Dearest Eva,
Happy sixth birthday to our precious princess! You have made it to the big SIX! We are so excited for you, to celebrate with you, and to take this opportunity to let you know how immensely treasured you are! You are our sensitive, kind, compassionate, sweet, thoughtful, lively, tickling, charming, cuddly, easily distracted, flexible, easy-going, beauty-spotting, delighted daughter. It is fun to see and name the color and depth God has made visible in you!
Your sixth year of life has ended with a bang! Last month we moved from the only home you have ever known into a new home. It has been beautiful to walk with you through the mourning process, help you say goodbye well, talk about what you miss and what makes you sad. We are proud of you for saying goodbye well. In the midst of the sadness though, you have truly allowed yourself to love our new home, the bike path along the stream, the green grass, and the space to play outdoors.
This year has been a special year for you in bonding with a group of friends at Kindergarten. You play in the park together, have taken swim lessons together now, and are going to attend a summer program together. It has been fun for you to have a group of friends. You are well liked by everyone, children and adults. You are excited to make the transition from Kindergarten to school and talk about it often. You had a Schnuppertag on Tuesday in school and loved it. Your teacher was great, and you are counting down the days until school begins. You are still a bit unsure and nervous, which is normal and great, but it helps that your buddy Mario will be in the same class! This year you learned how to count to 20 in both languages, and you have been working on adding and subtracting up to the number six! We have not pushed you at all to learn numbers and letters, and it has been fun to watch you grow in these areas when the time has been right for you.
You have really developed into a beautifully active girl. You began ballet this year and took to it splendidly. We love watching you break out into ballet dance moves around the home, just like your favorite ballerina from the movie Leap. You are precious! You are quite an accomplished bike rider on your little bike, and we are proud of how you have learned to follow the biking rules along the stream in Oberlaa so quickly. You handle an adult scooter without much issue. You try hard to keep up with your brother and his friends when they allow you to tag along. You have grown in your ability to stand up for yourself, to make your voice heard, and to know and speak what you want and do not want. You have had a lot of opportunities to experience many big emotions this year, and you have grown to recognize and speak your basic emotions well.
You love music, listening to songs and singing and dancing along. You were able to take a mini course in piano with a great teacher and really learned well and quickly. You also have a little xylophone which you play with pleasure. Your love for arts and crafts has only grown this year, cutting and gluing remaining high on your list, and your love of drawing has also increased. You frequently bring us your treasured drawings of homes and flowers and princesses and trees and hearts. You are our typical chocolate loving girl, with schnitzel and pommes and pizza and fried eggs high on the list as well.
Definite hightlights from the year for you include our summer vacation to Side. You really took to the slides this year, riding them for the first time alone, and you and Nathanael played for hours in the pools and sea. We visited Prague with your Grandpa and Grandma, Auntie Carrie and Uncle Drew, and you loved the train time, especially watching movies and making faces with Auntie Carrie. You continue to adore your cousin Desmond and had a great time playing with him when they visited in October for an early family Thanksgiving. Kite flying ranks quite high on your list of family activities, and you also loved our family ride at Prater in the multiple-seat bikes. You had a great time visiting Neutal as a family last July, swimming and exploring the woods and simply relaxing together before sending your big brother to camp.
You continue to love "family hands" with all four of us and often ask for "Eva sandwiches" with Dad and Mom. God continues to solidify your bond with us as He also has made known His claim on your precious heart and your part of the bigger family of God. You confidently and boldy tell us now that you believe in God, that you trust in Jesus as the one who has taken the punishment for your sins. You are such a sweet, sensitive spirit, feeling awful when your actions cause others pain. You seem to truly rest in the love of Jesus. We delight in you delighting in Him and being delighted in by Him! :)
We love and adore you, dear sweet Evangeline Elif. You are God’s wonderful creation, and you display His Glory in your beautiful delight and free spirit!
Happy Birthday!
Your mommy and daddy
6-year-old Eva!
