While cleaning out my dresser, I came upon Sprite's baby book,
It was late, I was tired, but I thought I'd have a look.
After all, she's turning three, those days seem far away,
What a lark it would be to compare her beginnings with today.
But my grin turned sour quickly, my anticipation shrank,
When only a few flips in I saw the pages were mostly blank.
A few milestones made it in, her first smile, a roll, a coo,
But the rest sat silent, almost mocking, they should be recorded too.
I felt a bit of failure, mostly for what I had left out,
Sprite will never truly know what her first year was about.
Or will she?
Does she really need to know which fruit she liked and which she spat?
Or when she first walked or talked or stood or crawled or sat?
Will it come up in her lifetime on a resume or test,
That during Baby's First Christmas, she liked her Grover doll the best?
I don't need this book to tell me that our love for her ran deep,
For it took a moment to steal our hearts, and they're still hers to keep.
But what was she that first year but a line of milestones?
No Spriteful personality with her subtle undertones.
All her giggles, sayings, rhymes, and wild little rages,
Can't be captured in the realms of a baby book's slim pages.
The baby book, while good in intent, is really a form letter,
So when she asks to see it, as all kids do, I'll give her something better.
I'll point her to this site of mine, these stories important to me,
And open a door to her past, her very own history.
And now as she embraces "3", leaving behind her two's,
I'm sure this year will bring about an even better muse.
So happy birthday, my dear Sprite, may all your wishes come true,
And remember that your Daddy and I want the best for you.
Keep being you, keep dreaming big, keep running your own race,
I'll be right here, writing it all, trying to match your pace.
Don't worry about your baby book, it doesn't hold what's dear,
The answers to the way you were, the good stuff is right here.
We love you, kid.
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Ah, Free Spin! Consider this the variety pack of the Spin Cycle!
Jan over at Jan's Sushi Bar
Becca over at The Katz Cradle
Mama Badger over at Out of the Boondocks and Into the Burbs...
Ellie Belen over at Distracting Minutia
D.M. Wright over at D.M. Wright Books
Camille over at Archives of Our Lives
Stacy over at Stacy's Random Thoughts
lisleman over at A Few Clowns Short...
The South Dakota Cowgirl over at The South Dakota Cowgirl
Maureen over at IslandRoar -Updated today! Fresh Spin!
Michele over at It's A Dog's Life -Updated today! Fresh Spin!
Ginny Marie over at Lemon Drop Pie -Updated today! Fresh Spin!
Middle Aged Woman over at Unmitigated -Updated today! Fresh Spin!
Andrea over at Gathering Dust -Updated today! Fresh Spin!
Mary Anne over at Miss Mary Anne Sunshine -Updated today! Fresh Spin!
Wicked Step Mom over at Life and Times of a Wicked Step Mom -Updated today! Fresh Spin!
Pseudo over at Pseudonymous High School Teacher -Updated today! Fresh Spin!
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Next Week's Spin: Heroes/ Bravery
This Wednesday being Veteran's Day, well, it got me thinking. We all know someone who's considered a hero to us. Or maybe we're thought of as a hero to others.
Have you ever seen someone do something heroic or brave? Honor them! Have you stepped up in a time of need to help someone else? Tell us!
What does bravery mean to you? What makes someone a hero?
Spin it up and link it here by Friday, November 20th!
See you next week on the Spin Cycle!
Oh, yeah! I promised you a cupcake, didn't I?

Yum!