9 years

Sometimes it's hard for me to admit this, but when I think of Moo's birth, I usually feel my insides tighten up.  It was hard.  It was long.  It was the most difficult thing I'd ever done, emotionally and physically.  It was not what we had planned.  Too many interventions.

But, when I think of the first time I saw her face and touched her, I feel a sigh of relief.  I have a vision of Mark handing her to me, his face stained with tears, and we were both in utter disbelief.  She was so shockingly her.  Tender and sweet and beautiful and intensely staring back at us.  I remember looking at the crisp October morning outside our hospital window, and thinking to myself, "This is a moment I will never forget.  My life has changed forever."

So tomorrow she begins the 10th year of her life (gasp!!!).  It's hard to believe.  But it's not hard to love every day of those years.  And it's not hard to envision the love that will surround her from this point on.  Happy Birthday to our dear girl.