Dear Anna, Love Katie

Dear Miss Anna,

Right now you are just bursting with energy and love, sometimes a little too much energy :)

Right now you love, love, love barbies. You love dressing them up and have them go to parties, on vacation, and to the grocery store.

Right now I've been missing you during the day while you are at school. I'm working with your mommy full time now as her assistant. Which is why I'm so happy I get to pick you up from school almost everyday.

Right now I have loved reading the titles to your paintings that you paint each week at school (your teacher writes the titles at the top of the painting). A few of my favorites have been "A princess waiting in her castle for the mermaid to come to her party" and "Ghosts playing in the ocean."

Right now you have a very strong opinion on almost everything you do. Which is sometimes accompanied by a foot stomp and hands on your hips.

Right now you have been more and more interested in what your mommy does and scrapbooking. Which is totally awesome.

Right now you are learning new songs at school for your upcoming Christmas performance. You've been giving us some adorable previews of these songs.

Right now you give the best hugs and kisses

Right now you love your new purple Ugg boots

Right now (and ever since I met you at 4 months old) I feel so lucky to be in your life. You bring me so many smiles and days of laughter.

Love you Anna girl.

Love, Katie


MEMORY KEEPING TIP FROM ALI | Having someone else be a contributor to your memory keeping endeavors is a great way to add depth to the stories you're collecting. Who could you invite to write about someone in your life that could then go on a scrapbook page or into your Project Life album? Want more ideas for getting the stories of your life documented? Check out my 31 Things self-paced online workshop at Big Picture Classes for 31 days of prompts.

And just a note to say that Katie has been one of the biggest blessings to come into my life. Not only is she an awesome employee (started out as our nanny more than three years ago) she has become one of my very best friends. I am so thankful for her every day and am so excited to be embarking on this next working adventure together.

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35 thoughts

  1. Vera says…
    11/12/2012

    I really loved how Katie was helping out with your PL sometimes (I remember it mentioned in a post or two), and how she really adores your kids too.

    Reply 0 Replies
  2. Laura says…
    11/12/2012

    wonderful journaling by Katie!

    Reply 0 Replies
  3. dawn says…
    11/12/2012

    aawww how sweet this is!! love that it came from Katie, she is the BEST!! how lucky for both of you to have each other and for the kids to have someone special helping with them.

    I babysit my two little cousins and we keep a notebook to write down about their days. What I include now is little RIGHT NOW and THINGS TO REMEMBER lists in their notebook. Their parents LOVE reading these and thank me all the time for making the time to write them.
    I also make scrapbooks for their parents using the photots from being here at my house. This way they really can see what the kids do here and have these memories to share with them at home and for later when kids are older.
    So I do get how neat this idea of someone else doing the storytelling from their view is. I LOVE doing this for my cousin and seeing how happy she gets when I give them to her.
    Thanks Katie for sharing today and I'm so happy to hear your working with Ali. What a great team you will be!!

    Reply 0 Replies
  4. Sonja says…
    11/12/2012

    Wonderful words for the "little Anna" and also for her Mom!
    Like to scrap those letters or pieces of paper in my Album...

    Reply 0 Replies
  5. J Allen says…
    11/12/2012

    Ali you are a lucky girl!

    Reply 0 Replies
  6. Terri Paulson-Sasaki says…
    11/12/2012

    I love that someone else is writing letters to Anna. What a treasure that Katie has given your daughter. My first blog has turned into letters that I am writing to my grand-kids, feeling that I have at an event. I love, love the way Katie wrote Right now... Thank you for sharing.

    Terri
    onepromise2.blogspot.com
    soulwishes.blogspot.com

    Reply 0 Replies
  7. Chint says…
    11/12/2012

    Love your posts/blog/story - all of it. And I have to find out where you got the A cape. I love it.

    Reply 0 Replies
  8. Paula says…
    11/12/2012

    Made my heart smile :)

    Reply 0 Replies
  9. Lisa W. says…
    11/12/2012

    Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhh this is so special...and Ali that Anna is SO cute just darn right beautiful!!!!!

    Reply 0 Replies
  10. Shanon Gibson says…
    11/12/2012

    So, so sweet! It is great that you have people in your life that love your children so much. Thanks for sharing this.

    Reply 0 Replies
  11. Bethany says…
    11/12/2012

    Ali . . . The love that you have for your children is wonderful to behold. Anna is growing up so quickly and Simon is his own unique young man. I just saw a post on pinterest that I thought perhaps you and Simon might particularly enjoy (how to make xmas ornaments with legos). Here is the link: http://www.chrismcveigh.com/cm/lego_ornaments.html
    Happy holidays to you and your family . . .

    Reply 0 Replies
  12. Bethany says…
    11/12/2012

    Ali . . . The love that you have for your children is wonderful to behold. Anna is growing up so quickly and Simon is his own unique young man. I just saw a post on pinterest that I thought perhaps you and Simon might particularly enjoy (how to make xmas ornaments with legos). Here is the link: http://www.chrismcveigh.com/cm/lego_ornaments.html
    Happy holidays to you and yours.

    Reply 1 Reply
    1. CoCo says…
      11/14/2012

      Bethany - that's a great link. Thanks! This year I wanted to try to make my own lego advent calendar for my daughter, as she's into lego but doesn't love the 'star wars' etc (which are often featured in the commercial lego calendar) and thought that maybe putting groups of her own pieces into the advent drawers would be fun. Now I think I'll combine random pieces some days with specific pieces and instructions like those on the website to make the ornaments on other days. THanks so much for sharing!

  13. jaimee h. says…
    11/12/2012

    As a former nanny/babysitter (whatever you call it), I so love Katie sharing her thoughts on Anna here. I love the kids I cared for, even still, as I don't take care of them any more. But that family will always be a important part of my life and Katie's words here make me get all wistful about those good ole days. Thanks for sharing today.

    Reply 0 Replies
  14. Steph says…
    11/12/2012

    I love this! One of the best things we can do for our kids, I'm convinced, is to let other people love them. I've always been a working Mom, sometimes inside the home and other times an hour's commute away, so other people have always shared with me in caring for my kids. That used to really bother me, like I was somehow "less than" because I couldn't be there every minute.

    But as they have gotten older, I hear how they talk about their old nanny Soledad, and how they talk about staying with my folks while I was out of town on business, and how they love the before/after school program at their school that I sometimes use when my work day is longer than their school day.

    I love that other people get to see the wonderful side of my kids and experience it in a way that is unique to their specific relationship. And more than anything, I treasure the stories and the phone calls from preschool and the little anecdotes that people pass along as they help me raise these little humans. <-- Sometimes, now that my boys are 10 and 12 and the girl is 11, I'm not convinced they actually ARE human, but that a whole other topic. =)

    It's a beautiful thing to share your child's love with other people. Thank you for sharing this today, you have hit the jackpot with Katie, and she with you. :)

    Reply 0 Replies
  15. Jamie says…
    11/12/2012

    Working with people who are your friends is certainly a blessing. Your sidenote is so heartfelt and sweet. I love this post!

    Reply 0 Replies
  16. Jenni Hufford says…
    11/12/2012

    i think everyone needs a Katie. So awesome to see this relationship!

    Reply 0 Replies
  17. Melanie Britt says…
    11/12/2012

    Love this. Do I spy a bakers rack? What a great idea!

    Reply 0 Replies
  18. Nadine Karen says…
    11/12/2012

    This is wonderful! Anna is a very lucky girl.
    I also need to comment on your leaves- they are magnificent!

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  19. Chris says…
    11/12/2012

    I love that she has her Uggs on in every photo. So Anna right now!

    Reply 0 Replies
  20. Katie D. says…
    11/12/2012

    This warms my heart! I was a nanny (and also a Katie!) for several years, and that relationship is so, so special.

    Reply 0 Replies
  21. pidgen says…
    11/12/2012

    I am a nanny and last year I made scrapbooks for the girls. Their parents think I'm the best nanny ever! lol. I scrapbook about them so very much in my own album {PL ... so it's kind of a given, seeing as how they are such a big part of MY life.} I think Katie's journaling will be such a treasure to Anna.
    I used to nanny for a little boy and girl. And when they moved away, their mom put my picture up in thier rooms. Aww, really made me feel special - like the Aunt I always wanted to be. :) So, it's awesome that you appreciate how much Katier loves your kids -- because, obviuosly, she does.

    Reply 0 Replies
  22. Taniesa V says…
    11/12/2012

    such adorable journaling... and oh my gosh that super A cape is AWESOME!

    Reply 0 Replies
  23. Krista Nash says…
    11/12/2012

    How wonderful! I am going to have to ask my sitter to do the same for my girls. I am terrible about getting pictures of her with them and she's been in their lives for the past 4 years! Ali, your kids are going to be so blessed when they get older to have these reflections from special people in their lives.

    Reply 0 Replies
  24. Sue W says…
    11/12/2012

    beautiful and special letter from Katie! I love the purple ugg booys too!

    Reply 0 Replies
  25. susan garner says…
    11/12/2012

    2 Thumbs up for Katie. Does she have a blog ?

    Reply 0 Replies

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