Wednesday, July 4, 2012

Happy 18th Birthday Bryson Renee!!!

Wow!!! My little firecracker baby is 18 today! Time sure flies! Now if you would have told me 18 years ago when I had a screaming and I mean- SCREAMING baby girl on my hands, that time flies, I never would have believed you. For those of you that know my Bry, you may be a little surprised to hear that she came into this world like an angry, category 5 hurricane. She had colic and from 10pm to 1am every night and 6am to 8am every morning, she cried. And cried. And cried. And I cried. And cried. And cried! I really thought I would NEVER sleep again and I had sentenced myself to a life of screaming! I know, a little dramatic, but I am telling you, those nights seemed to go on FOREVER! Sometimes laying her on Steve's chest, if she would be quiet enough to hear his heartbeat, she would calm down. But he had to be up at 5am to go to work, so even if he could get her calmed down during the 10pm-1am stretch, he wasn't there for the next round! And I would be lying if I didn't say that in my inexperienced, sleep deprived, totally stressed out state, there were nights when I just wanted to put her back where she came from! But, then we would pass that 8am mark, she would take a little nap and I would take a little nap. And when she woke up, she was my cute little adorable baby again. We would have a good day, but then 10pm would roll back around and the little monster baby re-appeared. Thank goodness this only went on for a few months! It was like one day the clouds parted, the hurricane went back out to sea, a rainbow and sunshine appeared and it's stayed this way ever since! With the exception of a few temper tantrums as a toddler, she has been complete sunshine. And this is the Bry that the world knows. The happy, bouncy, smiley, full of life Bry! As the teen years were approaching, I started to prepare myself for that hurricane to come barreling back to shore, but it never did. No exaggeration- we have only had 1 slammed door during her teenage years and it about broke Steve's heart. Slamming doors were daily routine in my teen years! I know my dad was hoping she would be his revenge on me for my teenage years. Sorry Dad! I guess, I do need to add, that 99.9% of the time her room does look like a hurricane went through it. But, it's really her only flaw, so I can just keep the door shut!

 Once she started school, I realized how fast time really does fly. At a super fast speed of light! It is so hard to believe that Steve and I are the parents of an adult! She can vote this year! And do things without our permission. Just remember Bry-Tattoos are forever!And I know you have expressed an interest for one, so just do me this one favor- think carefully about what you get and where you get it. A Spongebob tattoo on your ankle 20 years from now would look pretty stupid! :) We love you Bryson Renee! We are so blessed to have you in our lives. I have a feeling, this next year is going to be full of tears because I am sooo not ready for you to graduate and head to college! Always remember this- no matter what you do in this world, never let anyone keep you from being YOU, because you are pretty great!

Here's my video for my beautiful girl. And Bry should be very proud of me! I did it all by myself. She normally helps me, but she was at camp. Mama figured it out! Well.... after Dusty showed me how to download the songs! The first song, I used to sing to her when I was trying to get her to sleep. Hmmmm, maybe that was the reason for the colic? Hindsight is always 20/20! The 2nd song is just sooo Bry! FYI- I was planning to use "My Little Girl" by Tim McGraw, but after I downloaded it, I listened to it, burst into tears and knew there was no way I could put it to pictures! Yep, gonna be a tearful next year!