8 years

It's hard to believe that Madeline has been here for eight years now. It's amazing how much a tiny person can grow in eight fast years.

Yesterday, I tossed a party together for Madeline at the last minute. Thanks to inclement weather that forced opening night for the soccer season to be postponed, I was able to squeeze in a birthday party for Madeline. I had wanted to throw her a party, but my illness got in the way and nothing got planned. I'm happy to report that I managed to throw a party together in under 8 hours. I started planning at 9:30am yesterday and by 8pm the party was over. The house was back in order before 9pm. Not too shabby.

Today we took Madeline to the Rainforest Cafe for lunch in Atlantic City. She really wanted the Volcano dessert. The waitstaff sang to her and she was beaming from all of the attention. After lunch we headed to my mom's house for cake and presents with my mom (My dad had to work.) and brother. She was thrilled to have her fourth celebration in two days. Yesterday she had soft pretzels with her class. The teacher put a candle in her pretzel and she got to blow it out after the class sang to her. That was pretty cool in her book.

I was struck last night by how much Madeline has grown over these past 8 years. She's not a little kid anymore. As she sits next to her little sister who is half her age, I am keenly aware of just how much she has grown up. I remember thinking she was so big when she was 4 and now I can see that 4 isn't really all that grown up. My 8 year old is just ten short years away from being an adult. In just 8 more years, I will have a daughter who will be celebrating her sweet sixteen. If the first 8 years have flown by in the blink of an eye, I can only imagine that the next 8 will go by just as fast.

Madeline,

Eight years ago when I held you in my arms for the very first time, I could scarcely believe that I actually had a little girl. At that time, I couldn't even imagine what you might be like at age 2 let alone age 8. In the 8 years that you have been the focus of our lives, you have taught us so much.

I am so proud of the young lady you have grown to be. You are compassionate to your friends. You treat others with a kindness that makes me feel that Daddy and I are doing a good job in raising you. It is our hope always to do right by you. If in 10 more years you can go out in the world as a confident well-rounded young woman, I will be immensely happy.

In the coming year, we will continue to try to provide you with lots of enriching experiences and fun things to do. I hope you will remember fondly the year you were 8. Happy 8th birthday Madeline!

Love Always,

Mommy