And just like that, we’ve entered the double digits. Amazing. What can I say about this lovely child? Amelie is observant and very kind. She’s thoughtful, curious, and sometimes silly. She watches those around her and steps in to help. She has the best of intentions and loves to collect things (shells, miniature animal figurines, beads, rocks…). She always wants to understand why people behave the way they do. “Why did you laugh just now?” “Why was that funny?” “What were you just talking about?” Maybe she’ll become a student of behavioral sciences! I count myself so tremendously lucky that this affectionate, intelligent, delightful child is part of our family.

Mom: What do you want to be when you grow up?

Amelie: An artist or a nurse.

M: If you could go anywhere in the world tomorrow, where would you go?

A: Disneyland or Lagoon.

M: What’s your favorite food right now?

A: Pizza still.

M: What’s your favorite dessert?

A: Raspberry ice cream.

M: What’s your favorite movie?

A: Inside Out. (See what I mean? Totally into the behavioral sciences.)

M: What’s your favorite book?

A: Right now it’s the one I’m reading: The Secret Zoo.

M: If you could have one super power, what would it be?

A: To fly. Or to be the smartest person in the world. Because if you’re the smartest person in the world, you could probably figure out how to fly, so that way you could have both.

M: What’s something new you would like to learn how to do this year?

A: Someone in my art class, he can crochet and I kind of want to learn how to. He makes these little stuffed animals. Like he makes dinosaurs and baby guinea pigs and he makes birds and he crochets an egg and then you can open it and there’s a little bird inside it.

M: Maybe we can learn how to crochet together. That would be super fun to learn how to do. Anything else you want to say to the world?

A: Well, you’re not going to send it to the world, right? Are you? Are you? How would you do that? You’d have to make like copies to send. But you’re not really going to send it to the world are you?

Love you so so much, sweet girl.