Dear Sophia,

Tomorrow morning you will wake up as a nineteen-year-old, enjoying your last few days of winter break before heading back to Keene for your second semester of college.  Unreal.

What a year this has been... your final dance competition season, your very last recital with the BDC dance team, choosing a college, graduating from high school, and moving into dorm life away from home.  Those are all HUGE milestones.  So much of the effort and determination you've put into your life for as long as you can remember was recognized in these moments.  You were celebrated with honors and awards, and we were so proud to watch you shine.

But in the end, I hope what you remember from this time of your life isn't the triumph of being ranked 3rd in your class or all the scholarships you earned or the 4.0 of your first college semester (although that's all incredibly impressive and something you SHOULD feel great about) - rather, I hope you appreciate the experiences you had while working your way to those accomplishments.  

I hope you remember the classes you took that really lit a fire in you and pushed you to learn deeply and work hard.  I hope you remember the classes that weren't as awesome and you had to persevere through, proving that you could do it even when you didn't want to.  I hope you remember the long evenings at the dance studio, laughing with your teammates even when you were tired and would have maybe rather had a nap than a rehearsal.  I hope you remember all the mornings we spent together on the couch, binging Netflix while sorting through scholarship applications and editing essays.  I hope you remember the days when we decided we simply needed to escape to the beach for a bit to find balance.  I hope you remember the drives to work with the windows down and the music up, feeling the independence of earning money toward college and also for the fun stuff like Mexicali shopping or trips to the drive-in. I hope you remember the nervousness you felt moving in with a new roommate, and the contentment of fostering a new friendship.  I hope you remember the relief of turning in a paper you struggled with, knowing a weekend of freedom was before you.  I hope you remember the feeling of pride and satisfaction each time your hard work paid off.

I've really loved having you home for the past month, celebrating the holidays together and being reminded of the rhythm of living together as a family of four.  I can't wait to have you back again for the summer, but I also know it's important for you to get back to the rest of your life and have even more new, challenging experiences that will continue to shape you into the amazing person you are and will be.  

As always, I'm so proud of you, and feel so privileged to have you in my world.  

I love you.

Mama