Happy Belated Birthday, Kady with a D

My dear, sweet Kadybug,

Your 7th birthday letter is just one more example of how the 3rd child somehow gets the short end of the stick. Bless your heart, your baby book has your name in it - and that's it. Your sister's is detailed beyond belief, your brother's is fairly filled-in, but sweetie, let's just face it - yours is blank enough you could just white-out your name and use it for your own child.

I really do apologize for the lack of journaling your life. However, my precious Kady Princess - the memories you give me on a daily basis don't seem to fade over time. I am sure as the years go by they will, but for now I am satisfied in using my blog as your baby book. I hope you are satisfied with that as well.

You are amazing. You are emotional, tender-hearted and incredibly exasperating and over-dramatic, but goodness, I wouldn't want you to be any other way. Well, on most days, anyway. You still seem to think the world revolves around you, but then, you've felt that way since birth, so I don't expect it to change any time soon. I guess all I can do as your mother is just make sure you use your powers for good, not evil.

You are struggling with your spirituality this year and Kady, I cannot wait to see what this next year does as far as your spiritual growth. You ask me questions about God and salvation and eternal life and Heaven and angels and well, let's just suffice it to say you ask a lot of questions all the time. Daily. Constantly. I love your sense of wonder, especially when it come to your relationship with God. Last night we were watching a movie about the Rapture and you were crying (how unusual), frustrated that you weren't saved yet and what if Jesus came back right then? I explained to you that you're asking all the right questions and you're on the right track and when your little brain and heart are ready to understand it all you just will. That's when you wailed, "I can't believe I'm so stupid I can't even be SAVED!" Oh Kady, it was really hard to not laugh out loud at you. Bless your heart.

You have always adored your big brother, but lately you despise him. To me this is aggravating, considering I always wanted a brother and never had one. He worries over you constantly, even while he pesters the devil out of you. Yesterday at the mall the poor boy nearly gave himself a panic attack several times when you got out of his sight. You found him completely annoying and more than once gave him a firm shove with both hands. Now, he could've shoved you right back, but instead he just shook his head - but he never quit watching over you like a hawk. My advice - give him a break. I didn't like your Yaya when we were kids, but now she's my best friend. I would imagine a brother is a wonderful thing to have.

You did not want to be a First Grader this year and for the first few weeks of school you weren't all that fond of your teacher, then something magical happened and the two of you bonded so strongly I sometimes wonder if she and I should start hanging out because you paint quite a picture of this amazing woman. I felt that way about my First Grade teacher, too, though. You love school - oh, not for the work. The work is just a mere inconvenience in your vast social networking for 7 hours a day. You tolerate it in order to be around your friends. Thank God you're smart and the work comes easy so you have more time to lord over everyone in your presence.

Your asthma has gotten so much better this year. I thank the meds and your PA and the good Lord above for this. Of course, you still drag it out when you are tired or feel you have been injustly corrected, reprimanded or simply don't want to do something. Know this, though - I'm no dummy. I know when you're faking. So does most everyone else.

When I think of how easily you could've come too early and how sick you could've been and all the unimaginable things that could've gone wrong, I am so thankful a little asthma is all we have to deal with.

About a week after I found out I was pregnant with you I started spotting. The pregnancy we hadn't planned on, had had no intention of ever experiencing and were totally blindsided by, became suddenly fragile to me. I didn't know how badly I wanted you until the thought of not having you entered my head. Then when you tried to come early I got scared all over again. Fortunately, you managed to stay where you were planted as long as you needed to and a dramatic pre-Christmas entrance into the world just five weeks early was dramatic enough to suffice.

I can only imagine the convincing God had to do to assure you that coming early was not in your best interest and I can only imagine how you argued that dramatics were sure to be your specialty. Thank you for listening - for once.

I've said it many times and I'll say it again - We never knew how much our family needed a Kady until we had one.

Happy 7th birthday (just 11 days late), Kadybug. I love you.

Momma.