My 2 Year Old

Dear Elaina,

Happy 2nd Birthday my sweet girl!

I can hardly believe that two years have already passed by so quickly. I'm writing you this letter to commemorate our second year as a family and to let you know how much joy you have brought to the hearts of your family and friends.

In the past two years, I can honestly say that not a single day goes by that I don't look at you and see what a perfect miracle that God has blessed us with. An enormous and amazing blessing at that. You continue to be all of our joy and happiness and reason to smile every single day. The love that you have given us and that we have for you is beyond compare. You have always had a presence about you. I have yet to determine if it is more from your sparkling, blue eyes or your gorgeous smile alone that convey the most perfect innocence and beauty that I have ever seen.

I remember when you were only a few months old and a friend of mine, Ali's mom, said to me about Ali, "There are times when I am rocking her to sleep and I just look at her and want to cry at how much I love her." I find it amazing that I felt the very same way about my newborn daughter even though I hadn't carried you in my womb. What's even more amazing is that I still feel the same way about you to this day. Just thinking about you and talking about the miracle that brought you into our lives makes me well up with tears and emotion. You were meant to be our daughter. Even my bones know that to be the truth. Often, I swear that if you were to pry us both open, our DNA would match by some supernatural coincidence. Every single day, you make me proud to be your mother.

As a parent, people are constantly reminding you to enjoy your kids while they are young because they grow up so fast. Already, I know that to be true. I want you to know that your father and I have savored every last minute with you at every age. We thought you were incredible the day we held you in our arms for the first time. We thought you were great when you began to crawl and utter new sounds. We were thrilled when you learned to walk and were able to return a hug. And just when we think that our lives couldn't be any sweeter with loving you, we get a new tomorrow with you. You get even better by the day and we are enjoying every minute of you!

And so Elaina, I just want to leave you with a final sentiment from my heart. You are my love. You are my world and all of the beauty that surrounds it. You continue to be an incredible blessing and inspiration to me. Lincoln has made you a big sister and a loving one at that. I admire your tenderness and your ability to return love and kindness happily. I look forward to all that "2" has to offer and promise never to classify you as a statistical "terrible two." You're going to be my Terrific Two year old! We only have 364 more days left to enjoy our incredible 2 year old evolve. I don't want to miss out on a single minute with you!

Thank you for being the wonderful child God created you to be and filling our hearts with faith, hope and love along the way! May God always bless you and keep you in the palm of His hand my beautiful angel!

Love,

Mommy