On a Birthday's Eve

It's the eve of our birthday, and as always my mind flits back in time to the day my little girl, Emily Susanne, was born. It was a gorgeously sunny Autumn day, the trees covered in multi-colored leaves and a definite crispness in the air...and it was my 27th birthday.

I kidded beforehand, saying I didn't want to "share" my birthday (like I don't already do that with millions of people), but I wouldn't trade it for all the world now.

It's so true. Despite all the pain a woman bears in giving life to a child, it all disappears completely and utterly upon that first cuddle with her little one.

...

So as I sit here thinking about my soon-to-be 11-year-old...who is growing taller and more willowy...who has ideas and opinions and imagination...who is so special and understanding and forgiving...I thank God for giving her to her daddy and me. I couldn't imagine a more precious birthday gift...a more perfect birthday gift.

I've been so busy with the new baby that it's easy to lose track of how much the other two are growing and changing still. And it's every bit as amazing as the little one. Day by day, hour by hour, they are changing and growing and forming into the people God intended when He first formed the world.

Awesome, isn't it?