The day our family was made complete...

Today, my youngest little love turns three. I cannot imagine that so much time has passed. I am so relieved that we have broken the two year curse of bad stuff on his birthday. I am overjoyed at his very existence.

The truly amazing thing to me is that Matthew was not even this age when Andrew was born. And now, my youngest is truly awake to the world around him; able to verbalize his likes and dislikes, his excitement and his experiences. He is truly awe inspiring.

Joshua was born on Good Friday. I spent the day in labor and cleaning out the boys' closet. I did not bother to call the doctor until I had a good 4 hours of labor under my belt. I was scheduled for my cesarean on the following Wednesday, but he would not wait. Perhaps he sensed that Mama was over being pregnant for the third time and was so anxious to meet him. After a shower for myself , Hubby and the two older boys, we were off to the hospital, ready to rock and roll. I was ready for everything, except the spinal...not so much fun. But the moment I saw him over the blue surgical sheet, I fell in love, hard. And apparently, so did he. His little hand held on to that blue surgical sheet as the doctor held him up for us to behold and my beloved OB/GYN almost dropped him back inside the womb!

As for the yearly curse on his birthday, it started on his first birthday. He got the chicken pox. He was COVERED! My niece was just a few weeks old. He was quarantined. Then Matthew got them. And I prayed to the heavens and all the saints that I would be spared Andrew's contraction of the pox. Blessedly, God took pity on me and decided two with the pox was enough for one mother.

Last year, he fell on his front teeth three days before his second birthday at the barber shop and ended up in the emergency room. My sister's second baby shower was the following day. We were leaving for Disney the day after that. We ended up searching for a pediatric dentist, getting an emergency appointment for x-rays and then heading for Disney, all on his birthday.

With our track record, I was more than a little nervous this year. A few weeks ago, I had every intention of wrapping him up in bubble wrap for the next week until his birthday passed. I said many a little prayer and held my breath. All day today, I have glanced at my cell phone, wondering when the phone call from school would come. Again, we lucked out. After I picked him up from school, we went to the supermarket and picked out the cutest birthday cake ever, a little frog, ready to pounce on good times.

You see, for someone like me, these three boys are walking miracles. And Joshua, the greatest miracle of all. No fertility drugs to conceive him. No neurological disorders in spite of delayed gross motor skill development. No speech issues despite a lapse in speech development due to improvement in gross motor skill development. No brain tumor in spite of numerous photographs clearly showing white spots in his eyes.

Three years and many prayers answered later, I feel as though I can exhale just a bit. I understand how precious life is, what a gift to behold each day is. This gift is not wasted on me.

Three years ago tonight, our family was made complete. I am grateful that my son was born into our family, that he helped complete this labor of love his father and I started. Because, I cannot imagine what our lives would be like if not for him; his joyous, infectious smile and laughter, his running commentary, those big, expressive hazel eyes that could melt the polar caps.

To my Joshua, you are a beautiful reminder of God's love. You have made me look inside myself to become the mother you deserve to have. I love you with all my heart.