last birthday in Paris. You potty-trained when we got home. You took ballet and tap, and then decided to take a break. You started preschool in the fall. So many times Ms. Nikki said to me, "I've never given that work to a 3-year-old before." You love making friends and fill me in on the events of each day with lots of detail and excitement. You left nursery at church and became a Sunbeam. You love learning the songs in primary, and last week you gave the scripture for the first time. In January you also started playing the violin. I am learning so much from you as we practice together each day. You help me be more playful and imaginative, less driven and hurried.

You still love to do makeup with me, and you tolerate me doing your hair on Sundays; every other day is your day to choose. Pink is not just your favorite color, it's a lifestyle. You love writing letters, coloring and cutting. Although you profess to not like boys because of Warren, along with Avery, he is your best friend, and you two can often be found flooding the sandbox together.

You have an innate sense of your infinite worth, which gives you a confidence and buoyancy that make you very delightful to work with. You are quick to forgive and to make things right. Because you have a beautiful heart, you see beauty all around you, all the time.Dad discovered this self-portrait on the back of your primary picture today: you in a princess dress, smiling, with "4" written backwards all around you. You have a happy heart.

You give compliments freely and you love being recognized as "helpful." You share your happiness by writing "cards" and "letters" to people. Hence the gift of your own cardbox, which I made right in front of you yesterday and you kept dropping hints about how much you wanted one with "pink paper and diamonds" on it.Your imagination is vivid--like today, when you "toasted" this tree with your lemonade glass in honor of your birthday, or when you made a cake with 4 candles out of a Tinker Toys this morning.You are my baking buddy. You love "secrets", tucks and water before you go to sleep. You learn songs so quickly; today in church, you sang the first 3 verses of "How Firm a Foundation" right along with me. I am excited to accompany all the singing and violin-playing you will do over a lifetime. I am excited to teach you piano in the coming years. I am excited to keep learning from your indomitable optimism. I love you,

Mom{I decorated the mantel with objects that symbolize you or have special meaning: the booties you wore at your blessing, the signs on your hospital cradle, your violin, your favorite book, a pink spray-bottle to represent your helpfulness, a CD of primary songs--you sleep to them every night, a doll for your sweet imagination (even though after hearing how much it hurt to have Madeleine you said you didn't want to be a mom :), some of your artwork, your "brown blankie" (it used to be light pink, but you just think it has always been brown) your tap shoe, a hat you loved, pictures of last year's Paris birthday...}