7

Seven years ago.  Today.  That is when my life was drastically and irrevocably changed forever.  Around 7:30 a.m., when I heard a little squawk and cry as they lifted Ms. M out of me and I caught a mere glimpse of that slimy, squinty, most gorgeous little baby in the world.  She loves to hear her birth story and I love telling it, how the c-section delivery was planned so the atmosphere in the operating room was excited, relaxed and cheerful, the doctors and nurses quietly chatting as they prepped me for surgery.  How I was scared, nervous and excited at the same time, and all of the nervousness disappeared and was replaced with such excitement, happiness and love the moment Ms. M made her entrance and was pronounced healthy.  Undisputably one of those moments in life that is etched into my memory in all of its most minute details.

And now that little squishy, cuddly bundle is a seven year old girl.  Wow!  She turned from the lovely cuddly baby into an adorable, feisty and incredibly smart toddler who had memorized all of her books and had a huge repertoire of songs, then a cautious, curious and lively preschooler, followed by a confident, social, smart and fun Kindergartener who then morphed into this fabulous seven year old girl.  She is a  kid now, not a little kid, and while I will always look back wistfully at how cute she was in every stage of her life and how she is growing up much too fast, I am so proud of her and loving this stage.   I love the way we can share humour now, the way she comes up with such grown-up insights it blows me away, the way she looks after her little sisters.  I'm so proud that she is adventurous, open to travel and other change, thirsty for knowledge, not defined by being a girl in her interests (Barbie, Dinosaurs and all things Science are all the rage right now), how she is effortlessly bilingual and thinks it's no big deal, how she comes up with quite ingenious arguments when she wants something (she'll give her lawyer-mama a run for her money), how she still wants to be exactly like me and that she still loves to hold my hand.

Today was a family day - with the Birthday Bash to follow in a couple of days!  We spent the day eating all of Ms. M's favourite foods, watching a movie and going to her favourite ceramics decorating studio where she selected, true to form, a soccer-ball to paint.



Happy 7th Birthday, Sweetie!