Four and a half

Dear Mateo,
We haven't written you a letter in a long time, and we think we're due for one now that you're officially four and a half years old.  In fact, judging by the way you like to count your age, we think you will henceforth be known as Four and A Half until the day before your fifth birthday :)

Mateo, you are such a big boy now!  Especially from the perspective of having your baby sister in our family, you can do SO many things.  You go to school and have made friends there, which is nice for your moms, because we know that going to school is fun for you. 

Your teachers say that you're fluent in both English (obviously) and Spanish, much thanks to all the Spanish speaking you and Mommy do together.  You're working on learning to write letters and numbers and draw pictures, which are all coming along slowly but surely.  Since you were born in October, you still have over a year until you start kindergarten, which means that next year you and Talia will go to preschool together.  We think you both will have fun with that!

At home, you can be incredibly compassionate and insightful, from identifying your own feelings to giving hugs if someone is having a hard time.  You also have some rough spots, which include sharing with your sister(s) and generally doing what is asked of you if you're not in the mood to do it.  You can be very, very stubborn.  However, we think you have that in common with just about every other kid your age, so hopefully you'll grow out of it eventually.

Here are some things you're excited about learning more about right now:  balancing on one foot, jumping on one foot, soccer, your baby sister, how to get more sugar added to your diet, picking daisies, watching videos, reading to yourself and others, and playing with your Cars cars, which you do every single day.

You have given up your nap completely, except for rare instances, and that has made bedtime much easier for everyone.  Mommy puts you to bed each night at 7 pm and you usually sleep right through until 6 am, at which point you come RUNNING into our room to start the day!  You are our early bird and we love you for it.

Mateo, you will always be our big boy, our oldest, the big brother in the house, but you'll always be our baby, too, even if you are Four and A Half now.   You still love to get hugs and kisses and snuggles and we hope this continues for a long time to come.

with all our love,
Mommy and Mama