Mercedes turned 3!

My Dusty. She turned 3 on 1.6.11. My baby is 3.

(Dusty is the name the nurses gave her when she was born. Her birthmother wished her gone & we were yet to know God chose us to be her parents. So Dusty she was & still somewhat is - it's a name we refer to her often because it's part of her. I actually love the name. :)

She is so precious & can fake smile like the rest of 'em. Ü

Below she is kissing her birthday gifts. I have no clue why. And yes, her sleeves are wet, as she decided she needed to wash her hands (& obviously arms) before gift time. She refused to let me fix her hair, so ponytail it was. :)

I am a bit sad she is 3. I just want to freeze time so she'll stay little forever. She is a lip gloss (holding it in the below photo, as well as Dora silly bands) fanatic, carrying it/them around in her Caboodle. So cute.

She loves Dora & she adores her singing Happy Birthday Dora from Grandma B. :)

She even reads her own cards! Love this photo! Ü

Just a tad skeptical when Daddy lit the candles. :) And please excuse her chair - that is her chair & it is always filthy! What can I say. Girl's cute, but she's a pig! Ü

She is dreamy! She is one hot mess (thanks Rebecca! :) - so sweet & adoring one minute, & telling you (or Jaguar, typically ;o) how the cow at the cabbage the next. She is so stinkin' cute, very independent, so smart & just a tremendous joy. Such a big girl. When she wants to be held, she'll say "I hold you" while reaching up with her arms. Be still my beating heart. She is happy happy, in so many ways resembles Audi so much, & is just so precious.

As of 1.25.11, she has been removed from the thyroid medication she has taken for 1,084 days. It's a big adjustment & we'll know soon if her body can function properly without the medication. She has labs done in 2 weeks - sooner if I begin to notice signs that she needs the medicine. I'm watching her very closely & was very reluctant to take her off of the medication she has thrived on since she was 5 weeks old. If her body cannot tolerate not having the medication, she will immediately be put back on it & will take it the remainder of her life. That will be the end of that (in other words, there will be no 'trying again' at a later date). If she continues to function normally & her body responds properly without the medication, she'll never have to take it again. She has had thorough testing done over the last couple of years & she does indeed have a thyroid, & her medication dosage has never, ever needed to be adjusted (which it usually does, as baby grows), so it will be very interesting to see the outcome. After what she suffered in utero & after being resuscitated at birth, if God decides she needs to take a pill for the remainder of her life, I'm so fine with that. She is such a blessing, it doesn't matter to me one way or the other. I am just tickled pink she is here, she is healthy & she is simply adored.

To my little big girl - it still hurts me today to think of how your journey began. It hurts my heart. But you ended up right where you needed to be. You are right where you belong. And look at you now! You are a spitfire, full of love & funnies & sassiness & adorablism! You complete our family. You are truly a gift & it is my pleasure to walk with you through life. I love you so much! ♥