Dear Claire Elaine Eberle,

From the moment we announced our pregnancy, we’ve been told that time flies. But gracious…three. Three! How can it be?

You are wild and wonderful, curious and creative, daring and dramatic. And boy, do you have personality! Parenting you has been the joy of our lives. It has its challenges, sure. But it’s an absolute joy.

Playing
Almost overnight, you seemed to shift from our Thomas Train-loving tomboy to our dress-up-loving princess. And it has been the sweetest transition! You adore the couple of Disney movies we’ve let you see (Frozen, The Little Mermaid, Cinderella, Tangled…), and have an impressive knack for memorizing soundtracks. I don’t think you follow the plot line all that well…but you can tell us the order of songs in all your favorite flicks. We plan to continue to foster your love of music (thanks, Jackson’s Music Store!), and hope you’ll be our little guitar-strumming prodigy soon.

Your imagination is awesome and we love watching you play. You like to ping pong from activity to activity, and seem to have endless energy! Bubbles are still a big thrill, as are balloons and your scooter. You especially love putting your babies down for naptime on the staircase — everyone under their own blankie.

But your favorite creative pastime is, without doubt, art. We’ve set your “studio” up in the sunroom (where nearly everything is washable!) and you can spend hours drawing “Mr. Sun,” painting endless pictures, and lining your stickers up in rows.

Our social butterfly, you make friends everywhere you go — from Chick-fil-A’s playground to church to the grocery store. We love how you call everyone a “friend,” and have learned to introduce yourself. Liam Costello, Kate Furlong, Millie Mitchell, Anna Kate Welch, and (of course!) Audrey McQueeney continue to be your best buddies. You made a ton of friends at school this year (Ava was a big favorite), too.

Saying
You have some of the sweetest expressions — and some funny ones too! We love “lello” (yellow), “oh my gosh!,” “what’s this feeling?,” “keep my kiss,” “I don’t love that” (rather than hate or don’t like — so cute!),  “a show will make my tummy feel better,” “just a little nap?,” “actually,” and so many more.

One of my favorite heart-warmers is the fact that you and Mommy have a special song that you sing together — “Best of Friends” from Fox and Hound. I hope you’ll always consider me your best of friends!

This Year’s Firsts:

• Preschool – we had a hunch that you’d like school (Miss Extrovert!), but gracious you LOVED it. Your teachers sang your praises, and it was a treat for Mommy and Daddy to discover all you learned about God, shapes, numbers, and play.
• Little Otter Swim School – you’ve been taking lessons with Daddy, and just got promoted to the next level!

• The Dentist – your first appointment was July 5th, and you were a rockstar! We prepped by watching a few dentist-related YouTube videos, and you even colored a pretty picture for the dental hygienist. You were braver than Mommy and Daddy!

• Big Girl Bed – at the end of May, we moved you out of your crib and into a twin Big Girl Bed passed down from Nana Beth and Mommy. Daddy and I painted it white and bought you a fun set of colorful bedding. You look so little in the twin, but you fill it with loads of “babies” — so it’s a bed full of happy all the time.

• Potty Training – technically this is old news, since you officially trained back in October. But it’s still on the list of Claire’s big 2-year-old accomplishments. It took us one wild four-day weekend, but you’ve been nearly accident-free since that point, and we couldn’t be prouder!

Dislikes
I don’t know why 2 gets such a bad rap — we certainly didn’t think it was terrible! We have, however, learned that you have a lot of opinions! You’re still anti-egg, you like choosing your own clothes, you prefer to do most things “all by myself,” and put up a good fight if we want you to go potty or leave the house while you’re busy playing. In the last two weeks, you’ve started talking about “the scaries” — and you worry about them before bed. We aren’t sure where this idea came from…but you’ve started praying for Jesus to take away the scaries, and that seems to make them all better!

What’s Ahead
You’re starting at a new preschool in the fall, and will be attending half-days Monday through Friday. Our whole family adored Mt. Zion, but we felt that with the new baby coming in September (and Mommy’s hectic work schedule), a five-day program would be a better fit. You loved your first school experience, and we’re certain you’ll thrive at DCPC.

The biggest curveball coming your way, though, will be becoming a big sister. Mommy gets teary at most things these days, but especially the thought of how your little life will change when the new baby comes. We’ve shared the sweetest relationship over the past three years, and Mommy and Daddy will do our very best to be sure you know our love is growing — not dividing. We enjoy watching you with other babies, and hope you’ll treasure being a big sis just a much as Mommy has.

We likely have a roller coaster ahead, Claire Elaine, but we cannot imagine a sweeter companion than you.

Love forever,

Mommy and Daddy