Dear Nora and Tessa,

On Sunday night, your father and I sat on the couch long after you went to bed and reminisced over the past year.  Mondays, every Monday, since you have been born, remind me of your birthday.  It is a strange memory in some ways, that every Monday morning, as I drive into work, I remember the same drive your father and I took to the hospital.  I can see St. Luke’s Hospital, where you were born, from my office window–just a couple of blocks from my office building.  Often, as I settle in for the week I sip my coffee and look over at the hospital, remembering…   

 It is almost like a movie of that day–a great love story–that plays through my mind, August 14, 2006.  I suppose it was a hot, sunny day–a day fit for a Kansas summer.  I remember many of the doctors and nurses that helped us.  I remember around 1:00 in the afternoon I ordered your father to “go eat something NOW because you might not otherwise get a chance to eat today“.  It was true.   I remember the exact moment that hit me like a bus when I realized that I HAVE TO HAVE THE EPIDURAL RIGHT NOW.  And after that, so many of the details were lost to me in the fog of labor. 

And then all of a sudden, in two separate moments of time that changed our world forever, Nora Marie, you were born at 2:41 pm, and then Tessa Leigh, you were born at 4:14 pm.  And our lives began all over again.  Two little changes, so profound, so dramatic, so expansive that our lives and love and hearts would forever encompass both of you.

Nora, you are an angel.  Sweet and innocent.  You were the first to twist my heart with your first (and my favorite) word, “Mum mum mum”.  Always in triplicate.

 Your flirty glances and sweet smiles are received with joy and elation by everyone you encounter. 

 You are our comic-relief amidst the chaos.  (Nora on the right)

Tessa, you are so full of curiosity and compassion.  You are happy and engaged and eager to learn.

What amazes me most about you is that not only do you already know the rules about everything, but you know when you are following the rules, and you know when you are not following the rules…

And you love to sing and coo and sing and coo and sing…

As you both have grown over the last year, we have learned so much about you and about ourselves.

Happy Birthday, Nora Marie, my little Norita.  I love you.

Happy Birthday, Tessa Leigh, my T-bird.  I love you.