(just a little bit late...)
Dear Toby,
It is amazing to me that it's already been seven years since you came into our lives with your sunny smile and warm hugs.
The past year has been a big year for you as you've learned to cross-country ski, swim, play chess, ride a scooter, cook, and so much more. First grade was a great year. It has been wonderful to watch your reading abilities move from "learning to read" to "reading to learn." I can't tell you how many times you spout out some new fact and when I ask you how you know it your answer is "I read it in a book at school." You love school and have many friends. This year you developed the confidence to embrace activities like soccer, basketball, canoeing and swim lessons. You pride yourself on being able to follow rules and expectations and some of your biggest frustrations are when others are not following the rules.
You have become a social butterfly and love having playdates with friends! Your favorite activities are swimming, jumping on the trampoline, making crafts (origami!) and playing with legos. I'm glad that you so enjoy reading books together at night; all of the Magic Tree House, A to Z Mysteries, Nate the Great stories, and science and nature books we've read together this year. You love non-fiction and it is fun to learn from you. This year you've been very interested in sharks and talk about becoming a marine biologist.
For the first time in your life, you went on adventures without us this year: first spending half a week at Pilgrim Point Camp, and then a week with Grandma and Grandpa Cook. You loved both experiences and felt very independent! You also love to travel: you were so excited about our vacation to Michigan and loved planning activities and charting our progress on the map. You are already looking forward to next year's vacation!
You're still my talker: you love to explain how things work and report on all your adventures. I am sometimes surprised at how articulate you are: that is a gift! You are developing a way of talking yourself through your fears and anxieties. For example, I've watched you step into a boat or canoe ever so hesitantly those first few times this summer, not at all certain you could do it. You are able to communicate your fears and explain the big butterflies you're experiencing (prehistoric mammoth butterflies, really) and how you're calming down.
You enjoy playing piano and singing and this year you've also developed a love of performing. Your speaking part in the Christmas pageant at church was a big accomplishment for you, and you were thrilled to play a role in the "Free to Be: You and Me" performance this spring. You do get nervous but you are able to move past that and shine in performing.
I so enjoy your calm and engaged presence and the way you still melt into me when you need cuddles. My heart swells with pride when people tell me how much they enjoy being with you.
Your golden birthday (7 on the 7th) was a milestone you looked forward to for months! Happy birthday! You are my sunshine and I love you, Toby!
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