To Mary Alice on Her Ninth Birthday

To my sweet Mary Alice girl on her ninth birthday...

Is it that time of the year again already? Sigh. No matter how much I wish you would stay a little girl, you just keep on growing and changing. :) We like to joke about that, how I can't stand the thought of you getting another year older and how, on your birthday, maybe you could just stay at your current age for a change? :)


Mary Alice,

You are a precious precious gift to your dad and me. We love you more than anything on this earth. Only having your own children will enable you to have insight into what that actually means. We are blessed that God has entrusted you to us for nine whole years. Amazing!



This year has been a year of growth and change for you. I can see signs that point to the beginning of your transition from a little girl to an adult. This year, you learned about lots of "adult" things. We had lots of special talks about things that you were questioning. This was a year of enlightening for you. Most importantly, you experienced the realization that you were a sinner who truly needed Jesus to make your life worth living.

I am proud of you, girl. You bring so much joy to our lives. You have a gentle heart, one that wants to please others. You wake up early with a smile on your face ready to start the day. You are our early riser. You come in, first thing in the morning, and give hugs to your daddy and me. What a great start to the day! I always look forward to your cozy hugs and snuggles. One of your major love languages is definitely physical touch. You always want snuggles, back scratches, foot rubs, etc.



You are a planner. You like schedules. You thrive on routine. This isn't' to say that you can't deviate from a schedule at all. You love to do new things. For the most part though, you NEED your sleep to be at your best. You crash pretty quickly when you don't have enough sleep. You definitely aren't going to be the girl at a slumber party who tries to convince everyone to stay up all night.

You love to be at home more than anywhere else. You and Major are pretty good about playing together. You guys seem to genuinely love each other's company. I am proud of how sweet you are to him. I am continually a witness to your attempts to make peace with him or to try to get along when he is being a pill. I know God notices these things too. God blessed you with a heart that loves other people and wants to do what is right.



You hate injustice. Any time we are having a conversation about someone being mistreated or afflicted in any way, I can see your claws come out. Recently, I showed you an online video about child trafficking in Africa. I explained this idea to you, along with what some concerned Christians are trying to do to change things. When you heard about the maltreatment of the children, you became incensed! "How could those bad men treat those children that way?!? Those poor kids! Those men should be ashamed of themselves! How would THEY like it if THEY were made to dive under fishing boats near crocodiles and scary things? Those men should do their own work! Mom, those men are just....EVIL." Other situations where you have been angered involved meanness. The other day, you saw someone speaking to another person in a tone that was hateful and making fun of them. You told me, very plainly, "Mom, I don't like to be around when people are talking to other people that way. It is just too mean."

Right now, you love to do things with your hands, specifically cooking and sewing. Your dad and I jokingly refer to you as the next Food Network star. You love to be right along side me in the kitchen, helping me to prepare our meals. I don't know what I would do without you! You are so helpful and truly love to be in the kitchen! You can cook and bake many things independent from me. This year, you made a few birthday cakes for people. You love to try out new recipes. What a big girl! I think you are going to be an excellent cook some day.

I can't really help you in developing this, but you told me the other day that you wanted to be an expert seamstress when you grew up. You said that you wanted to make beautiful costumes just like your Gran. I am going to do my best to see that you have the skills to sew things for other people. What a useful thing to be able to know how to do! I would love it if I could do this. Maybe you can teach me? :)

I've noticed that your friends are a lot more important to you than they've been in the past. You are constantly talking about your friends, making things for your friends, planning to be at the houses of your friends, having friends over, etc. I am thankful for this and continue to pray that you will choose your friends wisely. I know so much of who you will become will be influenced by these choices.

This year, you got your first and second perm. The first perm was a disaster! It fell almost entirely flat. The morning after you had gotten the perm, you looked in the mirror and saw that your hair was a mess. It was devastating to you. You had endured all of that painful and smelly hair stuff, only to wind up with hair that looked like it was dull and full of tangles. Something about that scene reminded me of the hair dye mishap from Anne of Green Gables. What drama! Thankfully, we were able to get it repaired and all was right with the world :) You now have a head full of curly hair that you love. You are very girly and dramatic and love your new do. You are into different hair accessories, accessories of all types really. You are growing up.


You are a WONDERFUL big sister. You adore Milla and serve as a second mommy to her. You are so sweet and patient with her. You beg to get her out of bed in the morning and never complain about being asked to do things for her. When I was SO sick this year and was throwing up so much, you helped out so much with caring for Milla. Yesterday, I was downstairs in my room and I heard sounds on the baby monitor that made me smile. I could hear you and Major getting Milla out of bed. You got her up and started rocking her and talking to her gently. Then, I could hear you and Major singing songs to her and laughing together. This warmed my heart. Milla adores all of the attention that you give her. She loves her "M-alice."

I love you so much, sweet girl! I can't imagine our family without the sweet blessing of you in it. As I write this letter, you are at a friend's house for a sleepover. It just isn't the same around here without our Mary Alice.

Your dad has this habit of bringing up how many years we have left until you leave home. He has done this for years... I remember him saying, "If God blesses us to have her with us until she is eighteen, you know she has spent one-third of her time with us..." Each time I plug my ears because I can't stand thinking about it! :) I woke up this morning thinking about how, if God allows us to have you for eighteen years, your time with us is already HALF over. Boo! Several of our friends have children who are moving away from home for the first time. I know that time will come all too soon. :(



We pray for you often, girl. We pray for us too. We realize that you are changing from a little girl into an adult. We pray that God will give us the wisdom to guide you during these next few years and that He will give you a wise and discerning heart so that you can eventually make decisions on your own.

You are our precious one! We pray that God will give you many years of service to Him and that you will lean on Him as your constant friend. We love you!

Mom