May flew by with dad’s birthday, our anniversary, the end of the preschool year, hiking Stone Mountain, and so much more. In the midst of it all, Kaitlyn turned four years old and we celebrated with a few of her close buddies with a Woodland Fairy themed backyard party. But pictures of her prancing around in a poofy dress is only a small sliver of who Kaitlyn is at age four (ok, maybe a large sliver, as her affinity for girly dresses and outfit changes knows no limits). So I wanted to take a minute to celebrate our little firecracker and all the fullness she brings to our lives.
Let me first take a second to thank William Shakespeare for so perfectly describing our girl- “Though she be but little, she is fierce!”
EAT
Ah, the ongoing saga known as feeding Kaitlyn… OK, that’s a bit dramatic. Though I think she has it in her to be a picky eater (she’d eat mac ‘n cheese every night if she had her way), I’ve dug my heels in hard the past couple of years with consistency and it has paid off. (See also: Consistency and the Kid Menu Myth). We all eat the same meals, though sometimes put together differently and at times have to still help by picking up the fork and feeding her (that’s kind of embarrassing to admit). The funniest thing about Kaitlyn (and makes me question whether of not she is really mine) is her general apathy about food in general. I get losing interest in vegetable curry at age four, but even with her substantial sweet tooth, she’ll still lose interest in cake or chocolate sometimes after just a few bites. Mema says David was like that too when he was little so I guess she takes after her dad!
SLEEP
The most obvious thing about sleep is that she just does not need as much as her sister. I think Hailey napped until age 5, and Kaitlyn hasn’t napped in years at this point. She goes to bed between 7:00-7:30 (and “reads” with her magic pen until close to 8:00) and then sleeps until 7:15 or so, so I’m not complaining.
She goes through phases every few weeks when she’ll wake up during the night. Usually it’s around 2:30-3:00 and the reason is everything from she’s scared of dinosaurs (oops) to the fact that she wants me to cover her up. Neither one of our girls has ever gotten out of bed to come to our room (I guess we made those rules clear!), but she’ll just shout “MOM” until I’m there. She definitely gets the baby-of-the-family treatment on this because even though I struggle to go back to sleep afterwards (there have a been few days I’m up for the day beginning at 3AM), I soak up her snuggling my hand as I brush her hair out of her face with the other.
PLAY
Oh, my sweet Goose. Where do I begin?
She’s as smart as a whip and uses that wit more often that I should admit to manipulate us. She’s good y’all, which entertains me to no end and also makes me fear for her teenage years. She plays the damsel in distress card a little too well and I can already picture her being that girl in college that says the group project is just “so hard” and letting some starry-eyed boy handle the whole thing for her. On the other hand, I also see her running a Fortune 500 company because the girl knows what she wants and does not take no for an answer. I’ll find myself saying “absolutely not” and without flinching she replies “ok, just a little then” which leaves me wide eyed and wondering if she heard me or why she even bothered asking me in the first place.
She seems to be our girly girl and prefers long “princess” dresses, changing her clothes 3-4 times a day, and will put on lipstick anytime she can sneak some. Right now she is in gymnastics and loves it. She is in the early stages of learning to read and can sound out simple words like CAT. She can write her name and draws the cutest little stick people that are just a head and legs, with arms coming out of their head. She also likes drawing “maps” which is really just a way of saying she scribble scrabbles all over every sheet of paper we own… and her bedroom wall (thank you, Mr. Clean Magic Eraser).
The way she can turn on and off her crocodile tears is downright impressive. Her dramatics over “boo boos” has had me wonder before if something is really going on or if a bone is broken, but more often than not I can distract her and that eases my worry. She loves to snuggle and at most meals she ends up curled in my lap, poking at my face and laughing. When we have movie Fridays, she always prefers to be curled up right next to me with her Mimi (bunny lovey). I still carry her to bed on my back like a horse and probably will for as long as she lets me. She also knows she owns me because anytime I’m frazzled, she’ll throw out a hey mama………….. I love you. Melt. My. Heart.
At her four year check up she was 3’4″ tall (57th percentile) and weighed 30 pounds (10th percentile). Being that her weight was in the 8th percentile last year; this is nice to hear. She wears 4T clothes if it’s a dress or a nightgown, but if a skirt has to fit around her waist, usually she has to have a 2T- our little peanut! And so I’ll end it the way I began- “Though she be but little, she is fierce!”
We love you Kate-Kate!
Pictures by Amanda Overmyer
John J. says
You described Ms. Kaitlyn well – truly a go-getting bundle of energy! I so enjoyed seeing her, as well as you and Hailey, this past weekend. Lot of smiles around when you gals are present. 🙂
Brittany Dixon says
Lots of smiles on our end, too! Can’t wait to be back down there soon 🙂
Kathy says
So sweet!! It is nice you will have these post for your girls to read when they are older. More fun times ahead. 🙂
Brittany Dixon says
I hope they will like reading them as much as I like looking back and reading them. It’s funny how quickly I forget their little quirks! <3
Taryn says
She reminds me so much of my daughter – who turns 5 next month. She is basically the polar opposite of her older brother. Always the “picky eater,” the one who doesn’t need as much sleep, the one who runs everywhere (walking is too slow), the life of the party. She can turn on the water works at a snap of a finger, and can come up with a witty comeback so fast you don’t know what hit you. She also sometimes requires we feed her with a fork (embarrassing, I know) and needs to sit on one of our laps while we finish eating dinner. I’ve been told by her preschool teacher that she will never be a follower, but the concern will be if she’s leading kids in a not-so-great way. She starts kindergarten in September, and I already cringe thinking about her teacher calling me…
Brittany Dixon says
Haha, we have twins!! I love their fire but trying to point it in the right direction will continue to be an ongoing parental challenge for sure 😉 Good luck in kindergarten! 🙂
Lynda says
Such a sweet post so well written that makes me feel like I know Kaitlyn. Happy birthday wishes on her 4th 🙂
Brittany Dixon says
Thank you, Lynda! She’s very excited to be able to tell people she is “FOH” now 😉
Kelli D. says
I feel like i just read a description of my daughter, our second child who also just turned 4 in March all the way from food preference (mac and cheese all day!), personality, love of girlie shoes and dresses, emotionally mood swings, and tall, skinny peanut/clothing sizes! We also have that Shakespeare quote framed in her room along with “Let her sleep for when she wakes, she will move mountains.” Both perfectly describe her ❤️❤️❤️
Brittany Dixon says
Lol- do you think it’s a second child thing?! Your little girl sounds just lovely 🙂
Oh I love that second quote, too! I wonder if they make a pair of pajamas that say that? How cute would that be?!
Beth Gipson says
This is one of my favorite blog posts you’ve ever written, which may sound weird, but I have a precious little 4 year old girl (who has a 7 year old brother) and it was like I just read a beautiful story about my little baby girl! I mean, EVERYTHING you said describes my precious one perfectly! The other day in one of your posts you said that you secretly hoped she calls it “bessert” forever and that stopped me in my tracks, because my sweet one says the same thing all the time. I love it! So glad there are these precious babies in this world!
Brittany Dixon says
Thank you, Beth! Have you recorded your sweet girl saying “bessert” yet? I keep trying to sneak the camera at the table but she keeps catching me 😉
Beth Gipson says
lol, no I sure haven’t but I will have to do that…It’s too precious not to have 🙂
Briana Lucas says
There must have been something in the water in 2014, because my (second) daughter will be 4 soon too, and this post could have been about her! Right down to the drawing of the Potato People! Sweet sweet girl!
Brittany Dixon says
We need a convention to get all our feisty girls together!! And it will serve as a support group for us mamas of the feisty girls 😉 <3
Ashley E says
She and Audrey sound like peas in a pod. You could have been describing mine to a T….except the sleeping. So lucky that she’s your one who needs LESS sleep. She would be my best sleeper 😂😂👍🏼
Brittany Dixon says
I swear God gave me decent sleepers because he knows how I am when I’m tired… 😉
Erin says
My daughter (2nd child, but is 2 now) is exactly like this as well! I loved your descriptions – they really fit my Ali to a T! Happy Birthday Kaitlyn!
Brittany Dixon says
I love that all these sweet and fiery girls will be growing up together and taking on this world! Let’s hope they all use their sass for good- ha!
sherry says
You captured the essence of Kaityn to perfection–then again, you would know, she is your child 🙂 I loved reading all the descriptions (which I could see perfectly) and seeing all the pictures. I wish I would have done the year summaries for you and Kris 🙁 These will be a great gift to Kaitlyn and you in the years to come!
Brittany Dixon says
But you do so well at remembering the highlights (but I don’t have any other feet!), and hopefully the lowlights have faded from memory… like my particular brand of toddler fussiness… 😉
You were and ARE the best mom ever!!
Jen W. says
Both of your girls are absolute dolls. Thank you for sharing your family with us.
Kelli H says
She is so darn cute and Camryn reminds me of her a bit. Especially being a little peanut and the dramatics. haha. Love these updates and those pictures are wonderful!