the lovelies | twelve

every year – and there have been a dozen now – we gather ourselves in a cathedral of celebration.

and with a deep exhale and glittering eyes, you blow out the candles and wish BIG.

meanwhile, i tumble toward reflection – overwhelmed by how emotionally renovated i am having been in your comfortable presence now for 12 years.

there is something about steeping myself in your fearless smiles . . . and how your faces boast that falling in love with life again every day is the most uncomplicated thing we can do for ourselves.

we are flush with intoxication from laughter breezing through our home at all hours of the day . . . and how easily worry evaporates with only a few contagious giggles.

the magic of your conversations feeds our fascination . . . while your sisterly shenanigans make my heart plump with thickening joy.

and you have no idea how much spark, invisible to the eye, you possess in a single fingertip. all that wisdom and light pooling in your own reservoir of magic + LOVE.

this last year has seen the arrival of bright lippy and emoji-only texts, quicksilver comments that render us in stitches, middle school {enough said, yes?}, and some real life anxiety from real world glimpses. . .

what i savor most?

your burgeoning self-awareness – and in its arms, you are learning to be selective. creative. intentional.

and that, my beautiful darlings, makes the vibrations in my chest almost bigger than my body. for when the time comes for you to go your own way, i have every expectation you will be a divine force of nature.

you had our hearts 12 years ago. . .

and the rhapsody continues, making our hearts beat wildly that you chose us!

happy, HAPPY birthday, lovelies!

xo