Go Shawty; it's your birthday...

...and we gonna party like it's your birthday.

This weekend is busy around my place. ToddlerTate turns three today, and Mrs. McNamar turns @!#% tomorrow. With our second child due in October, I'm realizing that I will have to somehow spread my love and attention beyond ToddlerTate. For three years, my Baby Girl has been, well, my Baby Girl.

A few posts back, I wrote about pioneer women. There is nothing greater for ToddlerTate to achieve than absolute independence. I want her to know that she does not need to rely on others for her self-esteem, her success, or her sense of self. I want her to know that, despite the pain it will cause me, she must eventually leave me. She must stake her claim and then make it happen.

A few years back I taught a student who is a pioneer woman to this day. I regularly reminded her that I believed in her. Today, I say those words to ToddlerTate: I believe in you.