Not My Baby Anymore

Three! Three! She's three! Okay, technically not until 7ish tonight. I can hold onto that for a few more hours, right?
This morning Livie came in and woke us up as usual. She climbed in bed with me and I told her happy birthday. Since then, she's been telling anyone she sees, "I three!" From the moment she woke me I have been in a state of shocked gratitude. My baby, my heart baby, is three.
There are certain things that only fellow heart families truly understand and that is how very important birthdays are. In this heart world, you never know which birthday will be the last that you celebrate with your heart hero. We didn't know if Olivia would make it to her first birthday after spending her first four months in and out of the hospital. During those months I first realized the truth to the Dr. Pinto's warning, "You will outlive your child." (We are planning on proving her wrong on that) But we made it to her first birthday, and it was beautiful. Then we weren't sure if she'd make it to her second birthday with the winter of '13-'14 and the heart failure scare.
This last year we finally saw a change. Olivia was healthy, happy, and growing. She had energy and strength and she flourished in all her terrible twoness. Olivia has grown into her personality without her heart holding her back and it has been absolutely perfect despite the difficulties. As a mother, it has been the hardest year of my life thus far. As a heart mom, it has been the best.
Olivia's personality is stubbornness with a sweetness chaser. She loves singing, playing "drums" with any sort of stick. When she does she counts it down with a "One, two, three, four." Livie loves exclamations. At dinner, "Dis is de-lic-ious!" Randomly, "Dat's wee-erd" (weird) When granted a request, "Oh, awesome!" Playing, "Dis is amazing!" I swear, when she says this she sounds just like the little girls in Frozen at the beginning. Same inflection and everything. She loves doing impressions. She does a pretty fantastic Super Grover. She will also copy Andrews chipmunk voice and it's hilarious. We need to introduce her to Yoda I think.
Olivia is the bravest and biggest scaredy cat. Needles, fine. Tape, she's terrified. Spiders immobilize her and she will stand still screaming, but she willingly hops into a anesthesiologists arms even though she knows they'll be doing something uncomfortable to her.
Olivia loves movies (she is my child after all) Court Jester is a new favorite of hers but she still has her other favorites that I've written on here already. We discovered at the cath that Snow White and Winnie the Pooh are her comfort movies. Livie loves playdough, painting, coloring, playing in the sandbox, pretending, etc.
Olivia is my hero. She is going into this next surgery as aware as her three-year-old mind allows and is brave as can be. She proves to me everyday that life is beautiful and amazing. She is my strength and a brilliant light in our home. I don't know what the next year will hold for her. I don't know what this surgery will bring, but today, on her third birthday, I am incredible grateful for the time we've been granted with her thus far. I'm planning on much more time with this brilliant little girl, and many more sappy posts about her beating the odds, and teaching me life lessons, and bringing light to other's. If anyone is going to prove to the world that half of a heart can fill a body with incredible life, Olivia can.
Happy Birthday Olivia Dawn. You are everything I dreamed you would be, and more.