Tessa is 3

11 July

Hey hey! We're finally back and settling into the "relaxing" days of summer after being away for several weeks. So this post on Tessa's birthday is a month late...but that's just how it goes right now.

I'm not quite sure how our "baby" is already three years old.

The past three years have been full of a range of emotions.

Happy, anxious, exciting, sad, scared, confusing, and thankful.

And God was there through it all.

This journey with CLOVES Syndrome is very uncertain, but we cannot express how thankful we are for the things we DO know for certain.

We know that God is in control of Tessa's life. We know that He cares for her, and for us. We know that He hears our prayers. And we know that His ways are perfect.

All of these things that we KNOW make this road much easier to travel on.

Tessa's 3rd birthday came just two days after we attended the CLOVES Family Conference in Boston, so we were still at my sister's house. She loves mermaids, so we had a little mermaid party for her. Total disclaimer: I bought her a couple of random gifts at CVS the night before her birthday. And since we were flying, I decided to leave them at my sister's house. 🤦🏽‍♀️ #fourthkidproblems

She didn't even wait for us to cut the cake- girlfriend just dove right in after we took the candles out.

This mermaid piñata was the perfect size for her little party. And she doubled as an excellent centerpiece until the girls beat her with a stick.

We rounded out the evening by playing in the backyard and making smores. It was a perfectly sweet and simple birthday.💗

Tessa's first birthday was rough, as she had just gotten out of the hospital after becoming very sick and she was still struggling.

Her second birthday was much better, especially since she was finally getting healthy after suffering severe malabsorption and anemia and being hospitalized again just two months prior. She still wasn't able to stand on her legs though.

And now here she is at 3, running and jumping and enjoying being the healthiest she's ever been.

Praise be to God.

Three year old Tessa facts:

Favorite food: Lunchmeat, celery, and any fruit

Favorite character: Barbie

Favorite activity: EVERYTHING. She loves to be outside, she loves to play inside, she loves to do whatever everyone else is doing.

Favorite book: Chicka Chicka Boom Boom

Favorite Song: "Happy Dance" by Mercy Me

Favorite items: Stuffed animals and burpers

Going to start working on: Potty training 😬😭 Her malformation is very much involved in this area, so we aren't exactly sure how things are going to go. I hate potty training even when there aren't vascular malformations involved...so please send all the prayers.