Happy Birthday, Pookies!
You, my precious baby girl, were born on a very stormy January day. [No, really! We were having a very rainy season here in San Diego. It was more rainy than I ever remembered it being! It was storming the night I went into labor with you (a tree was down in the street, blocking our way to get to the hospital!), and it rained all the day you were born. It was beautiful. It's amazing -- good things always happen to me in the rain. It was raining the day I married your daddy, it was raining the day I gave birth to you, and it was raining the day I gave birth to Leah. It's quite appropriate, too, because I love the rain!]
I remember snuggling with you in those early days. I was afraid to breathe on you because you were so tiny and new. I loved the way you smelled. You smelled so sweet and familiar. And you were so beautiful. I used to just sit and stare at you in awe.
Now you are quite the little lady. You love, and I mean love wearing dresses! Every day you ask me for one. You have a need for your clothes and shoes to match. If I give you something to wear and you disapprove of the color scheme, you'll say, "Mommy, this doesn't match." It's a riot!
You're so kind and happy and helpful. You love your baby sister. Whenever Leah gets upset, you break out in song, usually to the tune of "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star" or "The Itsy-Bitsy Spider". And what's wonderful is that it always works! Leah adores you and responds so well to you. When you sing to her, she stops and listens. You smile at her whenever you see her, and in the morning when you wake up (she's usually still asleep), you ask me, "Can I please touch Leah?"
Whenever you do something adorable, or I just look at you and marvel at how gorgeous you are, I ask you, "Emmy, why are you so beautiful?" and you reply, "Because I love you." Many times you'll say to me, "Mommy, do you know I love you?" out of the blue. And when I give you the "I love you" hand sign, you flash it right back at me.
You love going outside to ride your tricyle (your new Big Wheel!) and play in your little house. You run around with the neighborhood kids and laugh and play. You cut paper, draw and color so well. (I couldn't believe how well you stayed in the lines the other day!) You love watching your favorite shows: Max & Ruby, Wow! Wow! Wubbzy!, and lately Toot & Puddle; and your favorite movies: The Phantom of the Opera, The Nightmare Before Christmas and WALL-E.
You really enjoy school and seeing your teacher (Mrs. M.) and all your friends (mainly D.!). Every Tuesday and Thursday morning when I wake you up at 7 a.m. and I ask you if you want to go to school, you reply with a nod and a "yes". At school, you love playing with puzzles, and you like to vacuum. During playtime outside, your favorite thing to do is to play in the sandbox. You like snacktime. Every schoolday, I pack a Gogurt and a string cheese in your snackbox. They're your favorites. Whenever Leah and I arrive to pick you up, you always greet us with a gigantic smile. One would think you hadn't seen us in weeks!
You're such a fast learner. You catch onto everything so quickly, like your Big Wheel (a few people in the neighborhood watched you riding and said, "Wow! It didn't take her long to catch onto that, did it?"). Or like tonight, when we went rollerskating for your birthday. You started out not wanting to go into the rink, but soon you went out there with Daddy. Then, before I knew it, you were wanting to let go of his hand and skate beside him. And then, shortly after that, you wanted to go out alone! (We didn't let you though, 'cause you could've been run over. ;-)
You say the funniest things, like when your dad was on his way out the door to go to work on a Saturday, and he was wearing a regular t-shirt, and you said to him, "You're wearing that to work?" Or when Daddy drove past our house today and you said, "Daddy, you missed!" Or when out of the blue you said to me today, "Mommy, you were right. It's not gonna snow."
You delight your grandma, grandpa and auntie with your wit and charm. They just love being around you.
And so do your daddy and I. We love you more than life itself. We are amazed by you and all you do, and we are so thankful that you're in our lives.
Thank you for being our pride and joy. Thank you for being our special little angel!
Love always & forever,
Mommy & Daddy
1 comment:
Wow. You know I cried when I read this. First, the rain. Rain has always held great significance for Ken. For him it has always presaged times of great and momentous change. Emily entering our lives was such change. She is so incredible. All the while that I was reading this entry, in my mind, I was filling in additional events, thoughts, impressions, and remembrances of my own--of seeing her for the first time and holding her--not knowing then that I would forever be in awe whenever I am with her. I am in awe when I am with her watching her shows, when I watch her eat, play, sleep, read, smile. I never tire of just gazing at her face. Adding to the enchantment of "just" watching her, I am awed listening to her talk and laugh, listening to her sing, and "play" the piano and the drums, watching her write, draw, and cut things out. Everything she does is so remarkable, for her age, and otherwise. One of the best days of my life was spent just being with her. We did not do anything special. We only did the things three year olds do, eat, play, and rest. But, I remember telling Ken later that I treasured that day with her, in no small part because I was present for every moment. Living in the moment, conscious only of what we were doing, not wishing I was somewhere else, or thinking of what I should be doing, or needed to do--just enjoying her. And nothing fills me with greater joy than having her say, out of the blue, "Sister, you know I love you." Molly, my sweet baby girl, your and Stephen's sweet baby girls are two of the greatest blessings of my life. I love you all.
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