Memories of Maddie

Yesterday was the perfect beach day.

The weather was hot, but not sweltering; the water was brisk, but refreshing.  Ellie had a friend to play with and Mira had Mimi the Mermaid (grandma), which meant I could relax, which as any parent knows is rare when you combine kids and the beach.

Ellie was on her 100th boogie board ride of the day and Mira was frolicking along the water’s edge when it hit me…

I sat in this same spot seven years ago, almost to the day, 9 months pregnant, when Maddie and her family washed in to our lives.

If you haven’t read that story before, I’d love you read it here.

I am a true believer in signs. On that hot July day back in 2016, Maddie was everything I needed to put me in the right mindset and give me the strength to bring our own unknown miracle into the world just one week later.

It occurred to me the day we met Maddie, that she was seven years old. I specifically remember talking to her mom about what it was like having three 7-year-old girls. Maddie was the only one of the triplets to have dwarfism, her two other sisters being of average height.

I couldn’t help but wonder about them and where they are today. A trio of teenage girls! I would love for them to meet Mira and see how that huge bump became the most incredible little girl who is every bit as sassy and fierce as Maddie was that day. How her love for the ocean can only be out measured by the love she has for her own sister.

I’d tell her mom that she was right all along. We had been given a remarkable gift! The road we have traveled has had its share of twists and turns, but our journey has changed us all in the most beautiful way.

I sat back in my beach chair, watching Mira dance in the waves, and tried to wrap my head around the last seven years, looking forward to the next seven and whatever the tide may bring.