My Blonde Baby

Sometimes I think Abby is too good to be true. I know I'm her mom and I know I'm biased, but really - it's just everything I ever thought having a daughter would be like. She's 7 1/2 now. Too big for her britches. She still asks me to braid her hair, but she also likes to put on frosty lip gloss when I'm not paying attention. She got caught at the Mexican restaurant last week and tried to hide her lips from me. Didn't work out the way she thought it would. I wasn't really mad, but I did make her wipe it off.

This week, she was invited to a Felicity-themed-American Girl-birthday-party-extravaganza. I have secretly wanted to make her and her doll matching dresses since Christmas but haven't had a good excuse. I took the opportunity to avoid laundry, meal preparation, and general cleanliness to get the dress done in time. My mother found some old fabric, perfect for this sort of thing, with pretty yellow, lavender, coral and blue flowers. I trimmed the dresses in yellow ribbon and made her a bonnet and purse to match for each of them. She looked more beautiful and more pure and more Abby than I've seen her look since the day she was born. When we left for the party, I did feel something like pride; but it was more complicated than that. I don't really have a word for the way I felt. Maybe I was just happy for her. I hope to have many moments like that.

Last night, she spent the night with a friend. They stayed up way too late and watched Hannah Montana reruns and painted their toenails on towels. Today, she asked me if I could help her get the blue polish off of her toes. The boys had an event to attend together, so we had a "girls night." We took a long walk around Smyrna and talked the whole time. We talked about her brother and how I was like him in some ways when I was growing up and how I was like her in some ways when I was growing up. Then we talked about Patrick Owen, who used to hit me in the head with his metal lunch box and how he really had a crush on me. We laughed at how silly boys are. She talked vaguely about boys that liked her but wouldn't get specific. Then, we had leftovers for dinner in front of the TV and we painted our toenails on towels and had the most fun!

Today was a special day. Her whole week has been pretty special - but even on hard days when we don't get along and the thought of what 14 will bring sends shivers down my spine, she always ends the day with the same words in her sweet little voice, "Mommy, I love you." It's simple, it's sincere, and it has to be one of my favorite things in this whole world. Like I always tell her, if I could pick any little girl in the whole world to me my little girl, I would pick her. Thank you God for blessing me with this precious daughter! May we always be as close - closer - than we are today.