The Locket

Feb 27
Amy

Today was Reagan’s 9th birthday.  I had such a hard time expressing what it felt like to me when Emma turned 16, but it was nothing compared to this.  Realizing that this is the last year my last child will be in single digits.  It’s hard.  She’s my baby girl, and I want her to stay that way forever!  I am not going to write about those feelings in this post.  I have something else I want to share.

I have known about the gift my parents were giving Reagan for a long time, and I knew the moment my mom mentioned it that Reagan would be thrilled.  She is my nature girl, and her two favorite activities are bird watching and catching butterflies.  Part of my parents’ gift to her were butterfly and bird field guides so Reagan can start to identify all the wildlife she sees.  The other part of the gift is just so special because it is a part of our family history that incorporates some of Reagan’s love for butterflies.  The most wonderful thing about it for me is the explanation of the gift that explains something Reagan has in common with her Great-Grandma Maxine.  My mother’s mom passed away when I was young, and to see a bit of her legacy passed down to my daughter was almost more than I could take tonight – especially when Reagan read the letter out loud.  Even though I knew this gift was coming, it was still such a fantastic thing to see her open it, understand it, and most of all, fall head-over-heels in love with it immediately!

Thank you, Mom and Dad, for giving Reagan such a heart-felt gift that means so much to her, me, and so many others in our family.  Thank you, Grandma Maxine, for passing a bit of your spirit down to my daughter.

The video of Reagan reading her letter:

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UN_nIDOf8x0]

Here is the explanation typed out:

 Reagan –

This locket belonged to your great-grandmother, Maxine.  She loved butterflies and always made sure she had flowers which would attract them to her garden.

The front of the locket is glass.  An artist paints the black parts on the back of the glass, then they cut the orange and blue parts from the wings of butterflies and put them behind the scene they painted.

The photo is of the Morpho butterfly they use to make the background.  When we were in Costa Rica we lived in a house on “stilts” and these beautiful Morphos would flutter by just below our windows.  Your mommy (and nana and papa, too) really enjoyed watching them float through the air.

We hope you enjoy this necklace!!

Nana & Papa

A few pictures of Miss Reagan and her new/old piece of jewelry:

My parent’s included a printed picture of a Morpho butterfly in Reagan’s letter, as well.  This is what they look like in their natural environment.

Reagan’s very first comment was, “I’m going to wear this necklace every day, and I’m never going to take it off.”  I had to pull rank and tell her it could be stored in her jewelry box, but that it would not be leaving the house unless it was for a special occasion.