By Makayla Harvey 
She has been a miracle from the beginning.
You see that girl, I never knew if she would make it through all the pregnancy complications. From subchorionic hemorrhages that seemed like I was miscarrying, to being told she could be born with spina bifida and possibly having to deliver in a different state, to waking up thinking I was losing her again, to having a calcified spot on her spleen that, after the emergency C-section, completely disappeared.
She’s the beauty in the blessings from God, and I know the power of prayer prevailed.
She’s the girl who survived anaphylactic shock after eating scrambled eggs that she had previously eaten only for us to discover she has a severe egg allergy.
She’s the girl who continues to defy the odds.
She’s the girl who will light up any room she’s in.
She’s our little dancing queen who has loved to dance before she could even crawl and will now dance her heart out wherever she can.
She loves to dress up and have a ball, even wearing her princess dresses to the mall.
She loves Barbies and babies. She loves princesses and tea parties.
She loves mermaids and glitter. She can be charming and sweet, and turn sour and bitter.
She loves roses and daisies, and to be a little crazy.
She loves to look in the mirror and say, “I’m gorgeous and beautiful,” and I pray she feels that every day. Her attitude is just so amazing and cool.
She loves all things Disney and asks to go back all the time. She loves to sing all the songs and read books of all kinds.
She loves heart-shaped everything, and I hope she always knows the love she deserves.
She even loves what her “bubba” loves too, even though they get on each other’s nerves. She will play the Princess Peach to his Mario, Cruz to his Lightning McQueen, Skye to his Chase, and Thing 2 to his Thing 1. She even has a way of making him be the Prince Eric to her Ariel (or baby Melody, depending on the day).
She loves hard but knows how to fight harder and hold her own.
She’s wild and wonderful, like West Virginia, where my side of the family is from.
She’s breathtakingly beautiful and remarkably fearless. She’s funny and she’s silly.
She’s my bundle of joy who reminds me of the little girl I used be.
You see, that girl—she saved me in ways she may never believe.
She’s everything I lost along the way, and she carries a glow wherever she goes.
I hope she always knows she’s forever the “inspo.” She’s all I want to be, and turning three.
Happy third birthday, my beautiful bundle of joy!
by Mary Ann Blair 
by Jen Mearns 
