Happy 3rd Birthday Rachel!

Rachel was born on July 25, 2006.  The first time they let me hold her was a full 7 days after she was born.  The very first day we started what is called Kangaroo Care.  She was so tiny that basically she fit inside my shirt with room to spare.  She’d lay on my chest and listen to my heartbeat.   Our first attempt lasted about an hour.  As she got stronger our kangaroo care time got longer and longer.  Those moments were so precious to me.  Sometimes we’d both fall asleep, other times I’d read her a story.  Some days I just talked.  I would tell her about the family back on Maui that was so anxious to meet her.  I would describe her nursery and our home in great detail.  I would tell her about all the things we would do and the people we would see when we got home.  I would tell her how much we loved her.   But most of the time we sat quietly, both of us comforted by the closeness.  I’d hum her the same tune over and over again.  I don’t even know the name of the song.  It’s a French song that I had just heard in a movie and for some reason it’s the song that would come to me everytime I held her close.    Rachel turns 3 today.  And to this day whenever she needs to be comforted the most, she lays her body on mine with her head on my chest and listens to my heartbeat.  It’s a little more difficult now, because she’s 30 lbs  compared to the barely 2 lbs she was then and because she’s now 38 inches tall…to my 60 inches.  But the feeling is the same…we’re both immediately comforted by the closeness….it envelopes us, as soon as I start humming that French tune.