Tomorrow, I will have a 9 year old!

Tomorrow, I will have a 9 year old! When did this happen? It wasn't that long ago I was holding my sweet little Pumpkin for the first time. Now she is a big girl capable of so many things. She has grown into such an amazing young lady that I feel both excitement to see what this next year will bring her but also I am sad for that little girl that she will never be again.

Childhood is so short, its fleeting. In a blink of an eye your babies will be an adult. No more tucking them in at night, no more kissing boo-boos all better, no magic on Christmas morning when their eyes light up in amazement at the sight of all the gifts Santa brought. I know its kind of cliche but time does fly. I can't help but dread my children's birthdays.

From the first moment I met her, Morrigan had changed my life forever. She made me a mother. I had always dreamed of the day I would become a mother and Morrigan made it easy for me. She was an excellent baby. She didn't cry much as a baby though she rarely slept. She would just sit in her swing or in her bouncer and take in the world around her. Morrigan was healthy, happy, and sweet from day one. I watched her curiosity grow as she examined everything she encountered.

 As Morrigan grew she showed just caring she can be. Not only did she show empathy at an early age, she cared about the environment. She always wanted to help. She was obsessed with recycling and reusing things. She fixes broken toys rather than throwing them away and asking for a replacement. Come to think of it, I don't think we actual have thrown anything away, she has always made something new out of a broken toy. This is probably why her room is over run with toys. She would save containers for crafts. She was a Pinterest queen before Pinterest. Morrigan has always been a creative person, she amazes me still with her creativity.

 The thing about Morrigan that I certainly brag the most about is her ability to learn so fast. I know if I heard someone saying their child achieved what Morrigan did I wouldn't have believed them before having Morrigan. I had always believed that parents are a child's first teachers and its a part of parenting to challenge your children every chance you get. I can't say I am the reason why Morrigan is so smart. Her curiosity was the driving force for her learning, I just offered the source of knowledge and let her set the pace. She ate up every little thing I taught her and was constantly starving for more.

Before her first birthday Morrigan was speaking in sentences. She had a vocabulary that I couldn't even count. By a year an a half she could count to ten and she could identify every letter of the alphabet. When she was 2 she could read some words and I gave her the challenge that year to identify her gifts under the tree at Christmas time. At 2 she learned about ecosystems, the water cycle, and plant growth. She was approaching her third birthday when she wrote her name all by herself for the first time. By three, Morrigan could read an entire Dr. Suess book all by herself. She loves history! We went to all sorts of historical sites and she read books on American history. When she was four she told me she loved reading about the civil war era the best.

Besides the books smarts, Morrigan just has this natural wisdom about her. I say that Morrigan has an old soul. She has always been able to understand concepts far beyond her years. Its like Morrigan has been born with the gifts of reading people. She always knows the right thing to say. She is also a natural model. Since she was a toddler I could say nothing more than stating I was going to take a picture of her and she would get into the perfect pose. That is the reason why I love photography. I have the easiest subject built in. She understands what I want to achieve in my photos and just do it.
This brings me another great thing about Morrigan, her creativity. I said she was the Pinterest queen before Pinterest but there is more than just crafts to Morrigan. She is a true artist! I see how she creates things and its more than just keeping busy. She envisions things and sees things differently because of her natural creativity. She is a little rebel. She has always walked to the beat of her own drum. She loves to get a good laugh and loves doing things that will make people feel good. Even at Morrigan's young age she sees the other side to life. She knows it can't be rainbows and sunshine all the time. Few people know that Morrigan actually loves to read and write poetry. She is also an amazing story teller and writes her own short stories. I remember her teacher in the first grade during parent teacher conferences telling Chris and I how gifted of a writer Morrigan is. That she loves to read Morrigan's assignments because she writes poetically. Even in the first grade her writing was descriptive and she used imagery. I was surprised, I had no idea at the time my little girl was so talented.

Another way my little girl is talented is in dance. For a kid with two left feet when walking, she does amazing dancing on stage. I love watching how well she dances. She has loved to dance since she was a toddler but we feared she was too shy to take dance classes. But when she was 4 we enrolled her in ballet and tap and she did amazing. I was so proud of my little girl on stage. Every year she gets better and better and she amazes me every recital. I tear up with pride as I watch her perform.

 Although Morrigan has so many things to be proud of in her 9 years of existences, the most important quality about her is how incredibly caring she is. I have never seen my daughter shine more than as her role as big sister. She was so caring and understanding while I was pregnant. She wanted to be a part of my pregnancy every step of the way. She went to doctor appointments, ultrasounds, even witnessed the birth of her baby sister first hand. She was the first to hold Freya after me and I have never seen her more proud and overjoyed. She has been amazing with her little sister, being a second set of hands, being a second mommy, and she is always willing to help whenever I need it. I am just blown away by her love for her sister. It makes this momma so proud!

As much as I hate that my little girl isn't so very little anymore, I wouldn't trade all the wonderful times I have had with her. She has grown into an amazing girl and has shown me how to grow as a mother along with her. I may not get to see three year old Morrigan ever again which does make me sad but I get to see what else Morrigan is capable of and experience all the wonderful moments her future has in store for her.

Happy Birthday Morrigan!!!