Happy Birthday Emma!

Today is Emma's birthday. I can't believe that 5 years have gone by since she was born. It truely doesn't seem that long ago. She was born after 22 hours of labor, and 2 1/2 hours of pushing, most of which I don't remember. She was born at 7:01am, weighing 8 lbs. 10 oz. and was 19 1/2 inches long. She had inch long dark brown hair, which she got from me, and her daddy's nose. Right after she was born, she cried for about a minute, but fell right to sleep after the doctor laid her down on my chest. I could tell that she was going to be a stubborn one, as she was born face-up (thus the 2 1/2 hours of pushing). She had jaundice and her nickname was "spike" after her first bath, as her hair stood straight up and was fuzzy. Her eyes were like mercury, deep, dark pools of blue, which were also a gift from her father.
As I look at pictures from when she was little, she still has the same looks she gives me now. Her eyes have lightened just a little but are still big & blue. Her hair has changed from dark brown to strawberry blonde to light blonde and slowly back to a light brown. She's been through numerous ear infections, colds, coughs, and an episode of Bell's Palsy. She's learned the fine art of sarcasm (thanks Jeff), can draw a family portrait like no other (complete with belly buttons), and is a wonderful big sister to Sarah. She's in preschool, has lots of friends and loves to play dress-up. She's a Disney Princess in training. She loves horses and the colors purple & pink. If it were possible, she'd eat a quesadilla at every meal. Her favorite vegetables are black olives. She's not extraordinarily kind, but takes it personally when someone else's feelings have been bruised. Her only desire is for everyone to be happy and will do her best to make that possible. As one of her teachers from preschool said, "She's just Emma", which is just about the only way to describe her. She's like no one else. She even had her own language "Emma-ese".
Emma brings such immense joy to our family, it's hard to think of what our lives would be like without her.
Happy Birthday, Goober!!!!