Happy Birthday Mimi

Mindy Rose!
You were born 10/12/77
just a few minutes after midnight.
You dad kept urging me to
HURRY UP AND HAVE THE BABY
so that you could be born on
your Uncle Paul's birthday.
I was NOT good at being
told what to do then. I'm still not very good at it-shhhh.

We weren't much at picture taking back then.
We had a Polaroid camera~
everyone did and
we were no exception.
It took quick pictures
but they were BAD.
And film was expensive
and we were oh-so-poor
when you were tiny.

Your sister, TPot, thought you
were her own personal pet.
And you were so good-natured
that you let her feed you
whenever she felt like it.
Sometimes she fed you
Hershey's cocoa right out of the can.

You were her best audience..
Always a step behind her
because you were only
a year younger.
If she sat in the leaves
you sat in the leaves~

You loved your birthday parties
at Happy Joe's Pizza Place
and rode the carousel whether
it was turning or not.
You would stay on
until we pried your fingers
from the horse.

And Oh! How you loved
being a bride.
I lost count of how many Halloweens
that you dressed as a bride.
YOU were ALWAYS a bride
and your brother was ALWAYS
a rabbit.

And, then, one day I turned around
and you were a young woman.
A young woman
with a passion for singing
and a passion for the Lord.
You made a missions trip to China..
and saw a different side of life..
You came home
older and wiser.

You were beautiful dressed for
your high school prom
where you wore a dress
that looked a lot like
a bridal gown.
It gave us a hint
of how beautiful you would be
as a real bride someday.

And your hair...Oh! Your hair..
Complete strangers would come up to
you and ask you where you got
your perm..
Your answer was always the same.
~From God~

And, finally, you didn't need to
dress as a bride for Halloween anymore.
No indeedy!
You would dress as a bride
for your wedding
which was held outdoors.
and your Dad performed
the ceremony.
It was a dream wedding.

And about three years later
along came this little
dream boat.

And when Big BoyE was 2-1/2
his brother, Charles-In-Charge
joined him.

And -then this last year you were blessed with
our sweet little
Baby Bright Eyes.

Wish I looked that cute in a
bathing suit!!!
Another blessed year, Mindy.
Happy, Happy Birthday!

I won't be celebrating with you this year,

as you know,

but I will be there in spirit.
Love you to the moon and back!
SEE you soon!;>)