My baby girl turned seven today. This year's birthday was marked with a very understated slumber party with a couple friends. We got her an American Girl Doll (Felicity) - just want she wanted. She choose Subway for dinner. Very laid-back. Relatively quiet.
Seven just seems so old! I could pretend that six was still *sort of* still a baby - just out of kindergarten. Really she had just finished preschool. But seven! Seven is a big kid. She's nearly done with first grade now.
Seriously, my mind is a little blown over this one. Just yesterday I was sitting on the floor of her bedroom and we lived in Washington. I can feel the carpet on my knees and see the closet door (it needed to be painted). We were getting ready for a bath, and I undressed her. She was quite the crawler and took off toward the bathroom, little bare bottom wiggling back and forth. I'll tell you, you've never seen anything cuter than a tiny little naked bum crawling around. Right about then she stopped for a moment and peed on the carpet before the giggling and crawling continued. And to be honest, I'm pretty sure we even thought that was cute, although you know how your memory can be. (Do you think her prom date will like this story as much as I do?)
That was yesterday, as I remember it. Today she is reading at a 4th grade level, setting the table at dinnertime, and her favorite show is SpongeBob. (I really fought that one for a long time!) What the hell happened? I glanced away for a second! Just shut my eyes for a moment (I was just so tired!) and the little naked tushy was replaced by pierced ears!
So needless to say this day has been bittersweet for me. As I tucked her in bed tonight I noticed *slight* glimpses of my tiny girl. That smile and the sparkles in her eyes, and the way she grabbed at my arms to keep me from leaving. And I let her pull me back (more than once) so I could steal another hug, and another kiss - so I could tell her happy birthday one more time, and how lucky I am to have her for my daughter.
And now I'm sitting here baffled at what just happened - at what took place between yesterday and today. We've moved three times, had another baby (who will be five in two months, but let's not go there yet, shall we?), and my baby girl is now a big kid.
I'm going to go make myself another cup of tea, and while I wait for the water to boil, I'm going to go check on my kids - just to be sure they aren't taller than me yet. And then I'm going to prop my eyelids open with toothpicks, because I'm afraid that if I fall asleep tonight I will wake up to boy trouble and training bras. And to honest, I'm not even ready for the pierced ears yet.
