December 22, 2005. (from this years Christmas letter). Lately Addie’s every accomplishment is followed by a little hop, outstretched arms, and a very loud "ta-da!" She is our little princess, but loves to get down in the dirt, too. Playing with two brothers sure has toughened her up (and vice versa). One particular fight came while playing Star Wars with her brothers. She told them, "I want a pink lightsaber." They told her lightsabers don’t come in pink, and the fight escalated from there. It finally took some intervention and a Wikipedia internet search to resolve the issue and reveal that lightsabers do, in fact, come in pink. And boy, did she rub it in that she was right… Addie has been our first to actually protest when we pick her up from her nursery class each week, where she loves trying to be the center of attention. She changes her clothes up to six times a day and walks around being our little housekeeper, telling us what needs to be picked up. Addie's new nickname is Talk Show. She is by far the most verbal of the bunch and never has a lack of conversation topics. Bedtime stories are constantly interrupted by questions: "What kind of Chia pet do you like best? Daddy, do you like a blue Cinderalla dress or a pink Sleeping Beauty dress? Is your favorite letter A for Addie? Daddy, you have to take me to a ball, OK? You can’t wear your work clothes. You have to dress up extra nice…" She had to wear a splint after messing up her wrist playing rough with her brothers last month. Once the pain wore off, she started to see the advantages of her splint. Not only could she got all sorts of extra attention, she also discovered that her "whacker" could kill bugs, keep her brothers in line, and keep dad awake during our nightly story time dialogue.

December 21, 2006. (from this year's Christmas letter). Addie started pre-school this year and absolutely loves it. She was sick one day and Lindy told her she should stay home from school. “That’s a bad idea, mommy,” she countered, “my kids need me too much!” She’s kissed the proverbial Blarney Stone and then some (in other words, she’ll talk your ear off). She’s also obsessed with princesses, poodles, faux jewelry and basically anything pink. In September she had her 4th birthday party with a Hawaiian luau theme. It was the highlight of her year, with a pretend flight to Hawaii, lots of decorations, hula dancing, coconut bowling, limbo music, and more fun stuff. She’s working to overthrow Lindy as queen of the house, so we have to work hard to keep her happy just being a four-year old.

December 23, 2007. (from this year's Christmas letter). Addie missed the cutoff for Kindergarten by 2 days, but really wanted to go to school, so we had to have her get specially tested before they’d let her in. We were a bit nervous but it turned out the deciding factor was that she draws eyebrows on her stick-figure people. Who knew? She absolutely loves her Kindergarten class, and despite all the bribing she gets from her mom to stay home, she still insists that her classmates need her more. She loves flowers – so much so, that every time I fire up the lawnmower, Addie runs around on the lawn as fast as she can to save all the weedy flowers before they get mowed. She talks non-stop; here are a few favorite quotes: “Can I get some ice cream out of the freezerator?” “Mommy put shampoo and air conditioner in my hair!” “How come Grandma’s pancakes aren’t black on one side like yours?” Addie got to have a Paris-themed party for her 5^th birthday, supported by her brothers in costume and a full production of activities by Lindy. She also got to go on a special daddy date to see Disney Princesses on Ice, dressed as Jasmine (see photos). She rounded out the year with a couple of soccer, tap, and ballet classes. She is the princess of our family and adds a measure of royalty, pink and girliness into our family.

December 31, 2008. (from this year's Christmas letter). Addie is the liveliest (loudest) one in the household. We have to laugh when the kids’ teachers say how quiet they are at school, especially when it comes from Addie’s teacher. Addie loves first grade, especially drawing, coloring, and writing. She is the easiest to please out of the bunch; if there is a pretty color involved, any activity will do. She taught herself how to ride a bike this year. We thought she just liked to go insanely fast and crash-land, but I finally figured out after a few days that she didn’t realize you can stop pedaling and coast. She also learned how to conduct music (taught to her by her primary chorister Opa especially for Jaedin and Cam’s baptismal service.) She enjoys going to gymnastics class and had a great time doing a reenactment of the Caribbean cruise for her sixth birthday. She loves to be just plain silly; for example, one night I fell asleep reading her a story and woke up to find that she had completely covered me with a whole carton of baby wipes.

December 31, 2009. (from this year's Christmas letter). Don’t let the little pink bike with a basket fool you – Addie has become a fearless contender on the local BMX course, leaving all the neighborhood boys in the dust. [photos] After a heavy investment into swim lessons last year, she seems to have finally picked it back up again. Her best friend at school is blind, and she has been learning to read Braille. To Dad’s dismay, Addie has transitioned to having boyfriends instead of girlfriends this year. Her favorite thing about Australia: Dog-sitting Jack, the neighbor’s dog.