Annalise turned six years old yesterday.
I love the magic of young birthdays. My birthday now is not a big deal...hasn't been since high school. Don't get me wrong, I love a reason to celebrate, and my birthday fits that occasion. But it just isn't the same as my youth.
Anna used the phrase, "because I'm the birthday girl!" a lot yesterday. And I'm so glad she did.
Annalise came on a snowy night. It was an uneventful pregnancy with the normal concerns and very little discomfort. Until the labor! 45 hours. Yeah. I'm still a little bitter at those nurses for not listening to me and sending me home twice. I was home for the first 35 hours and my body finally got to a 4. S...l...o....w. Every six minutes for the 35 hours I would have a contraction. Finally my doctor was back in town and he broke my water and got me on pit (which stressed Annalise so they stopped it, put my on my left side with oxygen for the rest of the day and night) and the blessed epidural that got things moving for me. Seven and a half hours later I was finally ready to push. I pushed 2 1/2 hours and at the end, the doctor pulled Annalise out with forceps. My body was exhausted. It was 12:30 am and I started labor at 3:30 am two mornings before.
But about Annalise. She came out and we were so surprised to see this tiny 7 lb. 1 oz. baby girl. Geoff was 9 1/2 pounds and I was 8 lbs. 14 oz. So we were thinking about a nine pound baby. Two pounds makes quite the difference in a newborn. She was beautiful. Considering the stress she went through, she was amazingly beautiful.
We tried nursing, and I took a shower, and we all went to bed at 2:30 or so. The next morning my brother, Adam, came to visit me. Geoff was taking a final--did I mention it was finals week? I finished my semester two weeks early in preparation for our baby. When Adam got there, I took another shower, got dressed and it was 10 am. I came out into my room and distinctly remember thinking: when are the nurses going to come and tell me to feed my baby?! That was the moment I became a mother. I knew at that moment that she was mine and ours, and it was my job to make decisions for her health, safety and happiness. I was going to take her home and the nurses weren't going with me.
Annalise has been one of the greatest blessings in my life. She is a thoughtful, conscientious girl. She is highly intelligent and gifted in expressing herself verbally. She does have a willful nature, but that is going to be of use in her life if she learns to stand for virtue, integrity and love. She has a great sense of humor. Annalise loves to spend time with her mom and dad, and expresses her love through touching her hands with ours, cuddling and telling us.
She likes to play with dolls, whether they are for her doll house, disney princess action figures, or polly pockets. She is also a horse girl. You know, horse girls? The girls at school who pretended they were horses, and who had pictures of horses on their binders? She is in that group. A big milestone this year is that she is learning to read. She loves to sound out words. Another item of interest to her, and a talent of hers, is coloring and drawing. She is quite good and has been from an early age. She takes the intensity that she naturally has and uses it to create wonderfully detailed drawings.
I love this girl of mine. I am so thankful that I have been given stewardship, along with Geoff, to teach this girl. She teaches me and I am learning, sometimes slowly, many things from being her mother.
Happy Birthday, my sweet Annalise. Jeg elsker deg.
7 comments:
Happy Birthday Annalise. How fun, I can only speak for myself but doesn't Motherhood get better and better the older they get. I say to myself everyday, this is my favorite age. At that moment I am sure it will be my favorite age forever, but then comes tomorrow and it is even better. 6 already; reading, learning, horses, and all the other stuff seems like so much fun. Especially knowing she is growing into such a wonderful individual because of your care and love. It must make you so proud to see her growing into a virtuous girl. Next up Baptism!!!
PS I was beginning to worry about you since you are usually an at least every other day poster and I hadn't seen any posts in a couple. Hope it was because you were having a fun time with B-day plans and not because of Migraines.
Happy birthday Annelise! I love love love that she is a horse girl. Can I pay her to be a horse at church? It sure would liven up Sunday School anyway :)
Happy Birthday, Annalise! Six is such a fun age. I was a horse girl, too! Sometimes I still am, but only when Apollo requests to be carried around on my back.
45 hours. You deserve a medal. No, a trophy. 45 hours, it makes me shudder.
What does Jeg elsker deg mean?
"Jeg Elsker Deg" is "I love you" in Norwegian. I say it to Annalise when she goes to bed and have done so since she was first born. With Madeline, I say "Ich liebe dich", which is "I love you" in German... but I'm pretty sure you know that one. I'm not sure which language will be for the next child, but I want a different way to say it to each. Something kind of fun and between us...though now that I've commented on my blog about it...i guess it's not so secret. but still, it's between me and my child, each separate, each unique, but love all the same.
What a special heart felt tribute from mother to daughter. She will cherish your 'letters' to her and about her in the years to come. You are a good mom Kimberlee. They get old too fast don't they? When Bailey turned 6 all I could think of tearfully was that I was 1/3 of the way done parenting... in my own home that is. She sounds like a special spirit. Love ya! Merry Christmas!
Post a Comment