Happy Birthday to Mazie! Three Years Old!

Dear Mazie,

Today is your third birthday. So hard to believe that three years have already gone by since that amazing, wonderful night when you were born. Your daddy and I have loved every minute of those three years... even when you've been difficult (rarely), parenting you has been the most wonderful experience I've ever had.

Last night for a bedtime story I told you the story of your birth. Actually, I started with the part where, years and years ago when they were just friends, a boy named Caleb told a girl named Katie that he thought it would be a good idea for them to get married and have kids together. You interrupted the story to say that you wanted a story with Mazie in it. I told you to keep listening, and you did. I told you how Katie thought Caleb's idea was kind of silly at first, but eventually decided that he was right, and they got married. They talked about having kids all the time, but they had other things they needed to do first and so they waited. Then one day when they were on an airplane Caleb told Katie he thought it was time to have a baby. Once again, Katie wasn't sure about it, but after thinking about it a little bit she decided he was right about this, too, and pretty soon they learned that there was a tiny, tiny beginning of a baby in Katie's belly. Over the next nine months Katie's belly grew and grew, until finally on May 23, 2008, Katie woke up early in the morning and felt her belly squeezing the baby and getting ready for the baby to come out. Ahya was already there waiting, but Nana wasn't planning to come to North Carolina until the next day, so Katie and Caleb called her and told her to get on a plane. All day long my belly kept squeezing and squeezing, and the baby kept moving down, and in the afternoon we went to the hospital and Nana met us there. Daddy and Ahya and Nana helped Mommy breathe and move and get ready for the baby, and then it was time for Mommy to start pushing... and I pushed, and I pushed, and I pushed, and then all of a sudden with one last push the whole baby came squirting out, and Daddy said, "It's a girl!" and then you were on my chest and I looked at you and you were the most beautiful thing I had ever seen. And I was so, so happy, and Daddy was so, so happy, and Ahya was so, so happy, and Nana was so, so happy, and it was the most wonderful moment of my whole life.

I told you this story lying face to face next to you in bed, and the look on your face at the end of the story was so full of joy and pride and love and tenderness, and you reached your sweet little arms out and wrapped them around my neck and I told you that I loved you and you told me you loved me too. And then you said in a gentle little whisper, "Soon another little baby will squirt out of you."

There's just no way to tell you how much I adore you. You continue to be the brightest, sweetest, most wonderful child I can imagine. Your vocabulary keeps growing and growing, and we love to hear your stories and have conversations with you.

Your fourth year will bring a big change for you and our family as we welcome BabyBrotherSister in a few short months. I know this will be an adjustment for all of us, but you have amazed us so far with your attitude and enthusiasm toward this new addition. You already include Tiger in conversations about our family ("We're all here! Mommy, Daddy, Mazie, and BabyBrotherSister!"), and seem genuinely excited about the prospect of being a big sister. The other day you were lying across my lap and hugging my belly and singing a song that included things like, "I don't have any kids to play with at my house right now.... We don't know if you're a boy or a girl, but if you're a brother I'll play with you, and if you're a sister I'll play with you." Again, I know that it will be difficult at times to give up your spot as the sole focus of our attention, but I also just know that, like pretty much everything else, being a big sister is something you are going to excel at. I can't wait to watch you grow into this new role.

I love you entirely, my sweet little girl. Happy birthday.

Love,
Mom