Dear Baby Girl,
It's hard to believe it, but tomorrow is our court date. Tomorrow is the day you become officially ours in the eyes of the law, once and forever. Not that we need a legal proceeding to tell us what our heart has known all along.
There were times when your dad and I were scared. In the years before you (difficult to imagine now) we began to wonder not when we would become parents, but if. Was it in the stars? Was it ordained to be? I tried over and over to fight that feeling. I tried to make peace with it. I tried to not think about children at all. Yet time again, the promise of you would settle into my mind and heart each night as I slept.
I've dreamt of you since my earliest memories. Now that you are here, I don't know any other reality. No other reality exists for us. For our family, for our friends. We didn't just gain a child. I feel like the world gained a bit of magic right from the heavens.
From the moment we laid eyes on you, nothing has been the same. My legs felt weak. Your father stared in silence. How can you put into words what it means to have the most powerful, beautiful, extraordinary wish come true? You didn't cry. You looked up at us as if to ask, "Are you my family?" We've been your family since before you arrived into this universe.
I knew being a mom would change me. It has in countless ways. I had no idea, though, just how much. And your father? He's literally a new person. Your grammy, someone who has had her share of sadness, has a new light in her eyes. Your grandparents are overjoyed at having finally their little "Peanut" to hold. Your cousins, aunts and uncles adore you. And your extended family, who come from all over the world, count you as their own. You are loved beyond belief.
You have changed so much in the past nine months. You talk incessantly about what must be important matters, I have no doubt. You say "Daddy". You laugh and giggle. You point to lights, to pictures on the wall and to anything that draws your attention. You have a special fondness for your kitty cat brothers. You love your "birdies" (pacifiers) as dad and I call them. Your favorite foods include peaches, spinach and turkey. You sleep on your belly with your butt in the air, your hands tucked under you. Everything about you is nothing short of amazing, and everything about you means...everything to us.
Tomorrow a magistrate will sign a paper that we've carried inside of us for a very long time. A document that states once and for all, our dream has been realized. I love you with such an intensity, it borders on painful at times. Your smile, your hands, your eyelashes and every part of you are a poem written by God. No one else but our Creator could make something so, so exquisite.
We love you and will protect you at all costs, will encourage you, cherish you, support you and stand by your side no matter what life brings. No matter who you grow up to be, no matter how much we agree with your decisions, no matter where life takes you....you are our sunshine. Tomorrow is quite literally the first day of forever.
Momma and Daddy
