Happy 9th Birthday to my daughter

To my smart, beautiful, funny and feisty little girl. Today is your 9th birthday and I absolutely cannot work out where the years have gone. How can you be that old already? Life seems to go by in a heartbeat and sometimes it saddens me that we can’t slow time down a little.

This past year must have been a tough one for you. I know you miss your Daddy and I wish I could have spared you the heartache of our seperation. Sometimes Mummy’s have to make difficult choices which you won’t understand until you are a grown up yourself.

You’ve had to move house and life has changed dramatically. And it feels like you’ve suddenly grown up. You have no idea, but you’ve been my rock these past few months. It doesn’t seem to matter what life throws at us, because you handle everything with understanding and grace. You are wise beyond your years and you amaze me, astound me and make me proud of you every single day.

You won’t know this, but nine years ago, when I was pregnant with you, you saved me. Just like in this pregnancy, I was alone back then too. I felt as though I were dying of a broken heart and there were times I felt so broken that I felt like I couldn’t go on. And then I discovered I was pregnant with you. And you kept me going. I lived for you. I ate for you. I survived for you. I rebuilt my life for you. And I often shudder to think that if I hadn’t had you, what I’d have done.

And now…

Now you are by my side through everything. And often you are oblivious to the fact there are struggles in Mummy’s life, but just being here, you give me strength. You give me cuddles, smiles and love beyond measure. You teach me things you’ve learnt at school that I’ve long forgotten from my own school days. You put your heart and soul into learning gymnastics, you’re always active, you are a performer. You are so very smart. You love reading. You love speaking other languages and travelling to new places. You love Googling the things you don’t know and doing extra work for school. You love arts and crafts and designing things. You want to be a clothes designer when you grow up. You have ambition and drive already and you’re only just 9 years old.

You care about everything. Family, friends, strangers, animals, the environment and things you hear about on the news. You are so clued up on the world and you have opinions and ideas about absolutely everything. You seem to want to make the world a better place.

It’s easy to get caught up in the hustle and bustle of life without expressing how we feel. So I want to take this opportunity on your birthday to tell you…

You’re not just my first born daughter, you’re also my best friend, my saviour and my ray of sunshine. I’m so lucky to be your mum. I love you with all my heart. Happy 9th Birthday darling Bunny.