Letters to Julia - my three year old

Dear Julia,


This has a been a week to remind that you are a three year old. You are so smart, so bright, you speak so well and have such grown up conversations that I sometimes forget that you are only three years old. 

You are such a big girl! You are a helper, a teacher, and a problems solver. You love to help me cook. You love to help Eunice clean. You love to help the aunties take care of the babies. And you do these things really well! You sit like a little lady at nice restaurants with adults. You talk to Kenyan adults and explain things to them to help them understand. You are so smart. You know so much! You know the right things to do, and you do them.....well, most of the time. 


When we were in America, Nana was always reminding me to be careful with you. I would leave grown up things (like scissors and glue) out, right where you played. We would talk about how you are such a great kid, how you know what to do and what not to do, and how you make good choices and do the right thing. And you ARE a great kid! You DO make good choices. But Nana would always remind me, "She is a good girl, but she is three." 


Well, indeed, you are three. And sometimes you act like a three year old. And I am learning that I should not put undue pressure on your to act like a grown up, just because you are always around grown ups and act so much like a grown up. This was a tough week for us. You are teaching me a lot of things. You have challenged me and tested me. You have stretched me! You have surprised me. These little three year old behaviors are shining through! You surprised me this week in a way that proved Nana's words of warning to be true. You wrote with pen all over the side of the couch, from top to bottom in long, strait lines curving up and down, covering the entire side of the couch. You surprised me by some of the things you said to me and some of the attitude you showed me. 


Those are natural three year old behaviors. It does not mean they are good behaviors or ones I will allow you to continue, but they do remind me that you are three. And above all, it reminds me that I should be in constant prayer for you, for your little heart, asking God to show me how to be a good mommy, and asking God to be near you, whispering into your ear and showing you the right choice to make. It reminds me that my heart should be so full of God's Word that it flows out of my mouth and onto your ears. God's Word must be in my heart, on my mind, and on my lips so that I speak words of encouragement, life and hope to you, not words of frustration or anger. Yes, you need discipline and correction, but only out of love...the love that God puts in our hearts. THAT is what I am learning from you, and THAT is what I want to teach you. 


I pray every day ~ all day ~ for you. You are my precious treasure and I want to train you in ways that are glorifying to God. He has created you to be a strong, special, smart little girl, and I want to do the best job I can at facilitating and fostering that. 


I love you, baby girl, and I can't wait to see the amazing young lady that God is creating you to be!!


Love, 
Mommy