This week, my little girl is turning 13. I don’t know how that happened. There are days that it feels like she was born yesterday, and there are days that I remember the hills she’s climbed and the mountains she has scaled. And through it, when I was supposed to be the mom teaching her, she was teaching me. She’s made me a better teacher, and person.
So, to you, my sweet girl, on your birthday….
Thank you for teaching me that the sun can still shine, even when it’s raining. 
Thank for your teaching me what determination was whether you were learning to walk, talk, or waiting in line for an hour and a half, autograph book under your arm, insisting that we wait for Cinderella’s line to reopen. And you waited. Patiently. Because you had new shoes on, and you wanted her to see them.
Thank you for teaching me to to grab a hold of moments and always celebrate the small stuff. Your curls were big, but your spirit was even bigger. 
Thank you for teaching me to slow down, listen to the butterfly’s wings as he lands, and watch him carefully. You always help me see things I might miss. There are details in the world that you notice that most others pass by, and in the lucky moments, you help us notice them. 
Thank for you reminding me of all the steps you have taken and just how far you have come. It’s the reason I keep these little tiny rainbow sparkle shoes you wore hanging by my desk. Tiny steps of determination.
You make me a better teacher and person because your heart is so big and the way you take in the world reminds me to find joy in each day. Your story isn’t one that we could have written, but you took big diagnoses and over the years, you showed us how small and insignificant they would become, because your spirit is bigger. You led us to our home in Texas, and we’ve watched you flourish every step of the way. We don’t see acronyms or labels, we see you. Your huge heart, your big smile, and your joy.
And at the end of the day, even if it’s freezing out, you put the window down and feel the wind in your hair. Because joy is what you make of it. And you make our lives full of it.
Happy Birthday, sweets.
