A decade

She was a joy from the start. I can't believe it's been ten years.

I was still a BYU student when I got pregnant with Rebekah. I knew I would be graduating and staying home with Paul Ivan, so we started to talk about another child. Tonya had tried for a little while to get pregnant and wasn't able to, and it scared me. So we decided not to delay. I found out I was pregnant on Paul Ivan's first birthday. I guess I wasn't going to be faced with Tonya's trials.

When the day came to have Rebekah, all was going smoothly until......I got my epidural. Minutes, and I mean minutes, later the nurses scrambled, dropped my bed, and wheeled me into the OR. She was born within 7 minutes. Her cord was around her neck and her heartbeat took a plunge. And it didn't come back. She ended up being just fine, but the ordeal was a little much for me and Paul to handle. Paul declared we would have no more children. He didn't keep his word.

Having Paul and Rebekah so close in age (19 months) was a little rough at times. I didn't sleep for a few years. I remember I stopped wearing make-up for quite a while. I cried in utter exhaustion some nights. We lived in Provo, completely isolated from any family, so I didn't have any help. I felt like I had to do it all because my husband was a full-time student and a full-time employee, and I was nursing. Both of us not sleeping wouldn't help anything, so I just did the best I could. (note: we waited an extra year before having Isaac)

Rebekah was always a sweet little girl. As a toddler, she was beautiful. Everyone would stop to tell me how pretty she was. I always agreed. She still gets told how beautiful she is. I still agree. But I hope that is not where she puts her value. She may be beautiful on the outside, but Rebekah has a strong spirit and a pure heart. She would never think of breaking the commandments. She has a testimony of the Savior and strives in everything she does to live that testimony. Part of what makes her so beautiful is her countenance. She cares for others, and really understands the Golden Rule. I love that about her. I think she personifies President Hinckley's admonition to "be true."

It's been a joy for me to be able to include Rebekah in my activities over the last few months. She's gone to several scrapbooking nights with me. She likes to attend Relief Society functions. We had a RS monthly birthday party last Saturday and I told Rebekah she couldn't go. When I got there, a couple of the ladies asked where Rebekah was. They were expecting her. I kinda felt bad for excluding her. I'm grateful that she shares my interests of scrapbooking and card making. It's fun to watch her develop her talents.

I just realized I could go on forever about her, so I'll sum it up: she's a great student, a talented writer, and a valuable family member. And she's pretty good on the piano.

Happy birthday, Rebekah. I love you, and I hope I show it everyday.