Happy 10th Birthday!

(A letter to my daughter on her 10th birthday)

Happy 10th Birthday Miss B or as you call it, “finally in the double-digits.”

A few things you did and said this past year that I’m going to remember forever:

• Hearing all about your new adventures in your new school this year. 
• The day you said you can’t order off the kids menu anymore because "somebody might find out” and you are not a kid anymore.
• You’re still completely obsessed with stuffed animals. You don’t mind being, “the cat lady of stuffed animals.”
• You still like it when I put little doodles in your lunch and share then with your friends. Except the Olaf one, apparently he’s not cool anymore but Unicorns, Pigicorns, and Pandacorns are totally fine. 
• You play with your little brother, have better patience, and help him out. 
• Playing Minecraft together for hours.
• Speaking of Minecraft, your obsession with watching Stampylonghead videos (that english voice haunts me!)
• Your obsession with building things, be it crafts or contraptions out of random junk. Yes, your mother doesn’t like the 'mess' but I think it’s all creative and love the things you’ve come up with. 
• And your obsession with cute things - baby red panda’s, kittens, puppies, bunnies… whatever! All the cute posters have taken over your room.
• Handmade gifts you’ve created for Father’s Day or just any day "just because.”
• Your bravery this past year - you can now sail, surf in the ocean, and play the piano in front of crowds. You overcame your fears and now you know you can do anything you put your mind to. 
• The time we spend together on hikes, vacations, weekends, or just sitting around playing games. 

The saddest thing I’m going to remember - you excitedly said just before going to bed, “Say goodbye to your 9YO forever, because tomorrow I’ll be 10!”

I’m going to miss that 9YO versions of you, but looking forward to our new adventures when you’re 10.

Love, Daddy

7 is Practically a Grown Up!

(It's that time of year! My annual letter to my daughter on her birthday...)

Happy 7th Birthday Miss B!

I couldn’t contain my smile as you told me this morning, “7 is practically a grown up!”
It did brighten me up after our conversation last night just before you went to bed when you told me, “Daddy, this is the last night I’ll be 6 years old, forever.”

A few things you did this past year that I’m going to remember:

•    Telling me you now know what you want to be when you grow up: a teacher during the day, a waitress at night, and a veterinarian on the weekends.
•    After your first day of 2nd grade, asking if you could please change your name to “Jennifer.”
•    You waking up and getting your little brother up too. And sometimes making him breakfast and/or starting a parade through the house right at dawn.
•    Riding rollercoasters, specifically your favorite one, Thunder Mountain at Disneyland 4 times in a row.
•    That biggest smile in the world you give when I let you drive the Duffy boat in the bay.
•    Wanting to learn how to play a cigar box guitar made by a guy named “Mr. Bob.”
•    Our negotiations for a dog. The one that you promise that you’ll feed, clean up after, walk, and brush hours a day that I won’t even have to even touch…(rolls eyes)

Your favorite things at this moment:

•    Your iPod Touch and all of the games and music on it.
•    Sleepovers at your best friend’s house.
•    Watching that movie “Xanadu” over and over, and over again.
•    YouTube vides clips of old musicals.
•    Favorite restaurant is still “Souplantation” after all of these years!
•    Playing games on the iPad with your little brother.
•    Making the most unusual but interesting crafts.
•    Playing restaurant waitress at home, in the car, and at real restaurants.
•    Going to the beach, playing in the sand, our family hikes, picnics, and bunk beds.
•    Tweety Bird, Snoopy, Totoro, Hello Kitty, and a collection of stuffed animals and pillow pets. 
•    Taylor Swift, The Band Perry, Lady Antebellum, Adele and some song called “Dynamite” that you play a little too much…

I’m going to miss that 6 year-old forever, but can’t wait to make some memories with this amazing 7 year-old that’s practically a grown up.

Love,
Daddy

A Letter from the Tooth Fairy

My daughter lost her first tooth this week and it was quite the historic occasion as it had been wiggling for nearly 2 weeks.

My wife and I finally had enough and just pulled the thing out. Which wouldn’t have been too bad if it weren’t for blood that appeared everywhere which, in turn, ended up completely freaking her out. She kept screaming while crying, “OH NO!!! I’m spilling BLOOD!!! Now vampires are going to EAT ME!!!”

Her ex-nanny was really into Twilight.

The drama was finally over after I calmly explained that vampires only live in the Seattle area, then she became excited wondering how much the tooth fairy was going to leave her.

Oh yeah…completely forgot about that part.

Her friends at school have told her that they’ve gotten anywhere between $2-10 a tooth, which I find a little much. In my day, I remember getting a quarter ($.25) and that was only if I didn’t swallow or lose it first. My wife on the other hand didn’t get any money, the tooth fairy in Ohio left her underwear and socks.
My daughter didn’t want underwear or socks, “just the money.”

I reassured her that there wasn’t anything to worry about as we don’t live in Ohio and we weren’t planning on moving there anytime soon.

“Good! That sounds like a bad place to lose a tooth” she replied with relief.

After she tucked her tooth behind the pillow and we kissed her goodnight she asked, “What does the tooth fairy do with all of the teeth anyway?”

“I don’t know? Maybe she’ll write you a letter...”

So after my wife and I negotiated and settled on a sum of $2, without addition of socks or underwear, she ran to the ATM and then stopped somewhere to get change while I was at home writing.

Here's the letter:

Dear Gillian,

My name is Natasha and I’ve been assigned to be your Tooth Fairy! Thank you for the shiny, well-brushed tooth. I can tell you’ve taken really good care of it. Because of its condition I have left $2.00 USD in its place.

In case you were wondering, most teeth go into the Tooth Fairy collection vault in the Tooth Fairy castle in the clouds where they are guarded by large white unicorns to keep vampires away. But sometimes special ones, like yours, are used for new babies.
Don’t worry! Your baby brother already has all of his baby teeth so he won’t be getting any of yours. That would be kind of gross, wouldn’t it? (LOL!)

I look forward to working with you. Next time leave freshly baked chocolate chip cookies.

Sincerely,

Natasha
“Tooth Fairy #227”

P.S. I’m SO glad you don’t live in Ohio. The law there requires us to give underwear and socks instead of money.

And here's a printable Tooth Fairy letter in case you want to make one of your own..

(Click to print)

Seriously! Stop Growing…

It's that time of year again - my annual letter to my daughter on her birthday...

Happy 6th birthday Miss Bean! Or as you call yourself, “Gillian with a G” followed with hands on your hips.





Just a few things you did this past year that I’m going to remember forever:

• After your first day of Kindergarten announcing to your mother and I that you were changing your name to “Jessica.”
• Your immense love and affection for your baby brother and being his tour guide through life.
• Your imaginary sisters Sauna and Nana have grown up and you don’t need to talk to them as often as you once did.
• How amazing you did at your ballet recital.
• Starting school in Kindergarten, moving up to 1st grade work by November, and entering 2nd grade in the Fall. Remarkable and a bit frightening for me.



Your favorite things at this moment:

• Your new American Girl doll, “Jessica.”
• Loving the same movies as Mommy, from “Meet Me In St. Louis” to “Xanadu.”
• Reading to your baby brother and some of your stuffed animals too.
• Playing games on the iPad together.
• Horseback riding, ice skating, and golf lessons (phew!)
• Drawing together and making crafts/gifts for friends.
• Sleepovers with your friends and staying up ‘really late’, like 9:00.
• Your favorite restaurant, Souplantation, still!
• Doing volunteer work for kids in other countries.
• Making everything into a game from walking, to riding in the car or airplane, or just simply sitting somewhere.


On the morning of your birthday I’m always going to remember the first thing you said to your mother and I while running into our room “I’m 6! Can I get a dog and a cell phone now?!”


I’m going to miss the fun we had together when you were 5, but I’m looking forward to what new memories await us all at 6. 



Love,
 Daddy

Stop Growing Up!

(It's that time of year! My annual letter to my daughter on her birthday...)

Happy 5th birthday Miss Bean! Or as you call yourself, “Sunshine Sparkles!” followed with hands in the air.
Where has the time gone? How can you be 5 already when it seems as if you were just born a year or two ago?


Just a few things you did this past year that I’m going to remember forever:

• Telling your preschool friends and random strangers that I got into a fight with a chicken, that’s how I got chicken pox.
• Announcing to the crowd at preschool graduation that you don’t want to be a ballerina when you grow up because you want to be a dolphin instead.
• Your imaginary sisters Sauna and Nana now live at Disney World and we MUST go visit them every weekend because it's their birthday again.
• On the way home from preschool telling me you got married to Marcus at school because he can breakdance. And then me explaining for an hour why you can’t date until your married.
• Learning about Baseball at preschool and then begging to go to a game really bad. When we had gone you said, “Daddy, this is really boring, why don’t they do anything!” Yes, you are truly my daughter.

Your favorite things at this moment:

• Everything about your baby brother, especially his farts which seems to go on forever.
• Going to the movie theater to watch 3D movies and then half-way through asking me to put in a different DVD.
  
• Tea Parties with your stuffed animals in your restaurant and then asking some animals to leave for misbehaving or bad manners.
• Excitement over starting Kindergarten in the Fall and meeting “even more” friends.
• Making up all sorts of crafts and art projects, and making up your own songs and lyrics.
• Ballet dancing to Disco. Preferably to the Bee-Gee’s.
• Playing Wii together and actually getting good at it.
• Eating at restaurants, especially Souplantation (still!)
• Swimming and spending a lot of time at the pool this summer. I suspect this is training to be a dolphin.
  

On the morning of your birthday I’m always going to remember the first thing you said to your mother and I while running into our room “when I was sleeping, I felt my body growing so I can be 5-years old!”
I’m going to miss the fun we had together at 4, but I’m looking forward to what new memories we’ll make together when your 5.

Love,
Daddy

So This Is What It Feels Like When Doves Cry…

(It’s that time of year again; my annual letter to my daughter on her birthday.)



Miss Bean (or as you now call yourself “Princess Sunshine Sparkles”),

Happy 3rd Birthday! I can’t believe how fast this past year has gone by. It amazes me how much you’ve changed in so little time; the transition from a baby to a beautiful, smart, and clever little girl with a strong personality still completely fascinates me.


A few things I’ve enjoyed this past year watching you grow:

• Drawing on the driveway with chalk together, making up funny roads, games, and monster characters.
• Hearing your stories about your imaginary friend “Captain Hippo."
  
• Playing Wii (Duck Hunt) together and yelling “Ah man!” right after I yell “Ah man!” among a few other unfortunate things your mom shouldn't know about.
  
• Helping me with small chores around the house such as loading the dishwasher, caring for the dog, and taking out the trash. I hope you still like doing chores next year.
• Paying the cashier for lunch at some restaurant with the 4 pennies you found on the ground while saying “it’s OK daddy, I pay for it with my money’s”
• Listening to you sing your interpretation of songs over, and over, and over again.
• Cooking in your play kitchen, making me guacamole soup and chocolate tea for breakfast.
• Driving by a KFC and you yelling out "Look Daddy! Yummy chicken place!!" (that would bring a tear to any colonel's eye...)
  

Your favorite things at this moment:

Dressing up as a princess, sparkle roll-on, Disneyland, watching movies on my iPhone, popcorn (or "crackcorn" as you call it), making “art”. DVD’s Enchanted, Tarzan, Cars, Incredibles, Lilo & Stitch, Cinderella, Mary Poppins, Dumbo, and Rambo (just kidding! That’s one of my favorites.)

Putting you to bed tonight on the eve of your birthday made me realize how much I’m going to miss you at 2. But at the same time I’m really looking forward to what new adventures and memories we'll have together at 3.

Love,
Daddy

Mommy & Daddy Date Night Can Be Wicked

For some odd reason I’ve had that Spiderman theme song stuck in my head since Saturday. It’s REALLY starting to bother me.

(Spiderman, Spiderman…does whatever a spider can…)

I’m curious, so how many of you parents do “date nights”? You know, a real one where you get a sitter and run out the door for a few hours and go somewhere childfree that doesn't rhyme with Chuck E. Cheese.

In the 2 and half years since our daughter was born, the wife and I haven’t done a real "date night." I’m pretty sure Dr. Phil would call this behavior extremely unhealthy and then camp out in front of my house yelling through a bullhorn. But who cares, the guy is a quack. But now the wife and I are beginning to think this is a good idea to try at least once a month.
On Friday we went to see Wicked The Musical, which by the way was O.K. Not great like all the hype would have you believe, but overall entertaining. Without spoiling it, I thought the ending was borderline cheesy. Although, I must say the ‘Wicked Witch’ main girl did have an amazing voice; to be honest I wish she had sung more. I think that would have made it even better.

(...Spins a web, any size..hey there! There goes the Spiderman....)

Anyhow, when we got back home my daughter had the sitter write the wife and I a letter. This is what it said:

Dear Mommy and Daddy,

I hope you had fun tonight without me. Alexis and I had fun. I love you both very much, even though you left me.
I made art for you and left it on the refrigerator [sitter: in case you’re wondering, the tears made the markers smear.]

Your daughter,
Sunshine Sparkles
(My new name)
XOXOXO

P.S. Captain Hippo was playing in your closet.

(...Catches thieves, just like flies...Look out! Here comes the Spiderman.)
I hope he catches that criminal, Captain Hippo, soon…

To My Daughter On Her 2nd Birthday

Happy Birthday Miss Bean!

I just can't believe you're 2. Where did the time go...!?

It seems as if were yesterday watching you make your grand entrance into this world (I cut your cord and didn’t pass out), bringing you home for the first time (that nervous drive home took a lot longer than normal), and then staring at you in complete amazement wondering what adventures lay ahead and what kind of person you were going to be (watching you sleep was better than any TV show.)
Never would I have imagined the absolute joy of watching you grow, learn, walk, and talk. Most of all – the happiness and delight you bring to your mommy and I (your smile and laugh still make me melt...) I'm still in awe at how much that delicate baby I once held is gone, growing up fast, and getting a little more independent each day. Although, in my eyes, you’ll still be my little baby girl (even when you’re 30...)

Some of your favorite things:
Doodlebops, The Wiggles, Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, Cinderella, Animals (especially monkeys), Wooden Puzzles, your Cheetah Girls 2 purse filled with aliens, trucks and princesses, Books, Play Kitchen & Cooking, Coloring & Drawing, the slide in the park, Dancing, Singing.

Things I'm going to miss most when you grow up:
Cooking me Sushi, Rice, and Edamame in your play kitchen, eating "crackcorn" (popcorn), putting your stuffed animals to bed, your stinky blanket that has magical powers, how something simple - like a bug or a flower - can be a celebrity in your eyes.

What you asked for your birthday:
A bike (I bought you that LikeABike knockoff that you need to grow into), Ice Cream, Strawberries, drive the MINI Cooper (go ask your mom...)