Sixteen years ago today we welcomed our baby girl into the world. As the youngest of four children and the only girl, she has lived a rather pampered lifestyle. For a number of years, whenever we went anywhere Dad would carry her on his back or shoulders. Then when Dad could not handle it anymore, her oldest two brothers took up the cause and carried her. To this day, I often find her trying to catch rides on one of her brother’s backs. Of course, now it is not surprising to see her attempting to carry her on their backs.
Recently I have been reading and seeing a lot of posts regarding fathers and their daughters and I can not help but reflect on my daughter and husband’s relationship with each other. I think it is safe to say she truly is Daddy’s little girl and princess. She holds a privileged spot in the house. It is rare for her father to tell her no. He often will go out of the way for her. Through the years, he has bought her special clothes, special food and taken her places just for her. One of the first things he ever bought her was Ella Bella Bear. He had to go to a conference while we were stationed at a reserve center in North Carolina. The conference location was Raleigh. So he took my daughter and me with him. She was all of about two years old. Directly across from the hotel where the conference was, a mall could be found. We went in the mall and found a “Build-A-Bear Workshop” and of course, our daughter came out with a bear. Fourteen years later, Ella Bella Bear is still a vital and valuable member of our family. Boo rarely goes anywhere without her.
Then while we were stationed in Pennsylvania, my husband once again had to go to a conference. Once again, he took my daughter and me with him. This time food was the important story. While we were there, we took her to several different places to eat. She was roughly 12 or 13 at the time. We had steak, Mexican, and one other type of food I can not remember. But she really enjoyed herself, especially with the chocolate cake that we ate.
Last year there was a day where our daughter stayed up all night and her dad and I woke up early. So we wound up going out to eat at IHOP and then driving to San Antonio to go grocery shopping. We ate lunch at Olive Garden and she had a fantastic time.
Since the beginning of the year, our daughter has been playing the violin while her father plays the violin and her oldest brother plays the cello. Now her youngest brother has started playing the viola and I have begun playing the violin. So we are having fun playing together.
So I want to wish a very happy birthday to my beautiful baby girl on her 16th birthday!
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