HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MY DAUGHTER
February 28th marked her 17th birthday. My daughter [1] is one year away from being a legal adult! Hackneyed though this may sound, it really does seem like just a few days ago that she was born. Has it been seventeen years already?!?!?!
I recall being in the delivery room, watching her head crown moments before she made her debut.
I recall all the firsts, and she was my first child, so everything, every little teeny thing, was so amazing, so special, so incredible.
A few years ago I saw some "new parent" picures, all the classic poses.... mom holding newborn, dad leaning over while mom holds newborn, mom in chair holding newborn; new parents beaming while holding newborn, and so forth. Wow, I thought, this is an exact replica of the group of shots taken when my firstborn came into the world.
A boyhood friend of mine, one year younger, became a father for the first time in January. He and his wife are the parents of twins, a boy and a girl. Are their lives permanently changed, or what?!
About four years ago another friend had his first child. I wrote him a long e-mail about the excitement of that first year, all the initial events, the moments of awe and wonder, the non-stop joys. Tempered by some nerves, fatigue, fear, and overwhelming love and parenting instincts. I was even a little envious of him, getting to experience these things anew.
But back to the big moment of February 28th. My lovely, beautiful, sensitive, caring daughter, born on this day. What a kid, and not a kid for very much longer!
She has a special way with animals. They seem to be tamed by and in her presence. She has an innate ability to communicate with and care for animals.
As for sensitivity, she is remarkably attuned to the emotional, and picks things up with a depth that has always been beyond her years. Her sense of fairness and of emotional right and wrong have always done her well. She is strongly individual and has good self-esteem.
She's been teaching herself piano, out of desire, determination, and as a way to express herself.
And of course, she has her own weblog....like father like daughter.
However!!! --> She told me she was not happy with how I'd been portraying her mother in this blog, what with all the pictures [2] and such. She agreed that yes, she did find some humor in the pictures I've posted to describe her maternal grandmother [3].
My son has also asked that I go a little lighter on the representation of his mother on the blog.
Can I help it if pictures one runs across while surfing and cruising across the net just somehow seem to remind me of their mother, aka "the ex [4]" ?????
February 28th, getting back to the matter at hand, is a momentous day to me. Date of birth of my firstborn child. The lovely, wonderful,sensitive and caring girl whom I have thought of with love and appreciation every day for 17-going-on-18 years.
Happy birthday, honey!
