Today is Stinky's birthday!...

Molly, the oldest of my Irish triplets turns 19 today. It's a very happy happy/sad day.... I love the woman she is becoming but I miss the little girl she was.

When she was really little Molly thought all the hoopla on Halloween was in celebration of her birthday, and of course I did nothing to dissuade her from thinking that. I still don't.


I think there is at least one story that shows who you really are as a person, please let me share two quick stories that demonstrates what kind of person my Molly is.

Story 1:

She was 6 at the time, had long hair, way down her back long hair, and one day came into the kitchen and announced to us that she wanted to have her hair cut off so she should could "donate to the company that makes wigs for sick kids", then she turned on her heals and walked away. Her mom and I just looked at each other until one of us finally said "where did that come from?".

Our plan was to just wait and see if it was something she still wanted in a few days. Well, by the end of the week she had bugged us so much that I was ready to let her shave her head, get tattoos, and pierce anything she wanted.

So down to the hair salon we want, off came her hair, and it was sent to Locks of Love.

Story 2:

We really get into Christmas at our house, especially when the girls were still "believers", for weeks we'd tell elaborate stories about what we want most and why, and one year I wanted a telescope. We had marked the day on the calendar when Santa was going to be at the fire station (he lands on the roof and comes down the big ladder to see the kids) and when the day finally arrived it was cold and the line was long, Santa long, so it took quite some time before we reached the big guy. When it was finally her turn with Santa he asked Molly what she wanted and without hesitation the first things she said was "I want you to bring my dad a telescope".

Ya, I was speechless.

Now she is taller than her mom, looks far more like a woman than I like, and I am no longer the coolest man she knows (I have been replaced by some guy named Jason Aldean).

This has been a busy year for her, she has graduated high school, started college, and now drives around in her own car (his name is Steve), but she still kisses me before she leaves the house, will sit next to me on the couch while we watch TV, will say she loves me in front of her friends, and is still the same caring girl who gave her hair away and used her time with Santa for the benefit of someone else.

Happy birthday Molly, I love you!