Dear Mieke,
Today, you are four years old! You’ve been waiting for this day for months, and now that it’s here, you proudly show four whole fingers whenever someone asks how old you are! I can’t believe that we’re already here, celebrating four years of Mieke Jean being in our little family. It seems like just yesterday that you were born while daddy was spending nine months in South Korea. Yet, here we are – now as a family in South Korea – and you love it.
When we moved to South Korea almost two years ago, it was our sincerest hope that you’d be fully immersed in Korean culture, and you have been. Beyond our wildest expectations, even. It’s been so special watching you bloom since being planted here in 2021. At the time, you were a newly-minted two-year-old, the pandemic was trucking along steadily, and yet you seemed to weather it all with such strength and fortitude. In your four years, you’ve lived in the US and South Korea, visited South Africa, Vietnam, and Japan, and you’re the proud owner of not one, but two passports, which makes you very mad (still not sure why).
At four years old, you’re strong and independent (when you want to be), but you’re also fully committed to remaining a baby forever, too. It’s a fun mix for us. There’s rarely a week that goes by where you don’t ask us for a baby sister, but you’re content to mother your baby dolls, too. You love Paw Patrol, we’re fairly certain that you’re at least 80% made up of apple juice, and watching you sing in Korean makes us happier than you could ever imagine! I’m so excited to see you thrive in Alaska, but I know how emotional you are about leaving this country you call home is, too. It’s a lot, but you are strong. You are bold. You are fierce.
As we celebrate four years of Mieke Jean in our family, I hope you know how much we love you…even when you drive us absolutely bonkers. You’re such a wonderful blessing to our family, and I know that you were one of Grandma’s biggest prayers and wishes, and I see a lot of her fire in you, which I love.
Happy birthday, my girl! I hope it’s your best one yet!
Love,
Mama
