Mary at 5

Yesterday, when Kitty dropped the girls off at school, she received an inadvertent and tremendous compliment from one of the staff at ONS.

When the door opened for Mary and Nora to exit the car, Mary exclaimed to the school staff assisting her "Today is my birthday and I'm FIVE years old!"

The teacher looked in at Kitty and said: "Dr. Spock's theory is that a child at five is a strong projection of what that child will be like as an adult."

When Kitty told me the story I was so proud of Mary - and Kitty. To us, as unbiased as we are, we see Mary as a sweet, tender soul with a giant loving heart and an endless supply of empathy. She is a nurturer. She is a tender heart. She is family oriented. She is generous. She is thoughtful. And she is brilliant (according to recent testing).

So knowing her and thinking that at five years old she has many of the attributes she will have as an adult is a source of great pride and hope. We are proud of who she is and we hope she stays that way.

But I have to give all the credit to my wife. She is the patient one. She is the nurturing one. She teaches Mary and Nora how to respect each other and others. Kitty deserves most of the credit for Mary being who she is. I just gave Mary her temper and scathing wit.

So, Mary turned 5 yesterday at 1:39 AM. It was a milestone achievement for us. One we as a family will always cherish.

Someone once said that life should not be measured in the number of breaths we take but instead in the number of moments that take our breath away. 1:39 AM on May 15, 2002 was one of those moments. And for the last five years Mary has given us so many more of those moments we are assured of leading a rich and rewarding life.

Thanks to all of you who called Mary yesterday, or sent cards and gifts. Mary is riding high as the world's newest "big girl."