Today Julianna turns 4.

Another year, another birthday.  Today was not only the end of a week-long birthday celebration, but also a chapter in Julianna’s Excellent Adventure.  We’ve only completed 3 chapters so far and its already feeling a bit repetitive to say this but, what a year.  I mean, what a year.

Last year at this time I remember thinking about how I had a real, human, person as a daughter.  A person I could chat with and go for walks with and appreciate things with.  All of that was true then and all of that is even more true now.  3 to 4 was no less of a jump than 2 to 3.  I wouldn’t even say it was more of a jump; just different.

This was the year when we went shopping for underwear and she learned how to put it on by herself, instead of her diaper.  Then she learned how to sit on a toilet and do her business.

This was the year where she stopped sleeping in a crib and started sleeping in a “big girl bed”.

This was the year when, like a velociraptor, she learned how to use doorknobs to open doors and go where she wants to go, when she wants to go.

This was the year when she learned how to read, and write her name.

This was the year when she learned how to do basic math.

This was the year when she started to really wonder about places outside her own small world.

This was the year she got up on stage in front of a auditorium full of strangers and performed what felt like a 2 hour ballet routine.

This was the year she went on her first real sleepover.

This was the year (I think) she developed what I would define as real friendships (outside our house).

This was the year she asked where babies and “pyramids” come from.

This was the year when she had her first professional sports local championship (Bruins).

This was the year when she went to her first Red Sox game where she saw the aforementioned Bruins collectively throw out the first pitch with the Stanley Cup, and saw the Red Sox score 6 times in the first inning on a perfect Sunday afternoon while she danced, ate icecream, popcorn, pizza, and anything else she could get her hands on.

This was the year she learned how to be a great big sister; sharing, hugging, and teaching Chloe in her own little ways.

This was the year she decided that, yes, she did want to go snow tubing down the mountain and, no, she did not want to sit on someone’s lap.

This was the year that she overtly joined in on the adventure.

This was the year when I thought it wouldn’t be possible to be prouder to have her as a daughter than last year.  Wrong.

That was the year when.

This is the beginning of the year when…

Happy Birthday Julianna.