My baby girl turns three today. It’s hard to wrap my head around really. She looks so grown up in these pictures and we just gave up the pacifiers for good a couple days ago – this is a big BIG deal. She has had one in her mouth every nap time and nighttime since she was born. We gave her a bicycle for her birthday which is all she has been asking for, and I cannot believe my little girl who I feel like should still be in diapers and sucking on a pacifier actually wants to ride a bike!! Where has the time gone?
Luckily, there are moments like the following that make me realize even though my heart aches that I feel like she’s getting so old too fast and reaching many milestones all at once, 3 actually isn’t 13 just yet.
If you look closely at these pictures from this morning, you will notice that this sweet 3 year old has a 1 year old candle in her breakfast. This is completely my fault and I own up to it. While in a mad mad rush, did I say mad?, to the grocery store yesterday to get a few things before picking up my daughter from preschool, I thought at the last minute, “I need to get her a candle to be able to blow out on her actual birthday tomorrow!” I grabbed the first thing that was pink and sparkly and ran to the checkout counter. As I fixed her birthday breakfast this morning of her favorite mini pancakes and strawberries, I lit the #1 candle, and gasped out loud realizing my huge mistake and literally tearing up to myself. How could I mess up her age?? I’m such a bad mom! But then she caught sight of the beautiful well lit pink glitter candle and started singing to herself and smiling. I knew then, she did not care one bit mom had bought the wrong # candle. She was 3, not 13. She wasn’t mortified like I was but was just the opposite – happy to have something ablaze on her plate, that it was her special day, and that the candle was her favorite color, pink.
Luckily her reaction made me pull it together, I added 2 old candles I found in the kitchen cabinet, and joined her in singing Happy Birthday to herself!
She didn’t realize it, but my now three year old taught my 35 year old self something in this moment. To quit trying to be such a perfectionist all the time and not to sweat the small stuff…because most of it is small stuff. And you know what, she actually made me re-light the candle after blowing it out because she wanted to do it all over again. Happy birthday my sweet Vivian, I am so thankful for every day I get to celebrate with you. Love, Mom.
