My oldest daughter Brianna turned 27 today. I don’t know how I got so old. I still think of my kids as teenagers, and yet she is getting married in a couple of months. For someone who started out life so tiny and fragile, she’s become a strong, independent woman. I wrote about this years ago, but Brianna was born three months early and spend two and a half months in the NICU. She was only 3 pounds at birth.

The first time I held her was about a week after she was born, on Mother’s Day. And I spent every day of the months before she came home sitting next to her incubator and worrying. Like a mother does, I still worry about her. I worry about her happiness, her future, and her safety. The one thing I don’t worry about is the person she’s become, someone who is kind, intelligent, creative and beautiful.

It’s also my youngest sister’s birthday today. I remember as Brianna was born, it struck me that it was Jenny’s birthday. At the time, I wasn’t sure how I felt about them sharing the day. However, I can’t imagine a better person to link to my daughter. Jenny is also intelligent, funny, beautiful and giving.

So I’m thankful today for both of these women on their birthday. They have added joy to my life.