Feisty and Four !

Dear Little Paapu,

Couple of months back you turned into a four year old. For the first time ever, you were so proud when the day arrived. “I am Four!” you announced, “I ate all my vegetables and drank my milk everyday. See, I am tall and Four today!”, you beamed.I agreed and hugged you a little more tight, soaking in your beautiful smell…the still lingering baby smell in your skin, the shine in your smiling eyes.

The invitation for your little B’day party at the park went out with the title “Fiesty and Four” and it read:

Fearless, Chatty, Feisty and Fun!
That’s how I am and wish to remain 🙂
Can you believe, I turn FOUR soon!
Come see, how much taller I’ve grown 🙂

I think , Feisty is the one word to describe you Paapu. It shows in everything you do – the way you chat up strangers, the way you run out any place anywhere with no care, the way you lead among a group of kids, the way you do what you want to do with absolutely no inhibitions.

Although the same qualities make my motherly heart beat faster, I am slowly learning this is who you are. A free spirit.

Me and your Appa are usually seen running on the walkways, in airports, on the Golden gate bridge, in city halls , public parks and any open areas..right behind you, trying to catch up. You are officially the runner kind. No amount of warning, scolding, punishing has had any effect so far and we are just making peace with running behind you, for as long as we can 🙂

You are rarely scared of anything and if you do, you’ll try hard to resist the feeling. On a busy road, when I try to accelerate hoping to reach a schedule on time, you slowly suggest, “I am not at all scared right now Amma, but, please can you drive little slower?” 😀
You have your ways with showing joy. Other than the “Hurray!” and shrieking, you make up songs to mark the moment. Making up your own lyrics and tune on the spot.I chime in to add to the lyrics , we improvise. The song is new every time, never repeated at all.Hope we continue the tradition for a very long time time come. Fun, isn’t it, Paapu? 😀

Speaking of songs, your current favorite is the “Let it Go” from Frozen ( like every one in your age group all over the world). You sing it on infinite loop at any given chance – on the way to school, on the way back, while on the potty, during a shower..gosh, it’s annoying! But, I do enjoy watching you rise to “Let it Go!! Let it Go!!” in a very perfect pitch and attitude to match with it. My favorite is that time when you stood in the center of a plant nursery along with your school bestie and sang the song aloud in chorus – not a care in the world that it is a public place while a dozen people gathered around watching in glee 😀

While the songs and sentences flow with an easy, perfect pronunciation from you, I feel the twinge of having lost your baby gibberish behind.Well, my happy moment was when you pointed at a bug on a walking trail and said “Look Amma, CaLapitter!!”. Yes, baby, it is a Calapitter. I don’t think I’ll ever correct you on that 😀

Being both – Mamma’s baby and Daddy’s girl

You get attached to people very easily and never want the good times to end ( who does?). You took the scene to the next level during our visit to my friends place recently. Remember how he got so pally with you, you didn’t want to leave his house that evening? I stood outside coaxing you to get into the car, while you clung to him and pronounced , “No Amma, I belong here. This is my Appa”. Ummm.. yeah. That last part.You didn’t mean it, am sure.

You love your school, more for the art and craft work, than the words and numbers. You love it more for the playground and gardening sessions, than the reading and writing ones.

Must admit though – learning wise, there are some things you are really awesome at. You learnt hair styling and braiding all on your own. Your teachers, friends, cousins and Amma- any unsuspecting person with a minimum 2 inches of hair sitting still is your scapegoat. Although it has caused a few episodes of trauma to me ( hair pulled unceremoniously and a 100 clips and hairbands infused), it is something you are currently passionate about. The natural flow of your braiding actually caught me by surprise!

“Really, I did it” look after a hairstyling session on Amma

Speaking of skills, Gymnastics is an additional class outside of school for you and you absolutely love it! Everything from balancing and swinging to leg splits and cartwheel, you give it your best. Although yet to perfect them, I can see how easily you will get there with more practice. Your coach thinks so too 🙂 Cannot wait to see my little girl performing a full fledged gymnastics routine few years down the line.

Oh, not just Gymnastics, I cannot wait to see the wonderful little person you will grow up to be! With this kind of fearless, cheerful attitude, I am sure I have much to look forward to 🙂

Stay Healthy. Stay Happy. Always.

Much Love,
Mom/Amma