Audrey turns four today.

She was born just after midnight, a week past her due date. There are so many things I could tell you about that birth—how I didn’t know I was in labor and didn’t believe it when my midwife said I was; what happened when Abigail and Owen woke up for the birth; how Audrey seemed to know all of us, not just me, right from the moment she was born; or… well, there are a lot of good parts to that story, and this is a short blog post, so we’ll save it for another time.

Audrey has big plans for being four. She’s been counting down the days, and talks about all the things she Will Do when she’s four, and all the other things that she Won’t Do Anymore when she’s four. I remember that Abigail fervently believed, when she was three, that four was the age of being allowed to chew gum. No one’s suggested that to Audrey yet, though. Audrey’s list remains entirely her own.

When I was pregnant with her, I was worried that my labor would go so quickly that the baby would arrive before our midwife did. (When Owen was born, I was in labor for all of ninety minutes.) That didn’t happen, not at all, but Audrey had plenty of other surprises in store for us. I’m sure she still does. Let’s see what four brings, shall we?

Happy birthday, girl of mine. May four be everything you imagine, and then some.