April 7th, 2011
Dear Zephyr,
It is your Golden Birthday! You turn seven on the seventh and you even lost a tooth this morning. Wow! What a day. I am so happy to be your Dada and watch you grow.
Your reading skills are rapidly growing and you eagerly try to read all kinds of things. I am so happy for you because I remember the freedom and enjoyment of being able to read what I wanted, when I wanted. By the time I was twelve, my favorite place was the library and I read myself to sleep most nights. I think you will be way ahead of me.
Your obsession of the year is Wizard 101. All of us have enjoyed playing and it has become part of our household culture. You are learning from it and it gave you one more bit of motivation to read on your own. We have also been playing lots of Phase10, Uno, Monopoly, Checkers, and Chess.
One of my favorite games we play when you have Grady over is Bomb Squad. It is a chance for me to get creative building and sometimes hiding complex “bombs” and traps for you to disarm. We use legos, blocks, kitchen timers, lights, maps, stuffed animal hostages, walkie talkies, vinegar and baking soda, nerf guns, trip lines, and targets to create an exciting scenario to play out.
Most recently we started having after dinner jam sessions. You like drums, guitar, and glockenspiel the most and usually like to dance and sing while playing. You have always had a talent for creating lyrics.
Lately, I have observed that you shy away from playing games where you might lose. Sometimes you have wanted to stop playing a game if you are losing. Maybe this is natural, but I hope you know I am always proud of you for doing your best and I love you for who you are, not what you “win”. That rejection you fear is really you rejecting yourself. Accept yourself and remember that we are all perfectly imperfect. I am coming to believe that this is a big mission in life for me, so of course I think everyone needs to work on it. We are all such strange beings! You have been managing your angry feelings better. I have observed you get really angry, without assaulting anyone and apologizing afterward.
Jubilee is often the source of your frustration, but you love each other so much. Every day there are moments where you guys have some sweet interaction: a hug and a giggle, joining each other’s creative play, helping each other. If you have been apart for a while you seem very happy to see each other.
This past year we went camping and hiking a few times. You really like to build, tend, and cook over the fire. We went to City of Rocks (your favorite), Aguirre Spring, La Cueva, and Dripping Springs. I am looking forward to our first Zephyr – Dada camping trip in a couple of weeks. It will be just you and I at City of Rocks. I wonder what you will want to do?
You turned seven this year and I am turning forty. It has all gone by so fast. Take your time, chew thoroughly, and enjoy the ride Little Guy.
Love,
Dada
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