Anna Ruth 3 Years and 6 Months Old

Oh, Anna Ruth... How is it possible you are almost three and a half years old? I cannot believe how fast you are growing! You are such a funny, beautiful, and smart little girl! You do things all the time and I think to myself, "I never want to forget that." During your first year I wrote every month about what you were doing, what you liked, what you did not like, etc.  I have not written anything lately specifically about those things and I decided it was time.  So below are just a few of the many things that describe what you are like right now.

-You love for me to scratch your back.  After we read our books and say our prayers each night, I lay with you in your bed before you fall asleep.  We talk, sing, and then you always ask "will you scratch my back?"

- I love your laugh.  You have this deep belly laugh when something is really funny.  That laugh is contagious.  I can't help but laugh when I hear you laugh. 

-You are prissy, prissy, prissy! DD and Papa say I was very prissy when I was your age.  I am not like that at all now so it's interesting to see how you act without seeing someone do it.  It just comes natural to you. You love anything "girly." When we are out shopping, your eyes are always drawn to the cute chapstick or finger nail polish kits, small coin purses, and costume jewelry.  

- You love to have someone paint your fingernails and toenails.  This week you asked to paint mine and I let you.  You loved it! And you also did a very good job!  You are so creative- you found some popsicle sticks and pretended they were fingernail files.

- You love shoes.  You always have.  Your favorites are heels and wedges.  Whenever I wear mine you say "you need to get me some of those." You have several pairs of play heels and you wear them every single day/all day long.  You wake up and first thing you do is put your heels on.  You run around the house playing in them as well as "priss" around with your purse, jewelry, and baby (Ella.)

- YaYa bought you a pearl bracelet and pearl necklace.  I put it on you for special occasions.  Recently we have been to two different weddings, so you wore them.  Now you call them your "wedding jewelry" and ask to wear them around the house with your "heels" and clip on dangly earrings. 

- You love weddings.You talk about them all the time. You put  towels on your head and say "I'm getting married." The first time you wore a long nightgown you told me "It looks like I'm getting married." Every time you see a woman wearing a long dress you think she is getting married. When I ask you who are are going to marry you say "Sumna" aka Sumner.  At the last wedding we went to, you were obviously very interested in the kiss at the end. You've been asking a lot about that lately...
- Recently you started playing beauty shop.  You like to pretend you are "Mrs. Ashley" and fix my hair all up!
-You love to swing! You like to swing in baby swings the best and pretend like you are a baby again.
- You love pretend phones.  You have several but your favorite is a little one from the America Girl store.
- You really enjoy blowing bubbles, too!

Dear Anna Ruth,

I love you so so so much. You and I have a very special  bond that I pray will never be broken.  Other than the 9 hours a week you go to school, we are together pretty much the remainder of the time.  Sumner goes with his daddy a lot to do things which leaves just the two of us.  It occurred to me this week that in one year, you will be in Pre-K and have to go to school every day.  I can't imagine not having you with me every single morning like I have the past three and a half years.  

I love your personality.  There really are no words to describe it, so I have got to start doing a better job of recording you so you can see it for yourself one day.  I love how much you love me, too!  Right now, I am the most important person in the world to you.  I am so thankful for our closeness!

Anna Ruth, my GREATEST prayer and desire for you is to have a RELATIONSHIP with Jesus.  I pray for your salvation EVERY SINGLE DAY.  Having a relationship with HIM doesn't mean that everything is going to be perfect all the time.  But what it does mean is that even when things are not perfect, even when things are absolutely falling apart, HE can give you the peace that surpasses all understanding.  I know this because I have felt that peace and there is nothing like it.

I love you "Sissy Bell" (that's what I call you a lot), as high as the sky and the ocean is deep and more and more and more!

Love, Mama