Dear ECS: “It's fun on vacation!”

Hey sweetie,

Earlier this week, your toddler self said to me: "It's fun on vacation!" It is fun on vacation.  But for once, I am not writing to you about being on vacation.  Because we sure do that a lot!

Instead, I want to write about a cool realization that I had a few weeks ago – thinking about my own life in conjunction with yours.  I got to wondering when your 1,000 day on earth would be, wondering if it had already happened or was coming up?  Thankfully, the day had not come, until earlier this week.

Each day with you is so fun, and these last 1,000+ days have been undoubtedly the best in my own life, which incidentally is 13,890 days and counting.  Part of what makes me so happy is seeing your growth.  Sometimes that development comes in fits and starts, for example, 18 or so months ago, when you moved cautiously over a period of weeks from standing to walking your first, precarious steps.  

Other times, your growth is stunningly fast, your transition from a few words to your loquacious self happened seemingly in a period of a few weeks.  I really enjoy your verbal prowess, because it means we can have fun conversations about your experiences, your thoughts and I can share mine. 

For example, when you just spontaneously told us that “It's fun on vacation” with pure joy across your face.  We couldn’t agree more about the enjoyment of vacation, but I took more joy and pride in your ability to communicate perfectly how you were feeling in that moment. 

This month has been busy, with lots of playdates, visitors, parties and adventures within Ethiopia.   We even got to go to our first Ethiopian wedding, which was a real highlight of January in the Korol family here in Addis.

Another highlight for me as your dad was a daddy/daughter haircut adventure.  This was your first real haircut, the only other time we cut your hair was a year or so ago with a little nip in the back of your hair to tidy it out.   We talked about the process of getting your haircut, how important it is to be still and who should go first, you or daddy.  You picked me to go first and watched as I got a trim.  Then it was your turn and right away you clamored into the chair with nervous energy.  The hairdresser was fantastic, talking to you and trying to keep you still.  The thing that made me so proud was watching your concentration and self-pride as the haircut happened.  You wanted to be bounding all over the place, with the excitement of your first haircut.  But you knew it was not the right time for bounding and held that energy inside.  When you haircut was done, with a cute cut that tidied up your look, you were overflowing with positive energy and joy.  Then, mom met us at a nearby restaurant/bar, and your excitement had a release, we were all very happy to have navigate another first. 

love,

dad