Happy Belated Birthday, Hannah!

My dearest Hannah,

This year has been a year of immense growth in so many areas.  You've changed so much, my dear girl.

We tried to convince you to stay five years old a little longer, but as always, you insisted upon having your birthday anyway... You're growing up so quickly.  It feels like just yesterday the nurses were bringing you to me, with all the fresh newborn smells and cuddles.  You had so much hair that the nurses were able to style it.  They'd curl it upward up on top of your head.  Still you have a head full of thick, beautiful hair with enough curl to have body .

We went to the salon the other day to get haircuts and styles.  You were so quiet for so long as she washed, rinsed, and cut your hair.  You yawned a few times during the styling to tell us you were getting a little tired of sitting up there, but after she was finished, you gave yourself the most beautiful smile in the mirror.  You are such a pretty girl with dimples that accent your grin, and while I was getting my hair cut, you kept sneaking peeks at yourself in the mirror and grinning all over again.  Our stylist has these great colorful plastic, glasses and you and Grace would fill them up with water and walk around like you owned the place.  Hands on your hips, making crazy faces in the mirror.  While you were mighty quiet at first, but by the end of our visit, you were completely into the "girl-time"feeling of togetherness.

This morning, you woke up early and cuddled in my lap a while before falling back to sleep.  I thought about how much you've grown versus how little you still are while I stroked your beautiful hair as you nodded off to sleep.  There's such a fine line between encouraging you to grow up and helping you enjoy your childhood.

The Lord has been so good to us!  We are very thankful for you, sweet little one.  May the Lord bless you in a very special way.

I love you,
Mommy