the end of an era...for now

Last night, I washed all of E's winter outerwear: her snowpants, jacket, scarf, hat and gloves. I put all in the dryer except for the gloves as they have a Dora decal on them that I worried would come off in the dryer. Incidentally, for those of you with an enviro leaning, I would have hung all to dry, but her jacket may still have been a little damp this morning so I opted to use the dryer last night. The gloves are fleece so they dry pretty quickly.

Anyways, when I explained to E that I didn't put her gloves in the dryer because I didn't want the Dora decal to fall off, she said "that's ok mom, I'm not in to Dora anymore". For a child that was in to all things Dora since we met, Dora was a bit of an institution in our house, my parents' house, my sister's house... we have a Dora shower curtain in our bathroom! Suffice to say, Dora was a big part of the family. I asked E why she is not "in to" Dora anymore and she said that she just isn't. "I don't watch the Dora show anymore, I don't read the books". This is true. So I asked her what she wanted to do with all her Dora stuff. "Save it for my sister" she said so matter-of-factly.

I love her hope and generosity wrapped into one. E has been so patiently waiting for a sibling, she is now making plans that include sharing the toys and books she has outgrown. My girl is going to make a fantastic big sister!!! :)

p.s. If anyone called yesterday and left a message, I didn't get it. I figure anyone who called and doesn't hear back from me will try calling again, right?...