New Noona

Dear Mackenzie,

We went to my friends' barbeque over the weekend and there were a lot of kids there. The youngest was a little two-year-old boy named Ji Hu and you were instantly smitten. For a majority of the day, you followed him around, played with him and even got him cups of water so he wouldn't be thirsty. At dinner, you asked to sit next to him. You were so sweet and attentive! I think you really enjoyed taking care of him and by the end of the day, he was calling you Noona, which is Korean for older sister/older female friend. So cute!

Love,

Mom

Super Saucy

Dear Mackenzie,

Second GuhGaw and I were talking about the show The Simpsons yesterday and he was surprised when I told him that Bart Simpson is actually voiced by a woman. He asked why that was and I explained that Bart is supposed to be 10 years old, so a grown woman sounds more like a little boy than a grown man. You chimed in, "Mama, you sound like you're in the middle. You're not like {switches to low, gruff voice}, 'Give me the sauce!' But you're not like {switches to high-pitched voice}, 'Give me the sauce!' You're in the middle: {switches to a moderate tone} Give me the sauce!" Hahaha! Your explanation was funny enough but "give me the sauce?!" Why is that the phrase you went with??

Love,

Mom

Sneaking Sweets

Dear Mackenzie,

Cute things you did recently:

-I got a matcha boba and asked if you wanted to try it. You took a sip, considered it and then smiled, nodded and gave me a thumbs up. So cute!

-There was whipped cream on the drink, which I didn't want. When I finished the drink, I asked you if you wanted one sip of the cream before I threw it out. You nodded, took the drink and then turned away from me to drink. You wanted to drink ALL the cream, not just a little. You sneaky little sweets fiend!

Love,

Mom

Balloon Bygone

Dear Mackenzie,

Oh, my sweet girl. We went to your friend's birthday party yesterday and she gave you two of her helium balloons at the end of the party. We went shopping afterward and when Daddy opened the car door, one of the balloons floated out and away before any of us could grab it. I watched your face as you watched this all unfold and it went from surprise to sheer sadness. When you realized it was too high to reach, you burst into tears and sobbed the biggest sobs (you still had one balloon but the one that floated away was the prettier one of the two because it had shiny confetti inside of it). I usually tell you kids that things like this feel big now but will eventually feel little and that you will move on, but your sobs were so heartbreaking that I hugged you tightly and said I'd buy you another balloon from the party store near our house. You cried for a little longer but when we went to the store later and you picked out a shiny purple balloon, you were smiling your signature dimpled smile again, whew! And funny enough, when we were walking back home, the wind was blowing in such a way that the balloon (which I was holding so tightly, haha) kept floating right over your head and tapping you on the head, as if it was playing with you!

Love,

Mom

Shirt Story

Dear Mackenzie,

Before we went out today, I asked you if you wanted to change out of your (old, slightly faded) t-shirt. You replied, "Why? What's wrong with my shirt? It's not like it says 'I love poop.'"

Fair.

Love,

Mom

Pen Pal

Dear Mackenzie,

I can always count on you to retract the pens that I leave unretracted on my desk. Thank you for not letting my pens dry out!

Love,

Mom

Joking Around

Dear Mackenzie,

Our conversation this morning:

Me: Why didn't you brush your hair?

You: Because it didn't eat! [versus teeth, which need to be brushed after eating]

Me: [brief pause] Oh! Did you just make a dad joke?

You: No, I said it so I made a me joke! 

Boom! Hahaha! So you're funny now!

Love,

Mom