Happy birthday to my favorite girl!

At this moment five years ago, I was gazing into my new daughter's eyes, wondering about all of the things that lay ahead. I saw her face and could immediately see myself in it, as well as my husband's. But what would she be like? Will she be an easy baby, or difficult? When will she learn to walk? Talk? When will she fall in love for the first time? Will she love to read like I do? Will she like to dance or play sports more? How old will she be when she first rides a bike? Will her hair turn really blonde or will it fall out? Will she really be so "terrible" when she turns two? I just couldn't imagine it, because at that moment, my heart filled with so much love.

Having gone into labor early, we weren't the most prepared. We were keeping the gender a surprise, but from the moment my water broke, my father told me that he knew it must be a girl. Ten years before, to the date, my dear childhood friend has passed away at the age of 16 in a tragic car accident. You see, we knew that we had an angel looking out for us. One that was helping my new child make it's way into this world. We had already planned to name her after my friend, Becky. If she was a girl, her middle name would be Rebecca. This was set from the moment we found out we were pregnant. So, even though we still hadn't found out the sex, when my water broke, we sort of thought it would be a girl.

Imagine my joy and the unbelievable feelings when the doctor announced, "It's a girl!". I couldn't believe it and I knew it all along, all at the same time. And I looked at her, and I fell in love.

Now that little bundle of joy is over fourty pounds heavy. She's tall enough to reach the bathroom sink faucets, resourceful enough to get her own water out of the refrigerator and independant enough to get up, get dressed and make her bed, all before I'm awake. How did this happen? How did my tiny baby, all 7 pounds and 11 ounces of her, get so big that she didn't need me to do these things anymore? It happens without you realizing. All of the sudden, you stop one day and realize that she doesn't need you to wipe her bottom, put the toothpaste on her toothbrush, or pick out her clothes. And while you're glad that you are raising an self sufficient individual, you can't help but wonder when she grew up? Was it while I was sleeping? Did I miss it when I was checking my email the other day? Or maybe it was when I was busy mopping the floor.

Five years have passed since I met her. It was instant love, but as I've gotten to know her, know her personality and some of those initial questions have been answered, I love her more than ever. When you cut through all the four-year-old crap, she's a good kid with a good heart. She loves with wreckless abandon. If I had a dollar for every time she told me that she loved me, I'd be a very rich person. Who am I kidding? I don't need the dollars to be rich.

We've had quite the run so far and I'm looking forward to the next five years. Because I KNOW it's downhill after that. She's enough like me for me to know I've got my work cut out for me when she hits those pre-teen and teenage years. :) Until then, I promise to watch, enjoy and live in the moment. I promise to continue to tell her each night how much I love her and how lucky I am to have her. She's my favorite girl. These times are so special, but so fleeting.