Three Years Ago Today...

I remember hearing my mom say that phrase on our birthdays, and I always looked forward to it. I don't know if this is just me, but I loved hearing my birth story, and when she would start that sentence, my ears would perk up, and I'd be ready to ask lots of questions!
So, three years ago today, I was 6 days overdue with my precious Tegan. Although at the time "precious" was not the word going through my head! LOL I had been having false labor for TEN days already, and had many false promises from the doctor, along with three failed membrane sweeps. I remember telling Daniel that I was officially not answering the phone until I had a baby in my arms because I was so tired of hearing the disappointment in people's voices when I answered. I was done being pregnant and wanted to meet my baby.
So, on Sept 8th, my brother came to visit, and I was maybe complaining to him a bit? LOL So, he took me through a checklist of things to ask if I'd tried them, and I assured him that yes, I had tried absolutely everything short of howling at the full moon. Then he asked if I had tried castor oil. No Way! I would never try that! ewww! I believe that's what I said anyway...
However, I was desperate, and I did happen to have some mineral oil in the medicine cabinet, and I knew it was safe because the doc had given it to us for Addison. Aaaaanyway, I took a huge gulp right from the bottle, watched my brother gag in grossness, then said, "there. NOW I've tried everything"!
We had a pleasant rest of our visit, and I went to bed. At around 2:30 some contractions woke me up, and though I tried not to get my hopes up, I was a little excited because usually they went away in bed, not got worse :)
so I got up and timed them just so I wouldn't wake Daniel for a false alarm. At about 3:30 I was pretty darn sure, so I woke him. He was excited, but said "but I haven't showered or shaved yet!" and I told him "well you'd better hurry, I waited awhile to wake you and we need to leave soon!"
We got to the hospital at 4:30 and bounced on the ball for awhile. Weeeee! hahaha
Then, while I was pushing, Tegan proved just how much she didn't want to come out by pulling back in everytime I stopped pushing. It was sooo weird feeling, and sooo frustrating! LOL
I remember when the doctor saw her head and said "Addison had blonde hair right? well, this is definitely Daniel's baby then! It has dark dark hair!"
That made me so excited to meet her all over again :) Then finally, she was here. The first thing I noticed about her when I held her for the first time was her super duper deep chin dimple. It was so cute!
Fast forward three years later, and I am amazed at the little girl she has become. Her personality is so different from Addison's, and they are both so great in their own ways. While Addison is constantly busy and easily bored, Tegan is much more mellow and would prefer to sit and color or pet her kitty or cuddle with her daddy.
It really hit me last weekend when we were at my inlaws house. Tegan went up to her great grandma's house one day, and after that, she always wanted to be there, having tea with Great Grandma, and playing with her dollhouse. Addison? well, she was feeding goats!
For how different they are, they sure get along well together. Tegan loves to play pretend and seems to be more than happy playing the puppy while Addison leads her around :) LOL
She has such a kind, soft heart, which is so amazing. Some days I find myself worrying though, because a heart as soft as hers could be easily broken. My prayer for her is that she will allow God to give her the strength to get through situations with kindness and a big heart, but also with assertiveness when she needs it.
I look forward to watching each day as her personality continues to grow and develop. I am enjoying each day with her now, but also am so curious to see what she will be like at 6, or 9, or 15!
I hope you had an amazing birthday Tegan Lily, and I want you to know just how precious you are to your daddy and me. You're our little lily!